Abu Bakr al-Haddad
- Died
- 800 AH
- Born in
- -
Abu Bakr al-Haddad (720–800 AH / 1320–1398 CE) was a Yemeni Hanafi jurist and Quran commentator from Zabid, widely recognized for his legal commentary al-Jawhara al-Nayyira .
Life and Education
Abu Bakr ibn Ali ibn Muhammad al-Haddad, also titled Radiyy al-Din and given the kunya Abu al-Atiq, was born in Rajab 720 AH . He hailed from al-Abbadiyya, a village near the mountain slopes of Wadi Zabid in the Tihama region of Yemen, before settling permanently in the city of Zabid . He acquired his initial training from his father, as well as scholars of his era, and was noted for his asceticism, religious devotion, and worship .
Al-Haddad studied Hanafi jurisprudence under several masters, including Abu al-Hasan Nuh al-Anawi, Abu Ishaq Ibrahim ibn Umar al-Alawi, Abu Bakr Ali ibn Musa al-Hamili, and Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Abd Allah ibn Qasim al-Qurbti . In Arabic grammar, his teachers included Ahmad ibn Malih al-Nahwi and Muhammad ibn Musa al-Dawali, while he studied literature under Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn Sulayman al-Musaffi . Later in life, he lost his eyesight and died in Zabid on 6 Jumada al-Ula 800 AH .
Scholarly Standing and Reception
Al-Haddad became one of the preeminent Hanafi authorities of his time in Yemen, attracting both local residents and traveling students who studied jurisprudence under him in Zabid . The historian Ali ibn al-Hasan al-Khazraji described him as the leading scholar among the followers of Abu Hanifa in his era, praising his versatility, piety, and the broad benefit students derived from him . The scholar al-Damadi noted that al-Haddad authored voluminous works in Hanafi jurisprudence—totaling around twenty volumes—unmatched in scope and utility by any other Hanafi scholar in Yemen .
Among his legal contributions, al-Haddad composed an extensive eight-volume commentary on al-Quduri's legal manual titled al-Siraj al-Wahhaj, which he subsequently abridged into the widely studied commentary al-Jawhara al-Nayyira . Beyond law, he composed a celebrated Quran commentary titled Kashf al-Tanzil fi Tahqiq al-Ta'wil (commonly referred to as Tafsir al-Haddad), which Muhammad ibn Ali al-Shawkani praised for its high quality and widespread renown .
Answer updated
List of Works
This work is a legal commentary on Mukhtasar al-Quduri, a foundational manual of positive law in the Hanafi school. Produced as an abridgment of the more extensive commentary al-Siraj al-Wahhaj, it is compiled in concise phrasing and clear expressions designed to encompass broad legal meanings while remaining accessible to students.
This entry concerns the Quran commentary properly titled Kashf al-Tanzil fi Tahqiq al-Mabahith wa-al-Ta'wil, also known in bibliographies as Kashf al-Tanzil fi Tahqiq al-Ta'wil. The work gained modern attention when it was erroneously published in six volumes under the title al-Tafsir al-Kabir and misattributed to the early hadith master Abu al-Qasim al-Tabarani.