Muqaddima fi Usul al-Bahth al-Ilmi wa Tahqiq al-Turath
- Author died
- 1419 AH
- Editions
- Al-Maktaba Al-Azhariyya Li Al-Turath
Muqaddima fi Usul al-Bahth al-Ilmi wa Tahqiq al-Turath (An Introduction to the Principles of Scientific Research and Heritage Editing) is a methodological guide on academic research and Arabic manuscript editing authored by al-Sayyid Rizq al-Tawil (d. 1419 AH / 1998 CE), professor of linguistics at al-Azhar University and former dean of the Faculty of Islamic and Arabic Studies for Men in Cairo.
Background and Purpose
The author completed the work on 29 Rabi' al-Awwal 1409 AH (9 November 1988 CE) in al-Duqqi, Cairo. He composed it as a comprehensive yet concise reference for students at al-Azhar University and other Islamic universities, bringing together the methodology of scholarly writing, the bibliography of Islamic literature, and the rules of critical text editing. The text was designed to draw upon the works of earlier scholars alongside the author's practical experiences in teaching postgraduate students, supervising master's and doctoral theses, and evaluating academic research.
Structure and Contents
The book is arranged into an introduction and three main parts (abwab):
- Part One: Scientific Research and Its Principles (al-Bahth al-Ilmi wa Usuluh): Comprising a single chapter, this part addresses the value and definition of research, its forms and domains, the qualifications and scientific ethics required of a researcher, and the sequential stages of conducting research—from choosing a topic and preparing a preliminary outline to handling sources, drafting, compiling indexes, and writing the introduction.
- Part Two: Introduction to the Islamic Library (al-Ta'rif bi-l-Maktaba al-Islamiyya): Divided into two chapters. The first presents a historical and survey study of Islamic libraries, tracing their origins, major historical libraries (such as Bayt al-Hikma, Dar al-Ilm, and the Library of Cordoba), and prominent modern libraries and collections across the Arab world, the broader Islamic world, and abroad. The second chapter provides a bibliographic guide across nine subject areas representing primary references of Islamic scholarship, including Quranic sciences, Hadith and its sciences, the Prophet's biography, history and biographical works, and Arabic linguistic sciences.
- Part Three: Islamic Heritage and Its Textual Editing (Qadiyyat al-Turath wa Tahqiquh): Divided into three chapters. The first examines the concept of heritage and efforts undertaken to publish it. The second chapter outlines Arabic manuscripts and their locations in world libraries. The third chapter details the theoretical and practical rules of manuscript editing (tahqiq), including the definition and history of editing, editor requirements, and step-by-step procedures: locating unedited manuscripts, assembling copies, selecting the base manuscript (al-nuskha al-asl), authenticating attribution, verifying the title and author, collating copies, textual criticism, source referencing (takhrij), annotation, vocalization, punctuation, and indexing. It also explains technical manuscript terms (such as ijaza, musawwada, tashif, and tahrif), discusses common pitfalls in manuscript editing, and presents recommendations from a specialist heritage committee.
Publication History
The work was first published during the author's lifetime. A second, revised edition was prepared six years after his death by Dr. Abd al-Qadir Rizq al-Tawil, a professor at al-Azhar University, who corrected typographical errors from the first printing; its foreword was dated 1 Safar 1424 AH (3 April 2003 CE) in Saray al-Qubba, Cairo.
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