Ibn Mamak
- Died
- 333 AH
- Born in
- Isfahan
Ibn Mamak (d. 333 AH / 945 CE) was an Isfahani Hadith scholar and traveler known for his specialized monograph compiling transmissions of the prophetic tradition on conveying knowledge.
Life and travels
His full name was Abu Amr Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Ibrahim ibn Hakim al-Madini al-Asbahani, and he was commonly known as Ibn Mamak. Members of his family also engaged in Hadith transmission, including his brother Ishaq ibn Muhammad ibn Ibrahim and his nephew Abu Ahmad Abd Allah ibn Ibrahim.
Ibn Mamak traveled widely across the Islamic world to study under leading traditionists. In Rayy, he heard transmissions from Abu Hatim al-Razi and Muhammad ibn Muslim ibn Warah. In Baghdad, he studied under Yahya ibn Abi Talib and others of his cohort. He continued his travels to the Levant, hearing hadith in Tripoli from Ahmad ibn Abi al-Khanajir and in Aleppo from Abu Usama Abd Allah.
A notable group of prominent scholars transmitted from him, including Abu al-Shaykh al-Asbahani, Ibn Mandah, Ibn Mardawayh, Ali ibn Milah al-Faradi, and Abd Allah ibn Ahmad ibn Jawlah. Although based in Isfahan, biographical sources note that he transmitted comparatively little from the scholars of his native city.
In his scholarship, he compiled a thematic Hadith tract (juz'), titled Qawl al-Nabi: Naddara Allahu imra'an sami'a maqalati fa-addaha ("The Saying of the Prophet: May Allah Brighten a Person Who Hears My Statement and Conveys It"), dedicated to assembling the various chains and routes of transmission (turuq) for that specific tradition.
Standing and death
Biographers described Ibn Mamak as an erudite scholar, a man of letters (adib), and a virtuous figure possessing proficient expertise in Hadith criticism and transmission; he was graded as truthful (saduq). Later historians, including al-Dhahabi, recorded receiving short-chained narrations (awali) tracing back through him.
Ibn Mamak died in Isfahan in Jumada al-Akhira 333 AH (January–February 945 CE).
Answer updated
List of Works
Hadith Naddar Allah Imra (formally titled Juz' fihi qawl al-Nabi: Naddara Allahu imra'an sami'a maqalati fa-addaha) is a specialized hadith monograph (juz'). The work is a thematic tract focused on assembling and documenting the transmissions and chains of narration (turuq) of the prophetic tradition concerning the conveyance of knowledge: "May Allah brighten a person who hears my statement and conveys it."