al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh

al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh (Knowledge and History) is an early biographical and historical work composed by the hadith scholar and historian Abu Yusuf Ya'qub ibn Sufyan al-Fasawi (d. 277 AH / 890 CE), combining annalistic chronicles (tarikh) with the critical evaluation and biographical notices of hadith transmitters (marifat al-rijal).Shadharat al-Dhahab fi Ak…+1

Structure and Scope

The title of the work reflects its two main structural divisions: al-tarikh, referring to chronological annals arranged by year (hawliyyat), and al-marifa, designating the study and critical knowledge of transmitters.Lamahat fi al-Maktaba wa …+1

The original first volume of the chronological section was lost.al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh+1 As reconstructed from citations in later sources, this missing portion covered primordial history (such as the creation and age of the earth), prophetic history, the prophetic biography (sirah), the era of the Rightly Guided caliphs, the Umayyad caliphate, and the reign of Abu al-Abbas al-Saffah.al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh What survives of the annalistic chronicle covers the early Abbasid era up to the year 242 AH.al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh Though concise, this section includes unique historical reports concerning events in Mecca, systematic records of pilgrimage commanders (umara' al-mawassim), and al-Fasawi's personal observations, such as his visit to the tomb of Ibn Shihab al-Zuhri and his reading of historical building inscriptions inside the Umayyad Mosque of Damascus.al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh

Following the annals, the biographical section begins with the Companions and continues through the Successors (Tabi'un), organized broadly by generations (tabaqat).al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh Al-Fasawi divided the Successors of Medina into distinct classes, placing their jurists ahead of other memorizers explicitly because of their legal expertise.al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh After the Medinese Successors, he moved away from strict generation-by-generation classification to provide detailed entries for renowned scholars.al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh Names within a given category are not arranged alphabetically; instead, transmitters bearing the same given name (such as all individuals named Abd Allah, followed by Salman, then Ka'b) are grouped together.al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh

Sources and Method

Al-Fasawi relied heavily on direct oral transmission from his teachers as well as written texts.al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh Among his prominent direct authorities in the work are Abu Nu'aym al-Fadl ibn Dukayn, Abu Bakr al-Humaydi, Yahya ibn Bukayr, Ali ibn al-Madini, Sulayman ibn Harb, Ibrahim ibn al-Mundhir, and Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah.al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh He also incorporated extensive traditions originating from earlier authorities, including approximately 40 reports from Urwah ibn al-Zubayr and over 50 reports transmitted from al-Zuhri across recurrent transmission pathways.al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh

Transmission and Reception

The text was transmitted and preserved for posterity primarily through the narration of the grammarian Abd Allah ibn Ja'far ibn Durustawayh (d. 346 AH), who studied it under al-Fasawi.al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh Ibn Durustawayh's transmission served as the standard source for later scholars who cited or taught the work.al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh+1

Scholars commended the work's breadth and utility; Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah characterized it as a magnificent book of abundant knowledge and immense benefit, and Ibn Kathir noted it among the highly useful texts.al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh It was widely consulted and quoted by major historians and biographers, including al-Khatib al-Baghdadi across several of his books (most extensively in Tarikh Baghdad and al-Kifayah), Ibn al-Jawzi in his biography of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, Ibn Asakir in Tarikh Madinat Dimashq, Ibn Kathir in al-Bidayah wa-l-Nihayah, Ibn Sayyid al-Nas in Uyun al-Athar, and Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani in Tahdhib al-Tahdhib and al-Isabah.al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh+2 Transmission of the text continued into later eras: Abu Sa'd al-Sam'ani read most of it with Abu al-Futuh al-Kharkushi (d. 544 AH), and Muhammad ibn Sulayman al-Raddani (d. 1094 AH) recorded his license (ijazah) for its transmission tracing back through al-Khatib al-Baghdadi to Ibn Durustawayh.al-Marifa wa al-Tarikh

Modern Publication

The surviving text of the work, preserved in three large manuscript volumes, was edited by Akram Diya' al-Umari and published in three volumes in Baghdad by Matba'at al-Irshad in 1394 AH / 1974 CE.Shadharat al-Dhahab fi Ak…+1 A second edition was subsequently published by Mu'assasat al-Risalah in Beirut in 1401 AH / 1981 CE.Shadharat al-Dhahab fi Ak…+1