Tadwin al-Sunna al-Nabawiyya Nashatuhu wa Tatawwuruhu min al-Qarn al-Awwal ila Nihayat al-Qarn al-Tasi al-Hijri
- Author died
- 1427 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Hijrah lil-Nashr wa-al-Tawzī‘
Tadwin al-Sunna al-Nabawiyya: Nashʾatuhu wa-Tatawwuruhu min al-Qarn al-Awwal ila Nihayat al-Qarn al-Tasiʿ al-Hijri (The Recording of the Prophetic Sunna: Its Origin and Development from the First to the End of the Ninth Hijri Century) is a specialized historical study on the documentation and compilation of Hadith, written by the Saudi scholar Abu Yasir Muhammad ibn Matar al-Zahrani (d. 1427 AH / 2006 CE) .
Background and Purpose
Al-Zahrani completed the book on 15 Rabiʿ al-Awwal 1412 AH in Medina . He composed it while teaching the course on the history of recording the Sunna to first-year students at the College of Hadith in the Islamic University of Madinah . Finding no existing single work that encompassed the curriculum adequately for students, he compiled material from classical sources to serve as a structured textbook and reference . He noted that earlier authors on the subject typically restricted their studies to the first century or extended only briefly into the third century AH . Two years after completing this work, al-Zahrani authored a companion textbook for the same college curriculum titled ʿIlm al-Rijal: Nashʾatuhu wa-Tatawwuruhu min al-Qarn al-Awwal ila Nihayat al-Qarn al-Tasiʿ .
Structure and Contents
The work opens with an introduction and a conceptual prologue (tamhid) defining tadwin (compilation) and sunna linguistically and technically, followed by five major parts (abwab) subdivided into chapters :
- Part One: The Status of the Sunna in Islam and the Care of the Early Generations (al-Salaf): Divided into three chapters covering the legal parity between the Quran and the Sunna, the dedication of the Companions and Successors (al-Tabiʿun) to preserving Hadith alongside their travels in search of knowledge, and the stances of various theological factions toward the authoritative status (hujjiyya) of the Sunna .
- Part Two: Recording the Sunna in the First and Second Hijri Centuries: Examines early documentation during the lifetime of the Prophet ﷺ and the efforts of the Companions and Successors in the first century, followed by the evolution of compilation in the second century, listing prominent compilers and presenting a focused case study of Malik ibn Anas's al-Muwatta .
- Part Three: Recording the Sunna in the Third Hijri Century: Discusses what the author characterizes as the golden age of Hadith compilation in two chapters: the development of musnad collections with a case study of Ahmad ibn Hanbal's al-Musnad, and concise surveys of the Six Books (al-Kutub al-Sitta) .
- Part Four: Recording in the Fourth and Fifth Hijri Centuries: Covers key works compiled in the fourth century—including Ibn Khuzayma's Sahih, Ibn Hibban's Sahih, al-Hakim al-Naysaburi's al-Mustadrak, al-Tahawi's Sharh Mushkil al-Athar, al-Tabarani's al-Muʿjam al-Kabir, al-Daraqutni's al-Sunan, and al-Bayhaqi's al-Sunan al-Kubra, alongside the genre of mustakhrajat—as well as fifth-century works synthesizing multiple collections, such as al-Baghawi's Sharh al-Sunna and Masabih al-Sunna, and Ibn al-Athir's Jami al-Usul .
- Part Five: Trends in Compilation after the Fifth Hijri Century: Opens with an overview of the socio-political challenges and scholarly responses in the Islamic world up to the ninth century AH, followed by chapters on specialized genres (fabricated hadiths, legal rulings, uncommon vocabulary, and al-targhib wa-l-tarhib) and comprehensive genres (works of atraf, takhrij, zawa'id, and multi-source hadith corpora) .
Core Findings and Methodology
In his conclusion, al-Zahrani emphasizes the distinction between tadwin (the initial gathering and transcription of unorganized materials into booklets or registers) and tasnif (the thematic arrangement of texts into formal chapters and topics) . Through this distinction, he clarifies apparent contradictions in historical reports, demonstrating that while the writing down of hadiths began during the lifetime of the Prophet ﷺ and continued among the Companions, comprehensive and ordered state-sponsored compilation began under the directive of the Umayyad caliph Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz via Ibn Shihab al-Zuhri . He also draws upon al-Khatib al-Baghdadi's Taqyid al-ʿIlm to demonstrate that early reports discouraging transcription were either non-authentic or tied to temporary initial precautions .
Publication History
The book was published in a single volume by Dar al-Hijra in Riyadh (also listed as al-Thuqba) in 1417 AH / 1996 CE (278 pages) . A third edition was subsequently issued by Maktabat Dar al-Minhaj in Riyadh in 1431 AH (263 pages) .
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