Hariri (Abu Muhammad al-Kasim al-Hariri) [key], 1054–1122, Arab writer of Basra. His principal work is one of the most popular of Arabic books. It is called Makamat [literary assemblies], the name of a literary genre that was much affected at this time. It consists of 50 episodes, in which an old rogue, Abu Zaid, goes from place to place earning his living by his clever talk and his wits. It is written in an almost euphuistic style. Numerous Western translations have been made since the 17th cent.
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