Fathnāmah-i Sind(신드征復記)의 사료적 가치와 신라관련 부분의 분석

Abstract

The primary objective of preparing this article is to re-interpretate some of the Silla related parts of Fathnāmah-i Sind(The Arab Conquest of Sind), which are reported mainly on the authority of Abu al-Hasan Ali b. Muhammad al-Madā'ini(752~839) and then translated into Persian by Ali b. Hamid b. Abubakr Kufi in 1216. "The King of ‘Jazīrat al-Yaqūt(جزيرة أليأقوت)(Island of Ruby)' himself had sent to Hajjaj(The Governor of Basra, Iraq), the orphan children and wives born in his territories. They were the family members of Muslim merchants who had died there, the king did so in order to establish close cordial relations....." Fathnāmah-i Sind(FN) deals with earlier accounts and the final conquest of Sind led by the Arab commander, Muhammad b. Qasim. Besides this, the FN contains considerable information on geographical locations and close maritime relations between Iraq and the neighboring areas and beyond. Although Jazīrat al-Yaqūt, literally meaning "Island of Ruby" in FN is regarded as Serendib(Ceylon, modern Sri Lanka) in general by many medieval and modern historians, it is more likely Silla(a Korean kingdom) of the early 8th century. Of course there are some obvious reasons for identifying Jazīrat al-Yaqūt as Ceylon, because the Arab merchants had frequented Ceylon from pre-Islamic times for trade and political relations. In addition, Ceylon has been a Jazīrat al-Yaqūt in its literal sense in so far as it was also a ruby producing island. But, rather, Biruni named Jazīrat al-Yaqūt not because of its rubies but because of the beauty of its women. Despite the above arguments, we should consider the fact that Madā'ini and his student Baladhuri who were the earliest and most trustworthy authorities on FN did not equate Jazīrat al-Yaqūt with Serendib(Ceylon). Moreover, Biruni, the well-known geographer of the medieval Islamic world, also discussed that Jazīrat al-Yaqūt is not related to Serendib, but is placed in the extreme east of the inhabited world. Furthermore supporting Biruni's geographical ideas, Ibn Khurdadhbih(886 died), Ibn Sa'id(1214~1286), Abu'l Fida(1273~1331), Ibn Rustah(914 died) and Al-Najdi(15th C.) who all mentioned Silla in their books had placed it 'east of the equator', 'to the far east of the ocean', ''to the extreme end of China', etc. We already know the plentiful manuscripts written in Arabic-Persian that show Muslims' residence in Silla between the 9~16th centuries. Masu'di(957 died) significantly identified some of Muslims living in Silla as Iraqis. And recently Kushnameh, an ancient Persian epic described in detail the coming of the Persian royal families to Silla to make residence for a while and then they returned to Baghdad through sea routes. Taking all these facts into consideration, it safely can be said that the country name of Jazīrat al-Yaqūt in FN is Silla, not Ceylon.