حَبہٕ خوتوٗن

Habba Khatoon (born Zoon; 1554–1609; sometimes spelled Khatun), also known by the honorary title The Nightingale of Kashmir, was a Kashmiri Muslim poet and ascetic in the 16th century. Her compositions have been sung and recited countless times since their inception in the valley, and she's considered as one of the greatest Kashmiri poets of all time, with unmatched verbal prowess.

Biography

She was born in a small village in Chandhara (Kashmiri: Tsandhor). Pampore, Pulwama in Kashmir. Her real name was Zoon or Zun (Kashmiri: زوٗن, romanized: zūn, lit. 'Moon'). According to the oral tradition, she was called Zoon because of her great beauty. Although a peasant, she learnt how to read and write from the village moulvi.

According to legend, one day Yousuf Shah Chak, the last independent emperor of Kashmir, was out hunting on horseback. He heard Zoon singing under the shade of a chinar tree, and the couple met and fell in love. The oral tradition describes Zoon as Yousuf Shah Chak's queen consort, although there is scholarly debate about whether she was in fact a lower status mistress or member of his harem. She entered the palace in about 1570, and at some point changed her name to become Habba Khatoon (Kashmiri: حَبہٕ خوتوٗن).

The couple were reportedly very content, and Yousuf Shah became the ruler of Kashmir. However, they were separated in 1579 after the Mughal emperor Akbar had Yousuf Shah arrested and imprisoned in Bihar, never to return. After this, Habba Khatoon became an ascetic, and spent the rest of her life wandering across the valley singing her songs.

Habba Khatun composed songs in Kashmiri. It is claimed that she introduced "loal" to Kashmiri poetry, "Loal" is more or less equivalent to the English 'lyric'. It conveys one brief thought. Braj Kachru states that Habba Khatun and Arnimal "perfected the loal form of Kashmiri poetry".

There is some dispute about the historical accuracy of Habba Khatun's biography, however the songs associated with her (including Mea ha keir tsei kith and Tse Kamiu Soni Meani) are widely popular across Kashmir. Her songs are frequently mournful and full of the sorrow of separation. Her tomb lies near Athwajan.