Ali al-Dibaa
- Died
- 1380 AH
- Born in
- Egypt
Ali al-Dibaa (c. 1300–1313 – c. 1376 AH / c. 1883–1896 – 1956/1957 CE) was an Egyptian scholar of Quranic sciences, tajwid, and Quranic recitations (qira'at) who served as the Grand Shaykh of the Egyptian Recitation Centers (Shaykh Umumi al-Maqari' al-Misriyya).
Early life and education
His full name was Ali ibn Muhammad ibn Hasan ibn Ibrahim, known by the epithet al-Dibaa. He was born in Egypt between 1300 AH and 1313 AH. He memorized the Quran at an early age and studied the recitation of Hafs under Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Mansur al-Sukkari.
Al-Dibaa received the minor and major Seven and Ten Recitations, as well as the sciences of Quranic orthography (rasm), vocalization (dabt), and verse numbering ('add al-ay), primarily under two authorities: Hasan ibn Yahya al-Kutubi and Abd al-Rahman ibn Husayn al-Khatib al-Sha'ar. Both instructors had been trained directly by the reciter Muhammad al-Mutawalli. In his final years, al-Mutawalli had instructed al-Kutubi to oversee the young al-Dibaa's instruction in Quranic recitations and bequeathed his personal library of manuscripts to him.
Scholarly career and students
Al-Dibaa was appointed to the official committee responsible for reviewing and proofreading printed editions of the Quran (mushaf) and rose to the preeminent leadership post of Egyptian recitation institutes as Shaykh 'umumi al-maqari' wa-l-iqra' bi-l-diyar al-misriyya. He was recognized as an authority in textual verification, manuscript correction, and the transmission of canonical and non-canonical readings. He also engaged other leading reciters in research on the ten major recitations, including Amir al-Sayyid Uthman.
Reciters from across Egypt and neighboring regions traveled to study under him. Among his prominent students were Abd al-Aziz Uyun al-Sud, later the head of reciters and mufti in Homs; Ahmad Hamid al-Tiji, later the head of reciters in Mecca; Ahmad Abd al-Aziz al-Zayyat, who studied irregular recitations (al-qira'at al-shadhdha) with him; Ibrahim Awad Atwah; and the Quranic reciter Mahmud Khalil al-Husari.
Among his scholarly contributions were Irshad al-Murid ila Maqsud al-Qasid, an explanatory commentary on the Seven Recitations didactic poem by al-Shatibi, and al-Bahja al-Mardiyya, an exposition of Ibn al-Jazari's al-Durra al-Madiyya on the three supplementary recitations. He also prepared a widely utilized critical verification of Ibn al-Jazari's major reference work al-Nashr fi al-Qira'at al-'Ashr.
Death
Al-Dibaa died around 1376 AH (1956/1957 CE). Another biographical record places his death in 1380 AH (1960/1961 CE).
Answer updated
List of Works
This treatise on Quranic recitation (qira'at) is a commentary (sharh) on a didactic poem by Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Mutawalli. It examines the reading of Warsh from Nafi', delineating the systematic and lexical divergences between Warsh's two primary transmitters: Abu Bakr al-Asbahani, via the transmission line of Tayyibat al-Nashr by Ibn al-Jazari, and Abu Ya'qub al-Azraq, as transmitted through al-Shatibi's Hirz al-Amani wa-Wajh al-Tahani.
This treatise serves as a concise guide to the ethical conduct, manners, and legal rulings governing the recitation, teaching, study, handling, and listening of the Quran. Drawing from classical authorities such as al-Nawawi's al-Tibyan and al-Suyuti's al-Itqan, it outlines proper decorum for readers, scribes, instructors, students, and attendees of recitation gatherings.