Ḥamzanāma: The Various Versions

The Hamzanāma is the magnum opus of the dāstān tradition in the Muslim world and is known in numerous versions and redactions. This paper investigates the relations among four different versions of the Hamzanāma, spanning five centuries, in an attempt to gauge and analyse how this specific dāstān developed over time and geographical space. Only two of these four versions have garnered attention from researchers. First is the classic version, studied in detail by Van Ronkel (1895), who compared it with the Arabic, Malay, and Javanese versions. The Tehran edition by Jaʿfar Shuʿar (1968), which has 69 chapters, and the Bombay lithograph edition (1894–5), comprising 70 chapters, are considered to be variants of this version. The second is the famous Mughal illuminated manuscript commissioned by Emperor Akbar (r. 1556–1605). While the paintings have been closely studied by art historians, the narrative itself has not gained much scholarly attention. Besides these two, an abridged version titled Zubdat al-Rumuz was compiled by Hājjī Qiṣṣa-khwān Hamadānī in 1613 in the Deccan and another one, Rumuz-i Hamza, was published in seven volumes between 1857 and 1860 in Tehran. Several other versions of the Hamzanāma exist in Iran and in the Indian Subcontinent but only a few have undergone serious scholarly investigation. This paper aims to rectify the situation making the first step towards a comprehensive inquiry into one of the fascinating representatives of the long-standing storytelling tradition.