al-Kitab al-Farid fi Irab al-Quran al-Majid
- Author died
- 643 AH
- Editions
- Dar al-Zaman lil-Nashr wa-al-Tawzi
al-Kitab al-Farid fi I'rab al-Qur'an al-Majid (The Unique Book on the Grammatical Analysis of the Glorious Qur'an) is a comprehensive treatise on Quranic grammatical analysis (i'rab), linguistic meaning, and variant readings (qira'at) by the Shafi'i scholar and reciter al-Muntajab al-Hamadhani (d. 643 AH / 1245 CE) .
Background and Purpose
Al-Hamadhani composed the work after finishing his extensive commentary on al-Shatibi's didactic poem on Quranic readings, titled al-Durra al-farida fi sharh al-qasida . Observing widespread interest in that commentary, he intended al-Kitab al-Farid to serve as a companion study dedicated to the syntax and grammatical parsing of the Quran . In his introduction, the author stated that he drew material from the treatises of exegetes, grammarians, and Quran reciters, combining what he transmitted from his teachers while distilling their insights, clarifying ambiguities, pruning superfluous discussions, and organizing the dispersed rulings .
Contents and Methodology
Unlike works restricted solely to grammatical anomalies (mushkil), obscure vocabulary (gharib), or selective passages, al-Hamadhani set out to parse the entire Quran systematically from beginning to end, omitting only redundant, similar, or self-evident grammatical structures . The text encompasses several interconnected disciplines:
- Grammar and Syntax (I'rab): The primary focus is assigning syntactic functions and case endings to Quranic phrasing, often linking grammatical possibilities directly to shifts in meaning .
- Lexicology and Semantics (Ma'ani): The author explains unfamiliar expressions, provides etymological derivations (ishtiqaq), and outlines morphological variants (tasrif) and Arabic synonyms .
- Variant Readings (Qira'at): Extensive attention is given to standard mutawatir readings and anomalous (shadhdh) recitations in order to explain their syntactic justifications (tawjih) . While analyzing anomalous variants grammatically, al-Hamadhani explicitly cautions against reciting with them in ritual contexts, affirming that recitation is a transmitted tradition received by successors from predecessors . In presenting syntactic preferences, he often gives precedence to the reading of Abu 'Amr ibn al-'Ala' .
- Evidentiary Support: The analysis is supported throughout by textual evidence (shawahid) drawn from Quranic verses, prophetic hadiths, Arabic poetry, and proverbs .
In theological and legal discussions, al-Hamadhani consistently adheres to Sunni orthodox positions and the legal conclusions of al-Shafi'i, frequently criticizing Mu'tazilism and other heterodox doctrines .
Reception and Scholarly Standing
The book gained recognition among later scholars of Quranic sciences as a balanced, medium-sized grammatical commentary . Badr al-Din al-Zarkashi commended it in al-Burhan fi 'ulum al-Qur'an, listing it among the finest works written on Quranic syntax alongside the treatises of Makki ibn Abi Talib, Abu al-Baqa' al-'Ukbari, al-Zamakhshari, and Ibn 'Atiyyah .
Editions
al-Kitab al-Farid has appeared in modern printed editions, including:
- An edition edited by Fahmi Hasan al-Nimr and Fu'ad 'Ali Mukhaymir, published by Dar al-Thaqafa in Qatar (1411 AH / 1991 CE), based on a doctoral dissertation .
- A six-volume critical edition edited with annotations by Muhammad Nizam al-Din al-Futayyih, published by Maktabat Dar al-Zaman in Medina (1427 AH / 2006 CE) .
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