142 Meynard's Ihn Khordddbeh. [No. 2, 



Every Jaryb of Barley, 2 Dirhams. 



» ii Wheat > •••• 4 



„ j, ,, Vineyards and orchards, 6 „ 



„ „ „ Date plantations, 8 „ 



The assessment of Omar was according to a tradition of Jabir by 

 himself called Tasq (J^k Freytag considers this term cognate with 

 the expression of the Arabic Christians Taqs <j*£-k, and it is perhaps 

 also related with qist. No doubt it is derived from the same Greek 

 word from which our tax comes. I believe, but am not sure, it was 

 a permanent settlement, though owing to the disposition of the rulers 

 and to circumstances, changes have taken place. The term tasq is 

 applicable only to taxes levied from conquered land. 



It is pretty certain that the land-tax amounted to about one- 

 half of the value of the produce. Qodama speaks of the tithes, and 

 then he continues £^y e»U*» 13*^1 *-e~^ ls^ ^ x *h M* Oj~M Uf j 

 ail t£Ui ^ic JUJaJlj ULcVxJ.) ib'UU &j& Lo ^^ ^ &&*»)}\ £**& 



The taxes on conquered land have been fixed in cl^Vl^*** «-»*a J\ 

 accordance to the annual produce (of several years) ; consequently 

 the tax of a district has been fixed agreeably to justice. In proof 

 thereof we may mention that in case it be necessary to convert £asq- 

 land into tithe-land, one-fifth of the original tfasq of the district is 



taken, because x : 5 = _? (x. in the original d^/| means in this case 



7 2 10 v J ° 



the value of the produce.) 



I believe we may safely infer from this passage that in the assess- 

 ment of conquered lands, the same rules prevailed as in fixing the 

 amount of tithe, with the only difference that one-half instead of one- 

 tenth was levied. The general rule was that land which was watered 

 without the expense of labour, paid the whole tithe. 



If labour was expended, one-half of the tithe or more was taken. 

 Thus, if land was watered twice by a canal running through it, or if it 

 was three times irrigated by means of a bucket by which water is 

 raised from a canal, the tithe amounted not to ten, but to seven per 

 cent., viz. 4 per cent, for the canal and 3 per cent, for the bucket. 



The 'Abbasides changed the system of revenue in the Sawad. 

 Qodama says : Abu 'Obayd Allah Mo'awiyya b. 'Abd Allah, the 



