1. Although Mubārak's account is notable for the number of misadventures he underwent at such an early age, the idea of recounting such childhood escapades has a long history in Arabic autobiographical writing. See Dwight F. Reynolds, “Childhood in One Thousand Years of Arabic Autobiography,” Edebiyât: Special Issue—Arabic Autobiography, N.S. 7, no. 2 (1997): 379–92. [BACK]

2. This passage is problematic. It appears that a general agricultural failure occurred, perhaps due to the increasing infertility of the soil. Apparently, in a reorganization of the tax system, the author's family was saddled with fiscal liability for lands that were no longer producing enough to pay the taxes due on them. The family thus found their resources impounded toward the unpaid taxes. This interpretation follows Stephan Fliedner's translation of inkasarat ‘alayhā amwāl al-dīwān as “the tax regime was re-ordered” (Stephan Fliedner, ‘Alī Mubārak und seine Hiṭaṭ [Berlin: Klaus Schwarz, 1990], 11) and takes the term ṭīn /aṭyān to refer to plots of agricultural land. [BACK]

3. Turkish terms denoting rank. [BACK]

5. Literally “shadow and sighting”; my thanks to Joseph Lowry for this suggested reading. [BACK]

6. Although Mubārak writes that ‘Abbās I ascended to the throne in A.H. 1266 (1849–50), ‘Abbās in fact became ruler of Egypt in 1264 (1848). [BACK]