Ali Baba

"What is a father's love for if not for his daughter?"

―Ali Baba in his journal, 860s.

Ali Baba (died 860s) was a famous merchant who lived in Baghdad during the 9th century. He owned an estate with his daughter Murjana in the city's Karkh district.

Biography

"I know she loathes it, but I must work with the Forty. They are abhorrent but I have little choice. Only they can give what I require."

―Ali Baba, regarding his dealings with the Forty Thieves, 860s.

A renowned and wealthy merchant, Ali Baba lived in Baghdad with his only daughter, Murjana, whom he loved deeply. Being overprotective of Murjana, Ali Baba tried to quench her thirst for adventure and suggested that she settle for a simple, diplomatic life. However, after seeing that he could not change her mind, and upon hearing of his daughter's wishes to travel far beyond the Abbasid Caliphate's borders, he resolved to fulfill her dream.

Reluctantly, Ali Baba began dealing with a criminal group known as the Forty Thieves, who offered him protection and new trade opportunities. This enabled him to accumulate a large amount of wealth, but earned him the disapproval of Murjana, who was distrustful of the thieves and saw them as dangerous. Nevertheless, Ali Baba continued his dealings in the hopes he would be able to garner enough money to fund his daughter's travels, though he never informed her of this.

Murjana finding her father's body

However, the relationship between Ali Baba and the thieves eventually soured, resulting in the criminals attacking one of Ali Baba's caravans in the desert near Baghdad and taking him hostage. Murjana, growing worried after her father disappeared without explanation, enlisted the help of the Hidden One Basim ibn Ishaq to find and rescue him. However, by the time they arrived at the thieves' hideout, they discovered that the bandits had killed Ali Baba. Murjana subsequently retrieved her father's body and brought it back to Baghdad for a proper funeral.

An exaggerated account of Ali Baba's encounter with the Forty Thieves and their rumored treasure was later written in a collection of Persian and Middle Eastern stories titled One Thousand and One Nights, which quickly became one of the book's most infamous stories.

Behind the scenes

Ali Baba is a figure from Arabic folklore who was first mentioned in the 2023 video game Assassin's Creed: Mirage before appearing in its downloadable expansion The Forty Thieves. In the original tale, Ali is a woodcutter and he survives the ordeal with the thieves, though they kill his merchant brother Cassim who gets trapped in the thieves' magical cave of riches. Murjana is not his daughter but becomes his daughter-in-law after foiling the thieves' multiple attempts to kill him.

Datamined games files contained text for two notes that do not appear in the expansion. The first is a paper in which Ali first gave thanks to Allah for blessing his devotion to Islam with financial security by way of the Forty Thieves' treasure, despite having lost his unnamed wife, then praised his daughter as someone to continue his legacy:

Ali Baba's Reflection

Blessed is the teaching of submission, for it is has led me from poverty to riches, from danger to security.

Though I lost my wife, my daughter lives and grows. Through her too shall my legacy live on and the name of Ali Baba be long remembered in Baghdad and beyond.

Should I die wealthy or poor, I have been a well-rewarded man.

Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Universe!

The second is a page initially titled "Ali Baba's Diary" that mentioned Murjana's wanderlust, Ali's need to access the "cave of wonders" to fund her wishes, and his fear about working with the Forty Thieves due to their brutal ways. By the time of the expansion's release, the note was modified with the longer name of "A Page from Ali Baba's Journal" while removing the aforementioned details. The below text is the original note with the underlined words indicating what was removed.

Ali Baba's Diary

Murjana has spoken to me of her hopes: to travel the world, to seek glory and adventure in the unknown. She talked about visiting India, and even China! Where did this child get her dreams from?

But the coffers are running thin... and if I am to support her, I need more. I know she loathes it, but I must work with the Forty. They are abhorrent; I overheard two louts describing in detail how they beat a man in front of his wife... but I have little choice. Only they can give me what I require. The cave, access to the cave of wonders is what I need.

What is a father's love for if not for his daughter?

Gallery

• 
  Ali Baba's body
• 
  Ali Baba's funeral

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed: Mirage (first mentioned) (mentioned in Database entry only)
  • The Forty Thieves (appears as a corpse only)