Kulthum al-'Attabi

Kulthum al-Attabi settled in Raqqa, and his origin is in the land of the Jund of Qinnasrin and the Awasim. Al-Mas'udi describes him as learned, cultured and eloquent, and as having a skill in correspondence that few of his contemporaries had. ²

He persuaded Yahya ibn Aktham to let al-Ma'mun know where he was. Al-Mas'udi relates from his words that the alms of prestige is to spend it on al-Musta'in. At al-Ma'mun's assembly a joke about his name passed between him and Ishaq al-Mawsili, and according to the report Kulthum answered him with a reply that delighted those present. One of his sayings: "A man's secretary is his tongue, his chamberlain is his face, and his companion is all of him." ²