Ibn al-Najjar

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Ibn al-Najjār
(Arabic: ابن النجار)
TitleMuḥibb al-Dīn
Al-Ḥāfiẓ
Personal
Born1183 CE/ 578 AH
Baghdad
Died1246 (aged 62–63)
Baghdad
ReligionIslam
EraLate Abbasid era
RegionIraq
DenominationSunni
JurisprudenceShafi'i[1]
CreedAsh'ari
Main interest(s)Hadith, History
Notable work(s)History of Baghdad
OccupationMuhaddith, Scholar, Historian
Muslim leader
Influenced by

Abū ʿAbdallāh Muḥammad b. Maḥmūd b. al-Ḥasan b. Hibatallāh b. Maḥāsin al-Baghdādī, Muḥibb al-Dīn Ibn al-Najjār, commonly known as Ibn al-Najjār (Arabic: ابن النجار), was a Baghdadi Sunni scholar of the late Abbasid era.[2] He is regarded as the leading Shafi'i muhaddith of his age and the leading authority on biographical history as well.[3][4] He was the senior pupil of Ibn al-Dubaythi.[5]

Biography[edit]

Early life[edit]

Ibn al - Najjār was born in Baghdad in the year of 578 AH/1183 CE.[6] Born into a modest family, he was son of the leader carpenter of the Dar al-Khilafah located in the Abbasid Palace of Baghdad. His father died when he was eight and his older brother Ali began raising him instead. Ali was a textile seller who had knowledge in calculation of inheritance, anecdotes, and history. Ibn al-Najjār studied the Hadith and the Qur'an with scholars of Baghdad.[2]

Education[edit]

When he was twenty-eight, he travelled to the Hejaz (Mecca & Medina), the Levant, Egypt, Khurasan, Herat, and Nishapur, studying with sheikhs.[7] Ibn al-Najjar had over 3000 teachers with 400 of his teachers being women.[8] He was heard in every city he stayed in, and established himself as the worlds most famous memorizer.[9]

Then he returned to Baghdad and studied history. He left for Isfahan for about a year (620 AH/1223 CE), then made the Hajj (pilgrimage) to Mecca, then moved to Egypt, then returned to Baghdad.[7]

Career[edit]

After more than 20 years of travelling, he became the director of the newly founded Al-Mustansiriya School which was opened in Baghdad in the year (630 AH/1233 AD). In this new institution, he would teach the science of hadith and was known for his humility, piety, and good delivery. He held the post until his death.[7][6]

Death[edit]

His death was on Tuesday, the fifth of Shaban of the year (643 AH = 1246 AD). Prayers were offered over him in the Nizamiyya school, and a large crowd witnessed his funeral. He was buried in the martyrs cemetery in Bab Harb, Baghdad.[7]

Works[edit]

History[edit]

  • A [Useful] Extract from the continuation of the Ta'rikh Baghdad (al-Mustafad min Dhayl Ta'rikh Baghdad), is his magnum opus coming in 30 volumes which is an appendix to the "History of Baghdad" by Al-Khatib Al-Baghdadi.[10]
  • Nuzha al-Wari fi Akhbar Umm al-Qura, a history compilation of Mecca.
  • Al-Durrah al-Thaminah fi Akhbar al-Madinah, a history compilation of Medina.
  • Manaqib Al-Shafi’i, a biography of Imam Shafi'i

Hadith[edit]

  • Al-Qamar Al-Munir fi Al-Musnad Al-Kabir, in which he mentioned the Companions and the narrators, and what each of them had from the hadith.
  • Kanz Al-Ayyam fi Ma’rifat Al-Sunan and Al-Ahkam
  • The Different and Al-Moatalif, appendix to Ibn Makula
  • The previous and the later
  • The agreement and the intersection
  • The book of titles
  • The approach of injury in the knowledge of the companions
  • Al-Kafi in the names of men
  • Attribution of hadiths to fathers and countries
  • Kitab Awaliah
  • Kitab Mu’jam, the dictionary of his sheikhs (narrators).
  • Paradise of the beholders in the knowledge of the followers
  • Perfection in the knowledge of men

Literature[edit]

  • Anwar Al-Zahr in the beauties of the poets of the era
  • Al-Azhar fi types of poetry
  • Nuzhat al-Tarf fi Akhbar Ahl al-Darf
  • Gharar al-Fawa’id full of six volumes
  • The only consolation
  • Telling the longing about the news of lovers
  • Nashwar Al-Muhadara

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Munt, Harry; Henry, Thomas; Munt, Robert (31 July 2014). The Holy City of Medina Sacred Space in Early Islamic Arabia. Cambridge University Press. p. 88. ISBN 9781107042131.
  2. ^ a b Van Renterghem, Vanessa (2015). "Ibn al-Najjār, Muḥibb al-Dīn". Encyclopaedia of Islam, THREE. doi:10.1163/1573-3912_ei3_COM_30957.
  3. ^ Caesar, Farah (1964). "Ibn-al-Najjār: A Neglected Arabic Historian". Journal of the American Oriental Society. 84.No3: 220–230. doi:10.2307/596555.
  4. ^ van Donzel, E.J. (17 January 2022). Islamic Desk Reference Compiled from The Encyclopaedia of Islam. Brill. p. 158. ISBN 9789004505056.
  5. ^ Knysh, Alexander D. (1999). Ibn ʻArabi in the Later Islamic Tradition The Making of a Polemical Image in Medieval Islam. State University of New York Press. pp. 29–287. ISBN 9780791439685.
  6. ^ a b Isabel Toral, Jens Scheiner (25 July 2022). Baghdād - From Its Beginnings to the 14th Century. Brill. p. 801. ISBN 9789004513372.
  7. ^ a b c d "Biography of Ibn al-Najjar". islamstory.com (in Arabic). Archived from the original on 31 May 2024.
  8. ^ Nadwi, Akram (2006). Al-Muḥaddithāt - The Women Scholars in Islam. Interface Publications. ISBN 9780955454523.
  9. ^ Ibn al-Futi. Summary of the Complex of Arts in the Dictionary of Nicknames. Part V. Translation 707. Lahore Edition in Pakistan
  10. ^ Mustafa Azmi, Muhammad (2002). Studies in Hadith Methodology and Literature. Islamic Book Trust. p. 161. ISBN 9789839154276.
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