Rasa'il al-Maqrizi
- Author died
- 845 AH
- Editions
- Dar al-Hadith
Rasa'il al-Maqrizi (Treatises of al-Maqrizi) refers to the corpus and published collections of specialized short monographs (rasa'il) written by the Egyptian historian and jurist al-Maqrizi (766–845 AH / 1364–1442 CE) . Spanning diverse disciplines, these concise works examine themes across political history, theology, genealogy, numismatics, regional geography, metallurgy, and natural history .
Composition and Classification
A substantial number of al-Maqrizi's short treatises were drafted during his later years, notably while residing near the Holy Mosque in Mecca in 839 AH, before being finalized and transcribed in fair copy after his return to Cairo around 841 AH .
Modern scholars, such as Jamal al-Din al-Shayyal, have categorized al-Maqrizi's shorter monographs into four distinct groups :
- Treatises addressing overarching problems or episodes in general Islamic history .
- Regional geographical and historical surveys covering peripheral regions of the Islamic world often overlooked by earlier chroniclers .
- Concise biographical sketches dedicated to specific lineages or rulers .
- Monographs exploring scientific phenomena, economic crises, or socio-economic conditions across Egypt and the broader Islamic world .
Structure and Scope of Key Treatises
Collections and compendiums assembled under the title Rasa'il al-Maqrizi feature a wide array of specialized monographs:
- History and Politics: Al-Tanaqu' wa-l-Takhasum fima bayna Bani Umayya wa-Bani Hashim examines the historical rivalry between the Umayyad and Hashimite clans before and after the advent of Islam, detailing early caliphal disputes and the rise of the Abbasid dynasty .
- Theology and Piety: Tajrid al-Tawhid al-Mufid differentiates between pure Islamic monotheism (tawhid) and various manifestations of polytheism (shirk), including linguistic forms and theological doctrines concerning divine decree and free will . Ma'rifat ma yajib li-Al al-Bayt outlines the status and religious duties owed to the Prophet's household based on Quranic exegesis and hadith . Other devotional works include Hirs al-Nufus 'ala Baqa' al-Dhikr, which encourages virtuous deeds to secure lasting good remembrance, and Husul al-In'am wa-l-Mayr fi Su'al Khatimat al-Khayr .
- Geography and Regional Accounts: Al-Ilmam bi-akhbar man bi-Ard al-Habasha min Muluk al-Islam details the Muslim dynasties of Abyssinia, incorporating Ethiopian royal terminology such as the Hati (emperor) . Al-Turfa al-Ghariba fi akhbar Wadi Hadramawt al-'Ajiba provides an account of the geography, lineage, and oral lore of the Hadramawt valley collected from travelers during his stay in Mecca . Al-Bayan wa-l-I'rab 'amma bi-Ard Misr min al-A'rab chronicles the migration of Arab tribes to Egypt from the Muslim conquest through his era .
- Economics and Numismatics: Shudhur al-'Uqud fi Dhikr al-Nuqud outlines the evolution of Islamic coinage, currency standards, and measurement units such as dirhams, dinars, and weight divisions . In Ighathat al-Umma bi-Kashf al-Ghumma, completed in 808 AH, al-Maqrizi analyzes historical famines and economic disasters in Egypt, categorizing their origins into natural factors (such as the low Nile flood) and administrative mismanagement, including rampant bribery and the overissuance of copper currency .
- Natural Sciences and Miscellanea: Al-Maqasid al-Saniyya fi Ma'rifat al-Ajsam al-Ma'daniyya classifies minerals and explains the generation of metals such as mercury, sulfur, silver, and copper from underground vapors . Nahl 'Ibar al-Nahl offers a multifaceted study of bees, honey, and beeswax, addressing zoology, medicine, economic importance, and historical uses of wax in courtly ceremonies . Al-Ishara wa-l-I'ma' fi Hall Lughz al-Ma', written in 823 AH, solves a literary and scientific riddle centered on water .
Manuscripts and Publications
Manuscripts containing collections of al-Maqrizi's treatises are preserved in international libraries, including MS 4657 at the Bibliothèque nationale de France in Paris, the Leiden University Library (MS 2408), Nuruosmaniye Library in Istanbul (MS 4937), Veliuddin Efendi Library (MS 3195), and the Cairo University Library .
Individual treatises were initially edited and printed in separate editions starting in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries in Europe and the Middle East by scholars such as Ferdinand Wüstenfeld, جمال الدين الشيال, and others . Collected editions assembling multiple treatises under the title Rasa'il al-Maqrizi—such as the edition prepared by Ramadan Muhammad Ali al-Badri and Ahmad Mustafa al-Tahtawi based on the Paris manuscript collection—brought these diverse monographs together into unified volumes .
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