This paper presents an analysis of the artistic achievements of the early Abbasid qiy?n and jaw?ri? benefiting from recent studies of courtesans in other cultures. The female slaves trained as entertainers constitute a subculture in the early Abbasid Empire, associated not only with a libertine lifestyle, but also with the preservation of cultural heritage in combination with new cultural achievements. The focus of the paper is the biographies and poetic oeuvres of some of the most famous poets among the 900th century qiy?n, whilst acknowledging the challenge of tracing the women’s singularity in texts authored and transmitted by men. As a matter of fact, narratives about these women’s sometimes extraordinary behavior are better preserved than their poetry. The reason for this, the paper suggests, is that literary convention did not allow the qiy?n much individual expression, whereas their ability to use poetry and other cultural accomplishments in order to fashion their own personas was decisive for their success. The women’s self-representation is traced in historical grounded analyses, which also consider the notions of power-relationship and subjectivity.