Tabaqat al-Shafiiyyin
- Author died
- 774 AH
- Editions
- Maktabat al-Thaqāfah al-Dīniyyah
Tabaqat al-Shafiiyyin (The Generations of Shafi'i Jurists), also titled Tabaqat al-fuqaha' al-Shafiiyyin, is a biographical dictionary of Shafi'i scholars composed by the Damascene historian and traditionist Ibn Kathir (701–774 AH / 1301–1373 CE) .
Historical Context and Scope
The work was written during the eighth century AH, a period that witnessed substantial biographical writing dedicated to the figures of the Shafi'i legal school, alongside contemporary works compiled by scholars such as Taj al-Din al-Subki (d. 771 AH) and Jamal al-Din al-Isnawi (d. 772 AH) . Ibn Kathir compiled biographical entries documenting the lives, legal contributions, and transmissions of Shafi'i jurists across successive historical periods, opening with the first generational layer of figures who directly studied under and transmitted from Imam al-Shafi'i, such as Abd al-Aziz al-Kinani .
Structure and Method
Ibn Kathir organized the biographical material chronologically into generational tiers (tabaqat), allotting fifty years to each major tier . Within each tier, he subdivided the entries into five ten-year ranks (maratib), with specific structural variations:
- The third tier is divided into two ranks spanning twenty-five years each .
- The fourth tier is divided into two ranks, the first spanning twenty years and the second thirty years .
Within individual tiers, such as the initial group of direct transmitters from al-Shafi'i, entries are arranged alphabetically by proper name .
Manuscripts and Printed Editions
Manuscript copies of the work are preserved in several international libraries, including the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin (MS 3390), Princeton University Library (MS 4993), the National Library of Tunisia (MS 6448), and the General Library in Rabat (MS 219) .
The work has been published in modern editions:
- An edition edited by Ahmad 'Umar Hashim and Muhammad Zaynuhum (published by Maktabat al-Thaqafa al-Diniyya in Cairo and Port Said, 1413 AH / 1993 CE, in two and three volumes) .
- An edition edited by 'Abd al-Hafiz Mansur (published by Dar al-Madar al-Islami in Libya, 2004 CE) .
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