al-Utbi
- Died
- 255 AH
- Born in
- -
Al-Utbi (d. 255 AH / 869 CE) was an Andalusian Maliki jurist from Cordoba, best known for his legal compilation al-Masail al-mustakhraja min al-asmia (commonly known as al-Utbiyya).
Lineage and education
His full name was Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Abd al-Aziz ibn Utba al-Qurtubi. Accounts differ regarding his lineage: some sources trace his descent to Utba ibn Abi Sufyan, while others describe him as a client of the family of Utba ibn Abi Sufyan, which authorities such as Ibn al-Faradi and al-Qadi Abu al-Walid considered more accurate. According to Muhammad ibn Umar ibn Lubaba, the nisba al-Utbi was not connected to Utba ibn Abi Sufyan, but derived from an ancestor of his named Utba.
Al-Utbi began his education in al-Andalus, learning from Yahya ibn Yahya al-Laythi and Sa'id ibn Hassan. He then traveled east, studying under Sahnun ibn Sa'id in Kairouan and Asbagh ibn al-Faraj in Egypt. His students included Ibn Lubaba, Abu Salih, Sa'id ibn Mu'adh, al-A'naqi, and Muhammad ibn Walid al-Qurtubi.
Scholarly standing and reception
Al-Utbi was regarded as a leading Maliki jurist in al-Andalus, recognized for his memorization of legal questions and his expertise in judicial precedents (nawazil). Ibn Lubaba stated that no contemporary in the region matched al-Utbi in legal discussion or comprehension, except those who had studied under him. Ibn Abd al-Barr noted his high esteem among the general public. Al-Sadafi praised him for piety, upright conduct, and participation in military campaigns (jihad), noting that he consistently remained in his place of prayer from dawn until sunrise, performed the forenoon prayer, and received students strictly according to their order of arrival. He also composed Kira al-dur wa-l-aradin ("Leasing of Houses and Lands").
His primary compilation, al-Mustakhraja, gathered transmitted legal opinions outside Sahnun's al-Mudawwana, though it drew criticism from several scholars for incorporating discarded transmissions and anomalous legal rulings. Ibn Waddah commented that it contained numerous errors, and Muhammad ibn Abd al-Hakam dismissed much of its material as baseless. When Ahmad ibn Khalid reproached Ibn Lubaba for reading al-Mustakhraja to students despite its flaws, Ibn Lubaba replied that he recited it only to those capable of discerning its errors from its sound rulings. Conversely, Ibn Hazm observed that the work attained high standing and rapid circulation among scholars in Ifriqiya.
Death
Al-Utbi died in al-Andalus in 255 AH (869 CE), with another report placing his death in 254 AH (868 CE). Ibn al-Faradi specified his death on Monday, 18 Rabi al-Awwal, 255 AH, while other reports place it in the middle of Rabi al-Awwal or in Rabi al-Akhir.
Answer updated
List of Works
Kitāb al-Ḥajj Mimmā Laysa fī al-Mudawwana is a section on the rites of pilgrimage from the early Maliki legal compilation al-Masāʾil al-mustakhraja min al-asmiʿa mimmā laysa fī al-Mudawwana (commonly known as al-Mustakhraja or al-ʿUtbiyya). It gathers legal opinions and scholarly transmissions heard from early authorities that were not recorded in Sahnun's al-Mudawwana, detailing rulings on the obligations, conditions, and rites of Hajj.