Ibn Uzayr al-Sijistani

Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Uzayr al-Sijistani (d. c. 330 AH / 941 CE) was an Arabic philologist and Quranic exegete who resided in Baghdad, best known for his lexicographical work on rare Quranic vocabulary, Gharib al-Quran (The Rare Expressions of the Quran) Siyar Aalam al-Nubala+1.

Name and lineage

His full name is Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Uzayr al-Sijistani, also bearing the nisba al-Uzayri Siyar Aalam al-Nubala+1. Ibn al-Najjar noted uncertainty regarding whether he had traveled to Sijistan or originated from there Tarikh al-Islam+1. According to al-Sam'ani, he was called al-Uzayri because of his descent from Uzayr Kashf al-Zunun an Asami a….

Biographical sources record a notable dispute over the spelling of his father's name. Philologists and bio-bibliographers including Abu al-Fadl Muhammad ibn Nasir al-Sallami, Ibn Nuqta, and Ibn al-Najjar established that the correct reading is Uzayr ending in an unpointed ra', citing manuscript evidence Tarikh al-Islam+1. Ibn Nasir possessed an autograph copy transcribed by Ibn Uzayr in 310 AH of Kitab al-Malahin (The Book of Equivocations) by Ibn Durayd explicitly vocalized with a ra', and Abu Muhammad ibn al-Akhdar inspected an autograph copy of Gharib al-Quran bearing the same spelling Tarikh al-Islam+1. Copies transcribed directly from the author by students like Ibrahim ibn Muhammad al-Tabari (known as Tuzun) and Muhammad ibn Najda al-Tabari also vocalized it with a ra' Kashf al-Zunun an Asami a…+1. Conversely, authorities such as al-Daraqutni, Abd al-Ghani ibn Sa'id, al-Khatib al-Baghdadi, and Ibn Makula recorded the name as Uzayz with two pointed zays, a variant defended by Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani as a plausible vocalization rather than a clerical error Tabsir al-Muntabih bi-Tah…+1. Another report mentioned that his father was known by both names, Uzayr and Uzayz Tarikh al-Islam+1.

Scholarly life and reception

Ibn Uzayr resided in Baghdad, where he was recognized as a righteous, virtuous, and modest scholar of language and exegesis Siyar Aalam al-Nubala+1. He composed his major work, Gharib al-Quran—also known as Nuzhat al-Qulub fi Tafsir Gharib al-Quran (The Delight of Hearts in the Explanation of Rare Quranic Words)—over several years, with one account specifying a period of fifteen years Siyar Aalam al-Nubala+1. During its composition, he read and refined the text with his teacher, the grammarian Abu Bakr ibn al-Anbari, who corrected and reviewed various passages with him Siyar Aalam al-Nubala+1.

His work was transmitted directly by several scholars, notably Ibn Batta al-Ukbari, Uthman ibn Ahmad ibn Sam'an al-Wazzan, and the Quran reciter Abu Ahmad Abd Allah ibn al-Husayn ibn Hasnun (also referred to as al-Samarri) Siyar Aalam al-Nubala+1.

Death

Ibn Uzayr died around 330 AH (c. 941 CE) Siyar Aalam al-Nubala+1. While Ibn al-Najjar did not specify a date of death in his entry, later chroniclers placed his death in or around that year Siyar Aalam al-Nubala+1.