Ahmad al-Tahtawi
- Died
- 1355 AH
- Born in
- Tahta
Ahmad al-Tahtawi (1275–1355 AH / 1859–1936 CE) was an Egyptian Hanafi jurist and scholar of hadith, Quranic exegesis, and Arabic literature, noted for his critical treatise al-Tanbih wal-Iqaz.
Early Life and Education
He was Ahmad Rafi' ibn Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz ibn Rafi' al-Husayni al-Qasimi al-Tahtawi, titled "Rafi'". He was born in Tahta, in the Girga district of Upper Egypt, in Jumada al-Thaniyah 1275 AH (1859 CE), and was raised there in an established and noble family.
In 1287 AH, he moved to al-Azhar Mosque to pursue his education, remaining there for twelve years. During this period, he studied under prominent Azhari scholars, including Muhammad 'Illaysh, Muhammad al-Khudari, and Shams al-Din al-Anbabi.
Career and Scholarship
Al-Tahtawi assumed a formal teaching position at al-Azhar in 1299 AH and continued teaching until the end of his life.
He authored al-Tanbih wal-Iqaz lima fi Dhuyul Tadhkirat al-Huffaz ("The Alert and Awakening Regarding What is Contained in the Supplements to Tadhkirat al-Huffaz"), a critical tract he composed after receiving a Damascus printed edition of the supplements to al-Dhahabi's biographical work from the publisher Husam al-Din al-Qudsi; al-Tahtawi prepared the treatise to rectify and clarify biographical and textual errors for al-Qudsi and Muhammad Zahid al-Kawthari. He also composed a large work on chains of transmission entitled Irshad al-Mustafid ila Bayan wa-Tahrir al-Asanid (originally titled al-Mas'a al-Hamid), as well as a five-volume study on rhetoric, Raf' al-Ghawashi 'an Mu'dilat al-Mutawwal wal-Hawashi.
Death
Al-Tahtawi died in Cairo in 1355 AH (1936 CE).
Answer updated
List of Works
al-Tanbih wal-Iqaz lima fi Dhuyul Tadhkirat al-Huffaz (The Alert and Awakening Regarding What is Contained in the Supplements to Tadhkirat al-Huffaz) is a critical treatise written to rectify and clarify historical and biographical errors in the printed collection of supplements to al-Dhahabi's Tadhkirat al-Huffaz.