Arabic epic literature encompasses epic poetry and epic fantasy in Arabic literature. Virtually all societies have developed folk tales encompassing tales of heroes. Although many of these are legends, many are based on real events and historical figures.
Pre-Islamic poet-knight Antarah ibn Shaddad is the hero of a popular medieval Arabic romance.
Painting of Cassim, brother of Ali Baba, by Maxfield Parrish.
An epic poem, or simply an epic, is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces, gave shape to the mortal universe for their descendants.
A tablet containing a fragment of the Epic of Gilgamesh.
The first edition (1835) of the Finnish national epic poem Kalevala by Elias Lönnrot