Editing Abbasid Caliphate (section)

===Literature===
{{Main|Islamic literature|Arabic literature|Arabic epic literature|Persian literature}}
{{Further |Islamic poetry|Arabic poetry|Turkish poetry|Persian poetry}}
[[File:More tales from the Arabian nights-14566176968.jpg|right|thumb|Illustration from ''More tales from the Arabian nights'' (1915)]]

The best-known fiction from the Islamic world is ''[[One Thousand and One Nights]]'', a collection of fantastical folk tales, legends and parables compiled primarily during the Abbasid era. The collection is recorded as having originated from an Arabic translation of a Sassanian-era Persian prototype, with likely origins in Indian literary traditions. Stories from [[Arabic literature|Arabic]], [[Persian literature|Persian]], Mesopotamian, and [[Egyptian literature|Egyptian]] folklore and literature were later incorporated. The epic is believed to have taken shape in the 10th century and reached its final form by the 14th century; the number and type of tales have varied from one manuscript to another.<ref name="arabianNights">{{Harvnb|Grant|Clute|1999|p=51}}.</ref> All Arabian [[fantasy]] tales were often called "Arabian Nights" when translated into English, regardless of whether they appeared in ''The Book of One Thousand and One Nights''.<ref name="arabianNights" /> This epic has been influential in the West since it was translated in the 18th century, first by [[Antoine Galland]].<ref>{{harvnb|de Camp|1976|p=10}}</ref> Many imitations were written, especially in France.<ref name="arabianNights2">{{harvnb|Grant|Clute|1999|p=52}}</ref> Various characters from this epic have themselves become cultural icons in Western culture, such as [[Aladdin]], [[Sinbad]] and [[Ali Baba]].

A famous example of Islamic poetry on [[romance (love)|romance]] was ''[[Layla and Majnun]]'', an originally [[Arabic]] story which was further developed by [[Iranian peoples|Iranian]], [[Azerbaijani people|Azerbaijani]] and other poets in the [[Persian language|Persian]], [[Azerbaijani language|Azerbaijani]], and [[Turkish language|Turkish]] languages.<ref>{{harvnb|Clinton|2000|pp=15–16}}</ref> It is a [[Tragedy|tragic]] story of undying love much like the later ''[[Romeo and Juliet]]''.{{citation needed|date=May 2015}}

Arabic poetry reached its greatest height in the Abbasid era, especially before the loss of central authority and the rise of the Persianate dynasties. Writers like [[Abu Tammam]] and [[Abu Nuwas]] were closely connected to the caliphal court in Baghdad during the early 9th century, while others such as [[al-Mutanabbi]] received their patronage from regional courts.

Under Harun al-Rashid, Baghdad was renowned for its bookstores, which proliferated after the making of paper was introduced. Chinese papermakers had been among those taken prisoner by the Arabs at the [[Battle of Talas]] in 751. As prisoners of war, they were dispatched to [[Samarkand]], where they helped set up the first Arab paper mill. In time, paper replaced parchment as the medium for writing, and the production of books greatly increased. These events had an academic and societal impact that could be broadly compared to the introduction of the [[printing press]] in the West. Paper aided in communication and record-keeping, it also brought a new sophistication and complexity to businesses, banking, and the civil service. In 794, [[Jafa al-Barmak]] built the first paper mill in Baghdad, and from there the technology circulated. Harun required that paper be employed in government dealings, since something recorded on paper could not easily be changed or removed, and eventually, an entire street in Baghdad's business district was dedicated to selling paper and books.{{sfn|Bobrick|2012|p=78}}