Muhammad Ali Maghribi
- Died
- 1417 AH
- Born in
- -
Muhammad Ali Maghribi (d. 1417 AH / 1996–1997 CE) was a Saudi writer, biographer, and social historian of the Hejaz, best known for his biographical survey A'lam al-Hijaz fi al-Qarn al-Rabi' 'Ashar lil-Hijra (Notables of the Hejaz in the Fourteenth Century AH).
Intellectual Contributions
Maghribi focused much of his writing on documenting the cultural, social, and political history of the Hejaz during the fourteenth Hijri century (1301–1400 AH / 1883–1980 CE). His major biographical work, A'lam al-Hijaz fi al-Qarn al-Rabi' 'Ashar lil-Hijra, was conceived to preserve the lives and careers of prominent contemporaries—including religious scholars, public officials, literary figures, and merchants—whom he knew personally or whose circumstances he witnessed firsthand. The work later saw expansions and continuation covering notable personalities extending into the fifteenth Hijri century.
In addition to biographical studies, Maghribi examined urban cultural shifts in Malamih al-Hayah al-Ijtima'iyyah fi al-Hijaz fi al-Qarn al-Rabi' 'Ashar lil-Hijra (Features of Social Life in the Hejaz in the Fourteenth Century AH), depicting daily customs, institutional transformations, and community life in cities like Jeddah, Mecca, and Medina during the late Ottoman, Hashemite, and Saudi eras. Maghribi was also among the early Hejazi narrative writers, having published the narrative work al-Ba'th (The Resurrection) in 1364 AH.
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List of Works
Alam al-Hijaz fi al-Qarn al-Rabi Ashar lil-Hijra is a biographical work chronicling notable scholars, writers, poets, and public figures associated with the Hejaz across the fourteenth Hijri century (1301–1400 AH / 1883–1980 CE) and adjacent periods.