al-Hujja fi al-Qiraat al-Sab
- Author died
- 370 AH
- Editions
- Dar Al-Shorouk
al-Hujja fi al-Qiraat al-Sab (The Argument for the Seven Readings) is a fourth-century AH grammatical and philological treatise on the justification (ihtijaj) of the seven canonical Quranic readings, attributed to the grammarian and philologist Ibn Khalawayh (d. 370 AH / 980 CE).
Scope and Method
The work focuses on providing linguistic, grammatical, and syntactic justifications for the variants transmitted by the seven recognized masters of Quranic recitation from the five major metropolitan centers (Mecca, Medina, Basra, Kufa, and the Levant), whose traditions were codified by Ibn Khalawayh's teacher, Ibn Mujahid. The text adheres to well-established, canonical readings and leaves aside anomalous or irregular narrations (al-qira'at al-shadhdha).
Methodologically, the book is designed with concise exposition (ijaz and ikhtisar), offering clear and direct arguments for each reading without lengthy digressions or convoluted analytical chains, in contrast to the extensive, dialectical commentary found in the contemporaneous al-Hujja of Abu Ali al-Farisi. The explanations frequently employ the recurring introductory formula: «والحجة لمن قرأ...» ("the argument for the one who read...").
Authorship and Scholarly Debate
The attribution of the work has been the subject of debate among modern scholars:
- Its modern editor, Abd al-Al Salim Makram, authenticated the work as an authentic composition of Ibn Khalawayh, citing manuscript title pages, his direct study under Ibn Mujahid, and his established expertise in writing works on Quranic readings and syntax.
- Other scholars, including Muhammad al-Abid al-Fasi and Subhi Abd al-Mun'im, contested this attribution. Critics pointed out that classical biographical and bibliographical dictionaries do not list a book specifically named al-Hujja among Ibn Khalawayh's works, and that the text lacks his characteristic style of citing named teachers, transmitting isnads, and referencing his other titles.
- Some researchers consider the text to be an abridgment of Ibn Khalawayh's larger work I'rab al-Qira'at al-Sab' wa-'Ilaluha, prepared either by a disciple or another author. It has also been suggested that it could be the al-Hujja composed by Ahmad ibn al-Saqr al-Manbiji (d. 366 AH), who held an authorization (ijaza) from Ibn Khalawayh.
In an Azhar manuscript copy, the work is titled al-Hujja wa-al-intisar li-'ilal al-qira'at min ahl al-amsar.
Manuscripts and Publication
The primary witness used for the modern edition is an ancient manuscript preserved in the Tal'at collection at the Egyptian National Library (Dar al-Kutub, ms. Qira'at 134), completed in Dhu al-Hijjah 496 AH and collated against its original exemplar. A later transcript of this codex is preserved under number 19523 B, copied in Shawwal 1355 AH.
The text was edited in a single volume by Abd al-Al Salim Makram and first published in 1971 by Dar al-Shorouk in Beirut, seeing multiple subsequent printings including editions published by Mu'assasat al-Risala.
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