Abd al-Azim al-Dib
- Died
- 1431 AH
- Born in
- -
Abd al-Azim Mahmoud al-Dib (d. 1431 AH / 2010 CE) was an Egyptian scholar of Islamic jurisprudence and legal theory who served as a professor and head of the Department of Fiqh and Usul al-Fiqh at Qatar University, widely recognized for his critical editions of the works of Imam al-Haramayn al-Juwayni, most notably Nihayat al-Matlab fi Dirayat al-Madhhab.
Career and Textual Editing
Al-Dib moved to Qatar in 1976, where he taught at Qatar University and chaired its Department of Fiqh and Usul al-Fiqh . His scholarly career centered on the preservation and critical editing of classical Islamic manuscripts, devoting particular attention to the legacy of al-Juwayni . He spent seven years preparing a critical edition of al-Juwayni's treatise on legal theory, al-Burhan fi Usul al-Fiqh, collating manuscript witnesses between Cairo and Damietta prior to its publication under the auspices of Qatar's Department of Islamic Heritage Revival .
His major editorial undertaking was al-Juwayni's extensive jurisprudence manual, Nihayat al-Matlab fi Dirayat al-Madhhab, a project that occupied roughly twenty-five years . Beginning his search in 1975, al-Dib collected and collated over twenty manuscript copies across repositories in Cairo, Alexandria, Sohag, Damascus, Aleppo, and Istanbul . To resolve text-critical difficulties and lacunae in the copies, he also utilized early abridgments such as Izz al-Din ibn Abd al-Salam's al-Ghayah fi Ikhtisar al-Nihayah in more than thirty instances .
Critical Views and Reception
In addition to editing classical jurisprudence, al-Dib addressed contemporary debates on manuscript heritage, authoring al-Mustashriqun wa al-Turath to examine Western Orientalist scholarship and manuscript editing methodologies . Contemporary scholars praised his patience, analytical skill, and linguistic eloquence in deciphering and reconstructing intricate classical texts .
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List of Works
al-Mustashriqun wa al-Turath (Orientalists and Islamic Heritage) is a critical treatise that examines the scope, intellectual inclinations, and methodological integrity of Western Orientalist scholarship in editing and publishing classical Islamic manuscripts. It evaluates claims regarding the role and objective rigour of Orientalists in preserving Islamic heritage through quantitative analysis and textual case studies.