al-Aqd al-Thamin fi Tarikh al-Balad al-Amin
- Author died
- 832 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah
al-Aqd al-Thamin fi Tarikh al-Balad al-Amin (The Precious Necklace on the History of the Secure City) is a biographical dictionary and topographical history of Mecca composed by the Maliki scholar and chief judge Taqi al-Din Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Fasi (775–832 AH / 1373–1429 CE) .
Composition and Scope
Al-Fasi modeled his work after the urban biographical traditions of earlier scholars, such as al-Khatib al-Baghdadi's history of Baghdad and Ibn Asakir's history of Damascus . He initially began drafting biographical material in 805 AH up to the letter Qaf in the section on agnomens (kuna), incorporating only a small number of the Prophet's Companions . In 806 AH, while in al-Lafh in Yemen, he abridged this material . In 812 AH, he commenced a comprehensive, expanded draft . By 826 AH, his rough draft had reached the middle of the letter Ya, leaving the remainder of that letter, the agnomens, and the biographies of women to be completed .
The book spans eight centuries of Meccan history . It compiles biographies of notable Meccans, long-term residents, and figures who died in the city . These include Companions from Quraysh, Kinana, Khuza'a, and Thaqif, alongside confederates of Quraysh and inhabitants of neighboring regions such as al-Ta'if . It also profiles Meccan rulers, judges, preachers, prayer leaders, muezzins, religious scholars, hadith transmitters, and individuals who built, restored, or expanded al-Masjid al-Haram and other sacred sites .
Structure
The author originally arranged the work into four volumes :
- Volume 1: Opens with a historical, topographical, and legal survey of Mecca across forty chapters, covering the city's boundaries, dimensions, religious merits, landmarks, and the Kaaba, followed by a concise biography of the Prophet Muhammad titled al-Jawahir al-Saniyya fi al-Sirah al-Nabawiyya (abridged from Mughultay's Sirah with additions) . The biographical section then begins alphabetically, opening with entries for those named Muhammad to seek blessing from the Prophet's name .
- Volume 2: Contains biographical entries arranged alphabetically from the letter Alif to the end of Za .
- Volume 3: Covers biographies spanning the entire letter Ayn .
- Volume 4: Covers the letters from Ghayn to Ya, concluding with dedicated supplementary chapters on agnomens (kuna), titles (alqab), tribal lineages (ansab), and notable women .
Sources and Method
Al-Fasi built upon early works on Meccan history, most notably Akhbar Makka by Abu al-Walid al-Azraqi (d. ca. 250 AH) and Tarikh Makka by Abu Abd Allah al-Fakihi (d. ca. 280 AH), synthesizing five centuries of subsequent historical transmission . Beyond written sources, al-Fasi verified information through direct oral reports from reliable transmitters and examined epigraphic inscriptions on marble, stone, and wood inside al-Masjid al-Haram and across Mecca . The work integrates urban geography, architectural measurements, civic structures—such as colleges (madaris), public fountains, water basins, and wells—with legal rulings and biographical data .
Reception, Continuations, and Editions
Al-Fasi treated al-Aqd al-Thamin as the master text for his historical oeuvre, deriving from it shorter specialized treatises and abridgments, including Shifa al-Ghiram bi-Akhbar al-Balad al-Haram, Tuhfat al-Kiram, al-Zuhur al-Muqyatafah, and Ujalat al-Qura .
The work received endorsements from contemporary scholars. Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani commended al-Fasi's organization and abridgment, noting that he interwove historical narratives with legal questions . Ahmad ibn Abd al-Rahim al-Iraqi examined the large history and acknowledged its extensive scholarly merit . Al-Fasi's student Najm al-Din Umar ibn Fahd (d. 885 AH) composed a biographical continuation titled al-Durr al-Kamin bi-Dhayl al-Aqd al-Thamin, as well as the annalistic chronicle Ithaf al-Wara bi-Akhbar Umm al-Qura .
The complete text has been edited by Muhammad Hamid al-Fiqi and Fu'ad Sayyid, and published in eight printed volumes .
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