Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafayat al-Shuyukh wa al-Aqran

Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafayat al-Shuyukh wa al-Aqran (Events of the Age and Obituaries of Elders and Peers) is an annalistic chronicle and biographical work by the Damascene Shafi'i scholar and judge Ibn al-Himsi (d. 934 AH / 1527–1528 CE) Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…+1. It records historical events, social conditions, and biographical notices of scholars, rulers, and officials in Damascus and Cairo from 851 AH (1446–1447 CE) to 930 AH (1523–1524 CE), documenting the late Mamluk period and the transition to Ottoman rule Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…+1.

Composition and Purpose

The full name of the author is Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Umar ibn Abi Bakr ibn Abi Bakr ibn Uthman ibn Abd al-Latif ibn Ahmad ibn Abd al-Rahman ibn Ali al-Ansari al-Shafi'i, known as Ibn al-Himsi Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…+1. In his preface, Ibn al-Himsi states that he designed the work as a continuation (dhayl) to Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani's historical chronicle Inba' al-Ghumr bi-Anba' al-'Umr, which had covered history up to the year 850 AH Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…. Ibn Hajar had himself written Inba' al-Ghumr as a continuation of Ibn Kathir's history Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa….

Although Ibn al-Himsi noted that he intended to chronicle events from his birth year in 841 AH (1436–1437 CE) onwards, the extant text of the chronicle begins its recorded entries from 851 AH Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…. The work also functions as a concise redaction of an earlier, larger history by the author, titled al-Tarikh al-Kabir ("The Large History"), which is now lost and to which Ibn al-Himsi occasionally refers readers for longer treatments of specific episodes Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…+1.

Structure and Manuscript Tradition

The text is organized chronologically by year, presenting the major events of each year followed by the obituaries (wafayat) of prominent scholars, judges, and state figures Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…+1. The surviving text is divided across three main parts (ajza'), preserved in separate holograph manuscripts and copies:

• Part One: Covers the years 851 AH to 894 AH (1446/1447–1488/1490 CE) Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…+1. The author completed copying this volume in Cairo in 894 AH; the original holograph is preserved in the Feyzullah Library in Istanbul (MS 222) Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…+1.
• Part Two: Covers the years 903 AH to 908 AH (1497–1502 CE) Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…. An original manuscript is held in the Cambridge University Library (with microfilm copies at the Institute of Arabic Manuscripts in Cairo) Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…+1.
• Part Three: Covers the years 915 AH to 930 AH (1509–1523/1524 CE) Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…. Copied by the author in his old age, it is preserved in the Rifa'ah Rafi' al-Tahtawi Library in Sohag, Egypt (MS 239) Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa….

Owing to gaps between these manuscript volumes, several intervening years are missing from the preserved text Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa….

Scope and Contents

The primary focus of Hawadith al-Zaman is the Levant and Egypt, where Ibn al-Himsi resided and served in scholarly and judicial posts Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…+1. He drew primarily on firsthand observation and verified accounts, while treating reports from other Islamic regions secondarily through information transmitted by arriving travelers Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…+1.

The chronicle provides detailed coverage of late Mamluk political history and the early Ottoman era Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…+1. In the third volume, Ibn al-Himsi provides an eyewitness record of the events of 922 AH (1516 CE), including the expedition of Mamluk Sultan Qansuh al-Ghawri from Egypt to Syria, his reception in Damascus, the decisive Battle of Marj Dabiq fought on Sunday, 26 Rajab 922 AH, the defeat of the Mamluk army, and an extensive biographical profile of al-Ghawri's reign and death Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa….

Beyond political and military events, the work records daily socioeconomic and urban life in Damascus and Cairo Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…. These include:

• Market conditions, commodity prices, food shortages, and currency adjustments Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa….
• Building and architectural developments sponsored by state elites Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa….
• Annual hajj pilgrimage caravans, their departures, and Bedouin raids directed against them Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa….
• Natural disasters, climatic shifts, and outbreaks of plague and epidemics Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa….
• Religious festivals, state processions, and administrative appointments among judges, military officers, and scholars Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…+1.

Reception

The Damascene historian Najm al-Din al-Ghazzi (d. 1061 AH) made extensive use of Ibn al-Himsi's historical writings when compiling his biographical dictionary al-Kawakib al-Sa'irah bi-A'yan al-Mi'ah al-'Ashirah Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa…. In the introduction to al-Kawakib al-Sa'irah, al-Ghazzi praised Ibn al-Himsi's chronicle, noting that he had consulted a substantial portion of it and found it to be a remarkable work that adopted a method of conciseness and accessibility Hawadith al-Zaman wa Wafa….