also called The Arabian Nights.
ONE THOUSAND and One Nights is a collection of stories collected over thousands of years by various authors, translators and scholars in various countries. These collections of tales trace their roots back to ancient Arabia and Yemen, ancient India, ancient Asia Minor, ancient Persia, ancient Egypt, ancient Mesopotamian Mythology, ancient Syria, and medieval Arabic folk stories from the Caliphate era. Though an original manuscript has never been found, several versions date the collection's genesis to somewhere between AD 800-900.
What is common throughout all the editions of The Nights is the initial frame story of the ruler Shahryar and his wife Scheherazade and the framing device incorporated throughout the tales themselves. The stories proceed from this original tale; some are framed within other tales, while others begin and end of their own accord. Some editions contain only a few hundred nights, while others include 1001 or more "nights."
With her encyclopedic knowledge and narrative skills, Scheherazade established a pattern of spinning out an exciting tale, but stopping before it reached an end, sparking the imagination of Shahrayar.
And so the King kept Scheherazade alive as he eagerly anticipated each new story, until, ONE THOUSAND and one adventurous nights, and three sons later, the King had not only been entertained but wisely educated in morality and kindness by Scheherazade who became his Queen, saving the rest of the kingdom’s young women from slaughter.
The tales vary widely: they include historical tales, love stories, tragedies, comedies, poems, burlesques, various forms of erotica, and Muslim religious legends. Numerous stories depict djinn, magicians, and legendary places, which are often intermingled with real people and geography; the historical caliph Harun al-Rashid is a common protagonist, as are his alleged court poet Abu Nuwas and his vizier, Ja'far al-Barmaki.theteach
