Sheikh Muhammad Ibrahim Zauq (1790–1854) (Urdu: شیخ محمد اِبراہِیم ذَوؔق‎) was an Urdu poet and scholar of literature, poetry and religion. He wrote poetry under nom de plume "Zauq", and was appointed poet laureate of the Mughal Court in Delhi just at the age of 19. Later he was given the title of Khaqani-e-Hind (The Khaqani of India) by the last Mughal emperor and his disciple Bahadur Shah Zafar.[2] He was a poor youth, with only ordinary education, who went on to acquire learning in history, theology and poetics in his later years. Zauq was a prominent contemporary of Ghalib and in the history of Urdu poetry the rivalry of the two poets is quite well known. During his lifetime Zauq was more popular than Ghalib for the critical values in those days were mainly confined to judging a piece of poetry on the basis of usage of words, phrases and idioms. Content and style were not much taken into account while appreciating poetry.