本文探討宮廷文化對於歷史書寫的影響，以巴拉杜里（al-Balādhurī 死於九世紀末之前）的《望族世系》中對於烏麥亞哈里發，蘇萊曼．本．阿布都馬立 克（Sulaymān b. Abd al-Malik 在位期間：715-717）之描繪為例。本文首先解 釋巴拉杜里之生平與阿巴斯宮廷的關係，以釐清巴拉杜里鎖定的讀者群：宮廷 菁英。透過比較巴拉杜里所呈現的蘇萊曼與其在其他歷史文本的形象，本文發 現巴拉杜里對於蘇萊曼的人格特色有更多的著墨。巴拉杜里對於史料的處理是 為了回應其讀者的期待。在九世紀的巴格達宮廷，文學盛行，許多朝臣書寫關 於飲食、語言與諫言文學之作品，而這類的主題也可見於巴拉杜里所描寫的蘇 萊曼與其他烏麥亞哈里發。換言之，巴拉杜里的《望族世系》不單單是在還原 過去，也有啟發與娛樂其讀者之目的。

This paper addresses the impact of the court patronage on the history writing through the analysis of the representation of the Umayyad caliph, Sulaymān b. ‘Abd al-Malik (r. 715-717), in the Ansāb al-ashrāf (Genealogies of the Notables) by al-Balādhurī (d. before the end of the ninth century). This paper first introduces al-Balādhurī with regard to his association with the ‘Abbāsid court and then identifies the audiences of al-Balādhurī’s Ansāb al-ashrāf: court elite. Then, by comparing the Ansāb’s reports about Sulaymān b. ‘Abd al-Malik with those in the chronicles compiled by relatively independent scholars active in the ninth century, that is, Khalīfa b. Khayyāṭ (776-854) and al-Ṭabarī (839-923), the present study investigates how al-Balādhurī as a court-patronised littérateur responds to his patron-audiences. The textual comparison shows that al-Balādhurī includes unusual reports, which illustrate Sulaymān’s personal traits such as his eloquence and gluttony, while this kind of material is absent in the chronicles of al-Ṭabarī and Khalīfa b. Khayyāṭ. This paper argues that al-Balādhurī’s selection of material reflects his tendency to meet the expectation of his audiences. In the ninth-century Baghdad, the literary works produced by boon companions encompass the adab themes such as food, drinks, eloquence and mirrors for princes. These themes find the echo in the reports about Sulaymān, Yazīd b. ‘Abd al-Malik and al-Walīd b. Yazīd in the Ansāb. That is, when al-Balādhurī compiled his work, he included the material that may have been of his patron-audiences’ interest. As al-Balādhurī purpose of writing history is to entertain or edify, rather than merely recover the historical “truth”, the Ansāb to some extent ought to be understood in the context of the court culture.