Waki al-Qadi
- Died
- 306 AH
- Born in
- -
Waki al-Qadi (d. 306 AH / 918 CE) was a Baghdadi judge, historian, and scholar of hadith and Quranic sciences, best known for his judicial history Akhbar al-qudat (Reports of the Judges) .
Life and career
His full name was Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Khalaf ibn Hayyan ibn Sadaqa ibn Ziyad al-Dabbi al-Baghdadi, and he was commonly known by the sobriquet Waki . He was also the ancestor of the Egyptian poet Ibn Waki al-Tinnisi . Early in his career, he served as a scribe for the judge Abu 'Umar Muhammad ibn Yusuf ibn Ya'qub . Later, he was appointed to the judiciary, presiding as judge over the entire district of Ahwaz .
Waki studied and transmitted hadith and historical lore from numerous prominent teachers, including al-Zubayr ibn Bakkar, al-Hasan ibn 'Arafa, al-Hasan ibn Muhammad al-Za'farani, Abu Hudhafah al-Sahmi, 'Ali ibn Muslim al-Tusi, and Muhammad ibn 'Abdullah al-Makhrami . In turn, a generation of leading traditionists and scholars transmitted from him, including Abu 'Ali ibn al-Sawwaf, Muhammad ibn 'Umar al-Ji'abi, Muhammad ibn al-Muzaffar, Ahmad ibn Kamil al-Qadi, and Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani .
Scholarly standing
Waki was recognized for his wide learning in historical traditions, Quranic sciences, jurisprudence, and Arabic grammar . Al-Daraqutni commended him as a noble, eloquent, and virtuous scholar versed in the Quran, fiqh, and grammar . His treatise on Quranic verse counts ('Adad ay al-Qur'an) was held in high regard; when the Quranic scholar Ibn Mujahid was asked to compile a work on verse enumeration, he remarked that Waki had already made further writing on the subject unnecessary . Conversely, Abu al-Husayn ibn al-Munadi noted that traditionists narrated sparingly from him due to a perceived weakness (layn) for which he was known .
Death
Waki died in Baghdad in the month of Rabi' al-Awwal, 306 AH (August–September 918 CE) .
Answer updated
List of Works
Akhbar al-Qudat (Reports of the Judges), also cited as Akhbar al-qudat wa-tawarikhuhum wa-ahkamuhum, is a biographical and historical work on the Islamic judiciary. It provides a comprehensive historical survey of judicial appointments, case rulings, and biographical accounts of magistrates across Islamic lands from the prophetic era into the Abbasid period, relying on chains of transmission to document legal decisions and administrative appointments.