Walid al-Umawi
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Walid al-Umawi is a biographical researcher known for authoring Mu'jam Ashab Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyya (A Biographical Dictionary of the Companions of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyya) .
Identity and Scholarly Focus
His full name is Walid ibn Husni ibn Badawi ibn Muhammad al-Umawi . His research focuses on historical and biographical documentation related to the circle of scholars, students, and associates surrounding Ibn Taymiyya .
Method and Sources
In Mu'jam Ashab Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyya, al-Umawi compiled concise biographical entries for the contemporaries and disciples who studied under Ibn Taymiyya, benefited from his scholarship, and adopted his method . His stated approach in each entry was to summarize the subject's quest for knowledge and audition of texts, their praise of Ibn Taymiyya, or their firsthand accounts of his circumstances, while exercising personal discretion over whether to list the individual's own written works .
Al-Umawi based his dictionary primarily on three well-known classical biographical works on Ibn Taymiyya: al-'Uqud al-Durriyya fi Manaqib Ibn Taymiyya (originally titled al-Intisar) by Ibn Abd al-Hadi, al-Radd al-Wafir by Ibn Nasir al-Din al-Dimashqi, and al-A'lam al-'Aliyya fi Manaqib Ibn Taymiyya by Siraj al-Din Umar ibn Ali al-Bazzar . He also utilized broader historical and biographical sources, such as al-Nujum al-Zahira and al-Manhal al-Safi by Ibn Taghribirdi, Tabaqat al-Shafi'iyya al-Kubra by Taj al-Din al-Subki, Fawat al-Wafayat by Ibn Shakir al-Kutubi, al-Badr al-Tali' by Muhammad al-Shawkani, al-A'lam by Khayr al-Din al-Zirikli, and Jala' al-'Aynayn by Nu'man al-Alusi, in addition to the writings of Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya, the epistle of Ibn Shaykh al-Hizamiyyin al-Wasiti, and the letter of Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Murri al-Hanbali . Furthermore, he included a dedicated section for unnamed or vaguely identified figures (al-mubhameen) whose association with Ibn Taymiyya was recorded by early biographers without separate biographical entries .
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List of Works
Mu'jam Ashab Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyya is a modern Arabic biographical dictionary dedicated to the companions, students, and contemporaries of Ahmad ibn Abd al-Halim ibn Taymiyya (d. 728 AH / 1328 CE). It gathers concise biographical entries for the scholars and notable figures who associated with him, drew from his knowledge, and followed his method.