Catalogue: Adab Literature

The term adab refers to a large and varied range of classical Islamic literature concerned with social behaviour. The term adab can be defined, depending upon context, in a number of ways: 'manners', 'good breeding', 'culture', or even 'belles-lettres', though it is most often left simply untranslated. The treatises often incorporate humorous stories and other anecdotes to lighten the guidance being given.

See H. Kilpatrick, 'adab' in Encyclopedia of Arabic Literature, ed. by Julie Scott Meisami and Paul Starkey (London: Routledge, 1998), vol. 1, pp. 54-6.