ANTAR, an'thr, or ANTARA, IBN SHADDAD AL-ABSI. A celebrated Arabic hero of the seventh century, and one of the famous pre Islamic poets of Arabia. His mother was a black slave, Seliba, and as the son of a slave he was also regarded as a slave, and obliged to render menial services to the members of his tribe. Through his warlike exploits, however, he se cured not only his freedom, but a prominent position in his tribe. He died as a hero in battle. While neither the date of his birth nor of his death is known, lie appears to have died shortly before the appearance of Mohammed, in the early part of the seventh century. He gained equal fame among the Arabs as a poet and as a hero. Of his poetical achievements, however, only one specimen has come down to us, which recounts his deeds, and sings of his love for Abla, whom he married. This poem is generally in chided in the collection of the choicest seven Arabic poems, known as the iloallakat—a name which describes those poems as "the exalted ones." A recent edition of the Arabic text is by L. Abel, Wgrter8erteiehnisse zur altarabisehen Pocsic I. (Berlin, IS91) ; an English translation by .1ohnson in Se•e,/ -I ea bin Poems (London,
1897). Such was Antar's renown as a warrior that he becomes the prototype of the hero in the romantic literature of the Arabs. Ile is the central figure in the most famous of Arab ro mances. which hears the name A tor and is commonly ascribed to Al-AsmiN, who lived in the eighth century. The romance of A Oar, however. as known to us, is a compilation which has passed through various hands, and has grad ually grown to huge proportions. It gives an attractive and faithful picture of Bedouin life, and is rich in epic interest, although too monot onous to satisfy the taste of the European read er. A translation of a portion of it into English was made by Hamilton in 1820 (.t n t a r : A Bed ouin Romance, 4 volumes, London). A Difcan or collection of 28 peems is also attributed to him. The memory of Antar is also preserved in various places of the East which bear his name. Con sult Goldziher, Globus lxiv.. 65, 67, and Thor Lecke. Anta raft (Leipzig, 1867). The text has been published at Beirut and Cairo.