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Poetry in the UAE
Although the Arabs have known other forms of art such as calligraphy, arabesque, architecture and music, poetry has always occupied the first position in Arabic art since pre-Islamic days. Only in post-Second World War times did new art forms such as novels, short stories, songs and above all, the cinema and television, begin to dethrone poetry.
It is worth remembering that in pre-Islamic days, the Arabs hung their greatest poems or odes on the walls of their holiest shrine, the Ka'aba in Mecca, perhaps in the same way that we hang painting masterpieces in museums today. Those poems known as the seven (or ten) Muallaqat (i.e. hung ones) are still read and cherished today even by schoolchildren despite their use of archaic words.
The late nineteenth century and early twentieth century saw the revival of poetry and the appearance of several outstanding poets including the Egyptian Ahmed Shawqi (1868–1932), possibly the greatest Arab poet since Al Mutanabi, who lived a thousand years earlier.
Arabic poetry since pre-Islamic times until the middle of the twentieth century followed the sixteen meters formulated by the eighth century Gulf Arab scholar, Al Khalil bin Ahmed. The line or bait adhered to the two hemistitches form, each with an equal number of feet, all the second hemistitches ending in the same rhyming letter and sound throughout the poem.
Just after the Second World War the Iraqi poets Al Sayyab and his compatriot poetess Nazek Al Malaikah popularized the modern tafila form, in which the same foot is used throughout the poem, but the number of feet changes from line to line with irregular rhyming.
In the UAE, it is difficult to find records of verse written in Classical Arabic by poets who lived in the area known now as the United Arab Emirates earlier than this century. However, some good early nabati poetry was written in the vernacular style and the best known of the earlier poets is Ibn Daher who lived in Ra's al-Khaimah in the seventeenth century.
Nabati poetry is still very popular in the UAE, especially since it is written by many of the rulers and sheikhs, including President HH Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and HH General Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Crown Prince of Dubai and Minister of Defence.
It is worth remembering that in pre-Islamic days, the Arabs hung their greatest poems or odes on the walls of their holiest shrine, the Ka'aba in Mecca, perhaps in the same way that we hang painting masterpieces in museums today. Those poems known as the seven (or ten) Muallaqat (i.e. hung ones) are still read and cherished today even by schoolchildren despite their use of archaic words.
The late nineteenth century and early twentieth century saw the revival of poetry and the appearance of several outstanding poets including the Egyptian Ahmed Shawqi (1868–1932), possibly the greatest Arab poet since Al Mutanabi, who lived a thousand years earlier.
Arabic poetry since pre-Islamic times until the middle of the twentieth century followed the sixteen meters formulated by the eighth century Gulf Arab scholar, Al Khalil bin Ahmed. The line or bait adhered to the two hemistitches form, each with an equal number of feet, all the second hemistitches ending in the same rhyming letter and sound throughout the poem.
Just after the Second World War the Iraqi poets Al Sayyab and his compatriot poetess Nazek Al Malaikah popularized the modern tafila form, in which the same foot is used throughout the poem, but the number of feet changes from line to line with irregular rhyming.
In the UAE, it is difficult to find records of verse written in Classical Arabic by poets who lived in the area known now as the United Arab Emirates earlier than this century. However, some good early nabati poetry was written in the vernacular style and the best known of the earlier poets is Ibn Daher who lived in Ra's al-Khaimah in the seventeenth century.
Nabati poetry is still very popular in the UAE, especially since it is written by many of the rulers and sheikhs, including President HH Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and HH General Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Crown Prince of Dubai and Minister of Defence.
© 2026 Dr. Shihab Ghanem. All rights reserved.