al-Dawudi, Shams al-Din
- Died
- 945 AH
- Born in
- -
Shams al-Din al-Dawudi (d. 945 AH / 1538–1539 CE) was an Egyptian Hadith scholar, biographer, and Quranic exegete, best known for his biographical dictionary Tabaqat al-mufassirin ("The Generations of Quranic Exegetes").
Life and Scholarship
His full name was Muhammad ibn Ali ibn Ahmad al-Dawudi al-Misri, titled Shams al-Din. He was affiliated with the Maliki school of jurisprudence, though he has also been described as Shafi'i. Al-Dawudi resided in Cairo, where he studied under Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti and became one of his notable students. Described as the leading Hadith scholar (shaykh ahl al-hadith) of his time, he was recognized as a memorizer of Hadith (hafiz) and an authority in Quranic commentary.
Al-Dawudi made significant contributions to biographical literature. His primary work, Tabaqat al-mufassirin, compiles entries on Quranic commentators and scholars of tafsir. He also wrote a massive single-volume biography dedicated to his teacher al-Suyuti, as well as a biographical supplement (dhayl) to the Shafi'i biographical dictionary of Taj al-Din al-Subki.
Death
Al-Dawudi died in Cairo on 18 Shawwal 945 AH (c. 1538–1539 CE). He was buried in the cemetery of Turbat Fayruz outside Bab al-Nasr.
Answer updated
List of Works
Tabaqat al-Mufassirin (The Generations of Quranic Exegetes) is a biographical dictionary devoted specifically to the biographies of Quranic commentators from the early Islamic era up to the early tenth century AH. Arranged alphabetically, it covers figures known for interpreting the Quran or authoring exegetical commentaries, outlining their lineages, teachers, students, theological and legal orientations, writings, and death dates.