Al-Asma'i or Asma`i [Abu Sa`id `Abd al-Malik ibn Qurayb al-Asma`i] (c. 740-828) (Arabic: ‏أبو سعيد عبد الملك ابن قريب الأصمعي‎) was an Arab scholar of the so-called Basra school.

He was born of pure Arab stock in Basralanguage and literature from all foreign influence. Some of his scholars attained high rank as literary men.

Of Asma'i's many works mentioned in the catalogue known as the Fihrist, only about half a dozen are extant. These include the Book of Distinction, the Book of the Wild Animals, the Book of the Horse, and the Book of the Sheep.

[edit] See also

• List of Arab scientists and scholars.

[edit] References

• This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica, Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.