Mustawfī, Ḥamd-Allāh ibn Abī Bakr Qazvīnī fl. ca. 740/1339-40

Historian

Ḥamd-Allāh ibn Abī Bakr Qazvīnī was born around the year 680/1281-2 in the town of Qazvīn. His great-grandfather served as the Auditor-General of Iraq and thus his family inherited the appellation “Mustawfī”. Ḥamd-Allāh himself began a career in accounting, having been appointed financial director of Qazvīn and other neighboring districts, before his interest in history took hold. He is mostly known for two historical works: Taʾrīḫ-i guzīdah and Nuzhat al-qulūb, both considered valuable resources on account of the author’s description and commentary of his own times. Ḥamd-Allāh’s exact date of death is not known.

Works

Nuzhat al-qulūb     The Pleasure of Hearts

Completed 740/1339-40.

Nuzhat al-qulūb is an essentially cosmographical and geographical work, which is considered close to the “only source for the whole human geography of the last period of the Ilkhan Empire”.

Taʾrīḫ-i guzīdah     The Select History

Completed 730/1329-30.

Taʾrīḫ-i guzīdah is a general history that extends to 730/1329-30. Its topics include the early Prophets, Muḥammad and the Caliphs, and Islamic Dynasties, among others.