Abu Abd Allah al-Fakihi
- Died
- 272 AH
- Born in
- -
Abu Abd Allah al-Fakihi (d. after 272 AH / 885 CE) was a Meccan historian and traditionist, best known for his comprehensive historical and topographical work Akhbar Makka .
Identity and Life
His full name was Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Ishaq ibn al-Abbas al-Fakihi al-Khuza'i al-Makki . His father, Ishaq ibn al-Abbas, was also a narrator who transmitted from al-Zubayr ibn Bakkar . Little is preserved about al-Fakihi's early life or exact dates of birth and death; however, Taqi al-Din al-Fasi noted that he was known to be alive in 272 AH because he recorded an incident occurring in that year concerning the Sacred Mosque in Mecca . Al-Fakihi was a contemporary of the Meccan chronicler Abu al-Walid al-Azraqi, outliving him . His son, Abu Muhammad Abd Allah ibn Muhammad ibn Ishaq al-Fakihi (d. 353 AH), was a hadith transmitter from whom al-Hakim al-Naysaburi narrated .
Scholarly Transmission and Standing
Al-Fakihi heard and transmitted traditions from several prominent scholars, including Muhammad ibn Abi Umar al-Adani, Bakr ibn Khalaf, Husayn ibn Hasan al-Marwazi, and Ahmad ibn Ja'far al-Ma'qari . Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani also listed him among the memorizers of hadith who transmitted from Muhammad ibn Isma'il al-Bukhari .
Later biographers noted that early biographical dictionaries largely neglected providing a formal entry for al-Fakihi, a circumstance al-Fasi found surprising given the value of his scholarship . Al-Fasi exonerated him from any impugnment and praised his history of Mecca—Akhbar Makka fi qadim al-dahr wa-hadithih—as highly beneficial, arguing that it contained numerous valuable details not found in al-Azraqi's compilation . Ibn Hajar similarly commended the work as a precious source on Meccan history .
Answer updated
List of Works
Akhbar Makka fi qadim al-dahr wa-hadithih is a 3rd-century AH historical and topographical compendium. It serves as an early comprehensive primary source dedicated to the history, sacred topography, rituals, and lore of Mecca.