The Musician Ziryab’s Long-Standing Effects on Anda-Lus Culture and Europe

Ziryab (Ali b. Nafi) was a pupil of the reputed musician İbrâhim al-Mawsili and the liberated slave of the Abbasid Caliphate Mahdi (775-785). He was introduced to Harun al-Rashid by İshak al-Mawsili and displayed a perfect performance before him. However, al-Mawsili was jealous of his admired performance, so the musician was forced to flee Bagh-dad. After he left Baghdad, Ziryab travelled across North Africa, reaching Andalus. Well received by the court officials in Andalus, he became a rather influential and highly respected person. Cordially welcome by the highest protocol members in Andalus, Ziryab worked as the top musician in the palace of Amir (gov-ernor) Abdurrahman II (822-852) of Andalus Umayyad Dynasty.Ziryab's influence in Andalus was not only restricted to his musical fame. He brought about innovations which would tremendously affect the cultural life of Andalus. He was a pioneer in many fields such as hairstyle, fashion design, gastgronomy, astrology and so on. As a person coming from Baghdad, Ziryab culturally became a prominent figure in the Andalus Umayyads' competition with Abbassids. He was influential not only in Andalus and during his lifetime but also in the West, and North Africa, with his influence surviving nowadays. The present article deals with Ziryab's life, education, his passage to Andalus and his activities there as well as his effects on the West.