La présence des qiyān à l’époque préislamique : les « deux sauterelles » Ǧarādatā ʿĀd

This article focuses on the experience of the two most famous female singing-slaves of the pre-Islamic era: the so called “two grasshoppers”, known as Ǧarādatāni or Ǧarādatā ʿĀd. Starting from the study of the two main sources: Ṭabarī, Taʾrīḫ al-rusul wa-l-mulūk and Masʿūdī, Murūǧ al-ḏahab, I then continued with a reflection on the singing-slaves and their association with grasshoppers. The aim of this contribution is to bring together the main Arab sources highlighting some aspects that link the human world to the animal one such as singing/animal sounds, drought and migration.