al-Inas bi-Ilm al-Ansab
- Author died
- 418 AH
- Editions
- al-Inas bi-Ilm al-Ansab
al-Inas bi-Ilm al-Ansab (Familiarity with the Science of Genealogy) is a specialized treatise on Arab tribal genealogy by the literary scholar and statesman Abu al-Qasim al-Husayn ibn Ali al-Maghribi, known as al-Wazir al-Maghribi (370–418 AH / 980–1027 CE).
Scope and Method
The work belongs to the genre of al-muʾtalif wa-al-mukhtalif, which addresses genealogical names and tribal designations that share identical or similar written orthography but differ in vocalization and pronunciation. Its core foundation was the earlier treatise on orthographically similar tribal names, Mukhtalif al-Qabaʾil wa-Muʾtalifuha, by the genealogist Muhammad ibn Habib (d. 245 AH), which served as the primary source text that al-Wazir al-Maghribi expanded and supplemented. The text is also cited in historical and onomastic literature under the variant title al-Inas fi Ilm al-Ansab.
Reception
Al-Inas was utilized by classical onomastic scholars and historians. Ibn Makula (d. 487 AH) included it among the fundamental early compilations in the field of al-muʾtalif wa-al-mukhtalif. The Aleppine historian Kamal al-Din Ibn al-Adim cited it as an extant reference work in the composition of his biographical history Bughyat al-Talab fi Tarikh Halab. Citations from the book also appear in Murtada al-Zabidi's lexicon Taj al-Arus, where it is referenced under the title Ansab al-Imam al-Wazir al-Maghribi.
Manuscripts and Print Editions
Surviving manuscripts of the treatise are preserved in international libraries:
- Chester Beatty Library, MS 5181, an 80-folio copy dated 657 AH.
- British Library (formerly the British Museum), MS 3620, comprising 108 folios copied directly from the author's autograph.
- Dar al-Kutub in Cairo, including MS Mulhaq 12861/H (a photographic facsimile of a copy dated 749 AH) and MS 12575/H (dating to 1372 AH).
The book was first printed in Cairo in 1965 in the journal Majallat al-Kitab al-Arabi without an extensive critical apparatus. A critical edition was prepared by Hamad al-Jasir based on early manuscript copies and published in Riyadh in 1400 AH / 1980 CE alongside Ibn Habib's Mukhtalif al-Qabaʾil wa-Muʾtalifuha. Another edition was prepared by Ibrahim al-Ibyari and issued in Cairo and Beirut in 1400 AH / 1980 CE.
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