Anthologist
Sadīd al-Dīn Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad Buḫārī ʿAwfī was probably born and educated in Buḫārā. After finishing his studies, he traveled extensively, during which he met many scholars and learned men. He went to Samarkand, serving the prince of the Sultan for a short while, and then moved to Ḫwārazm followed by a tour of Ḫurāsān and a stay in Herat. Some time after 607/1208, ʿAwfī decided to migrate to India. He seems to have resided there for the remainder of his life. It is also where he composed his two major works:
Lubāb al-albāb and
Javāmiʿ al-ḥikāyāt va lavāmiʿ al-rivāyāt, both of which fall in the genre of anthology. ʿAwfī most likely died ca. 630/1232-3.
Lubāb al-albāb
Lubāb al-albāb is an anthology of biographies of close to 300 poets. It is the oldest anthology of its kind in the Persian language and contains information on certain periods not to be found elsewhere. It was composed ca. 617-18/1221-22.
Javāmiʿ al-ḥikāyāt va lavāmiʿ al-rivāyāt
Javāmiʿ al-ḥikāyāt va lavāmiʿ al-rivāyāt contains more than “2000 historical and literary anecdotes relating to the various dynasties that ruled Persia before the Mongol invasion”. This work has great value as an important original source since much of the material used is drawn from lost or rare works. It was completed ca. 625/1228.