ʿAbdelkarīm Al-Nahšalī Al-Qayrawānī was born in
Msīlaẗ (in present-day
Algeria) sometime in the middle of the fourth century AH. He left at an early age for
Kairouan, which was at the time the capital of science and literature. He continued his education there until its completion and came into contact with the most prominent people of the time in the of political and literary spheres. A poet and literary critic, he worked at the Diwān al-Inšāʾ [Chancery] and sang the praises of
d’Al-Mansūr and his son
Bādīs. He was known for his Ġazal [love poetry] and denied himself any form of hiǧāʾ (satire).
Ibn Rašīq, who is considered one of his students, mentions him in his book
Al-ʿUmdaẗ and, in his book
Unmūḏaǧ al-zamān, he says of him, "He was a leading poet who mastered language, knew to perfection the high deeds of the Arabs and their poetry, and was knowledgeable about their memorable wars and the works of literature they inspired." He died in
Kairouan or
Mahdia in 405 H.