al-Shihab al-Hijazi

al-Shihab al-Hijazi (790–875 AH / 1388–1471 CE) was an Egyptian Shafi'i man of letters, poet, and grammarian based in Cairo, best known for his literary anthology Rawd al-Adab ("The Garden of Manners") Mujam al-Muallifin+1.

Early life and education

His full name was Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Ali ibn Hasan ibn Ibrahim al-Ansari al-Khazraji al-Sa'di al-Abbadi al-Shafi'i Mujam al-Muallifin+1. He was known by the honorific titles Shihab al-Din and Zaki al-Din, and carried the kunyas Abu al-Tayyib and Abu al-Abbas Mujam al-Muallifin+1. He was born in Cairo in Sha'ban 790 AH / 1388 CE (another report states 710 AH, while Ibn Iyas placed his birth in the early 800s AH) Mujam al-Muallifin+1.

He was raised in Cairo, where he studied hadith, jurisprudence, Arabic linguistics, and prosody, and cultivated an interest in music al-Alam lil-Zirikli. He studied hadith under scholars including Abu al-Hasan ibn Abi al-Majd, Ibrahim ibn Ahmad al-Tanukhi, al-Zayn al-Iraqi, and Nur al-Din al-Haythami, and studied Arabic grammar under Abu al-Abbas al-Maghrawi al-Mawsua al-Muyassara fi…+1. In Sufism, he donned the Sufi cloak (khirqa) from al-Shihab al-Najah and received instruction in dhikr from al-Hafi al-Mawsua al-Muyassara fi….

Career and character

Al-Shihab al-Hijazi held teaching positions in Cairo and transmitted hadith and literary works to students, including Badr ibn al-Mukhlatta al-Alam lil-Zirikli+1. Later scholars such as Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti preserved transmissions through his authority Anshab al-Kuthub fi Ansab…+1. Among his literary productions was Qala'id al-Nuhur min Jawahir al-Buhur, a treatise examining passages from the Quran that correspond to the meters of Arabic poetry, alongside works such as Jannat al-Wildan al-Alam lil-Zirikli+1. Following the death of the traditionist Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, al-Hijazi composed a lengthy elegy exceeding fifty verses in his memory al-Ujab fi Bayan al-Asbab.

Biographers described him as charming, witty, fond of humorous anecdotes, and known for his fine companionship and unpretentious character al-Mukhtar min Badai al-Z…+1. He maintained a steady routine of Quran recitation and scholarly writing, though he increasingly withdrew into privacy during his later years al-Mawsua al-Muyassara fi….

Illness and death

During his final illness, the contemporary poet al-Shihab al-Mansuri sent him verses expressing sympathy al-Mukhtar min Badai al-Z…. Al-Shihab al-Hijazi died in Cairo on 7 Ramadan 875 AH / 1471 CE, after which al-Mansuri composed a poetic elegy mourning his passing Mujam al-Muallifin+1.