al-Yunarti
- Died
- 527 AH
- Born in
- -
Abu Nasr al-Yunarti (466–527 AH / 1074–1133 CE) was a Persian hadith scholar and reciter from the environs of Isfahan, known for his extensive travels in pursuit of narrations and his biographical dictionary of teachers, Mu'jam al-shuyukh.
Name and Early Life
His full name was Abu Nasr al-Hasan ibn Muhammad ibn Ibrahim ibn Ahmad ibn 'Ali ibn Hayyuwayh al-Muqri' al-Yunarti al-Isfahani. He was born toward the end of 466 AH (1074 CE). His nisba derives from Yunart, a village located at the gate of Isfahan.
Studies and Scholarly Travels
Al-Yunarti undertook extensive journeys across Iraq and Khorasan to collect hadith. In his native Isfahan, he studied under Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Majah al-Abhari and Abu Mansur Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Shukruwayh. Traveling to Nishapur, he became the final student to reach and study under Abu Bakr ibn Khalaf al-Shirazi before the latter's death, and he also heard traditions from al-Hasan ibn Ahmad al-Samarqandi. In Herat, he heard from Abu 'Amir Mahmud ibn al-Qasim al-Azdi, and in Balkh from Abu al-Qasim Ahmad ibn Muhammad al-Khalili. In Baghdad, he heard from Abu 'Abd Allah al-Na'ali and Ahmad ibn 'Abd al-Qadir al-Yusufi.
In 524 AH, al-Yunarti visited Baghdad, where he dictated hadith and taught the Jami' of al-Tirmidhi based on his transmission from Abu 'Amir al-Azdi and Abu al-Muzaffar 'Abd Allah ibn 'Ata' al-Bughawardani. He compiled his own multi-volume biographical dictionary of teachers, Mu'jam al-shuyukh.
A substantial group of scholars narrated from him, including Abu Musa Muhammad ibn 'Umar al-Isfahani, Ahmad ibn Salih ibn Shafi' al-Jili, the jurist Nasr ibn Fityan ibn al-Manni, 'Arafa ibn al-Baqli, Muzaffar ibn 'Ali al-Khayyat, and Fatima bint Sa'd al-Khayr. He was also accompanied to Baghdad by Qays ibn Muhammad al-Suwayqi, for whom al-Yunarti selected and transcribed a collection of traditions.
Standing and Assessments
Biographers characterized al-Yunarti as a disciplined compiler, proficient calligrapher, and devoted reciter of the Quran. Abu Zakariyya Yahya ibn Manda described him as brave, pleasant in speech, skilled in grammar and literature, and noted that he spent much of his time transcribing copies of the Quran and hadith manuscripts. Ma'mar ibn al-Fakhir recorded that he possessed exceptional speed in reading and writing; he was capable of reciting from memory one chapter of the Quran while simultaneously copying text and instructing a student in a different chapter. Abu 'Ali ibn al-Wazir praised the melodic quality of his voice, stating he had not heard a sweeter recitation of hadith. Ibn 'Asakir preferred him over his contemporary Isma'il al-Taymi. In a more measured assessment, the hadith master Isma'il ibn Muhammad remarked that al-Yunarti did not possess vast critical expertise in the discipline, though he maintained clean and reliable manuscripts.
Death
Al-Yunarti died in the month of Shawwal 527 AH (August–September 1133 CE), according to his student Abu Musa al-Isfahani. Yahya ibn Manda recorded an alternative estimate, placing his death in Isfahan around 530 AH.
Answer updated
List of Works
Hadith Abi Nasr al-Yunarti is a collection of hadith narrations that preserves the reports gathered during scholarly travels across Iraq and Khorasan.