The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám

FitzGerald's Victorian rendering of Khayyám's Persian quatrains — carpe diem under the bough, in accidental English fame.

Specifications & Metrics

author

Edward FitzGerald (after Omar Khayyám)

type

Quatrain sequence in translation

era

Victorian (1859)

language

English (from Persian)

verse form

Ruba'i quatrains

cantos count

101

Core Principles & Analysis

• FitzGerald's 1859 translation of Khayyám's quatrains nearly vanished until found on a penny table.
• Its fifth edition's 101 quatrains became one of the most quoted books in English.
• 'A Jug of Wine, a Loaf of Bread — and Thou' entered the language from its pages.

Sources

• Wikipedia: Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam