Tajrid al-Asma wa al-Kuna al-Madhkura fi Kitab al-Muttafiq wa al-Muftariq

Tajrid al-Asma wa al-Kuna al-Madhkura fi Kitab al-Muttafiq wa al-Muftariq (The Stripping of Names and Kunyas Mentioned in the Book of al-Muttafiq wa al-Muftariq) is a biographical dictionary of hadith transmitters by the Hanbali jurist and traditionist Abu al-Qasim ibn al-Farra (527–580 AH / 1133–1184 CE) Tajrid al-Asma wa al-Kuna…+1. It serves as an abridgment of the major transmitter compendium al-Muttafiq wa al-Muftariq by al-Khatib al-Baghdadi (d. 463 AH) Tajrid al-Asma wa al-Kuna…+1.

Purpose and Scope

Al-Khatib al-Baghdadi composed al-Muttafiq wa al-Muftariq to identify and distinguish hadith transmitters whose names, patronymics, lineages, or agnomens (kunas) share identical spellings and pronunciations while belonging to distinct individuals Madrasat al-Hadith fi Mis…+1. Because al-Khatib recorded complete transmission chains (isnads) and full hadith texts for each entry, his original work grew voluminous, making quick reference difficult for scholars Tajrid al-Asma wa al-Kuna…. Ibn al-Farra undertook this abridgment to strip away the extended hadith texts and isnads, isolating the biographical profiles so that researchers could consult the transmitter records more readily Tajrid al-Asma wa al-Kuna…+1.

The title appears in the author's colophons as Tajrid al-Asma al-Madhkura fi Kitab al-Muttafiq wa al-Muftariq at the end of part one and al-Tajrid li-Asma Kitab al-Muttafiq wa al-Muftariq at the end of part three, while later notes on the manuscript title page and final sheet labeled it Tajrid al-Asma wa al-Kuna to reflect its inclusion of agnomens Tajrid al-Asma wa al-Kuna….

Method and Structure

Ibn al-Farra structured the work along the original arrangement established by al-Khatib al-Baghdadi Tajrid al-Asma wa al-Kuna…:

• Removal of texts and isnads: He eliminated the narrated hadiths and supporting isnads across the vast majority of entries, though a modest number of narrations were retained Tajrid al-Asma wa al-Kuna….
• Transmitter entries: He generally maintained the transmitters' names as listed by al-Khatib without alteration, thoroughly recording the teachers and students documented in the original Tajrid al-Asma wa al-Kuna….
• Evaluation and chronology: He preserved al-Khatib's citations regarding critical evaluations (al-jarh wa al-ta'dil) and reported death dates Tajrid al-Asma wa al-Kuna….
• Independent additions: Ibn al-Farra inserted supplementary remarks and material not found in al-Khatib's text, prefixing them with phrases such as "I said" (qultu) or "Ibn al-Farra said" (qal Ibn al-Farra), drawing most of these additions from al-Bukhari's al-Tarikh al-Kabir Tajrid al-Asma wa al-Kuna….

Manuscript Tradition and Publication

The work survived in a manuscript held at the Al-Azhar Library in Cairo (MS 134, running 142 folios) Tajrid al-Asma wa al-Kuna…. This copy was transcribed in 640 AH by Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Umar al-Muhallabi al-Karaji under the direction of Ibn al-Salah Tajrid al-Asma wa al-Kuna…. The copyist and scholar Abd Allah ibn Yahya al-Ghassani al-Jaza'iri (d. 682 AH) collated the manuscript against Ibn al-Farra's autograph as well as a verified manuscript of al-Khatib's original that had belonged to the Maghribi traditionist Abu Muhammad Abd Allah ibn Ali al-Ashiri (d. 561 AH), noting marginal variants between them using the sigla Ash (for al-Ashiri) and Far (for Ibn al-Farra) Tajrid al-Asma wa al-Kuna…+1.

The book was edited by Shadi ibn Muhammad ibn Salim Al Nu'man and published in two volumes in Sanaa in 1432 AH / 2011 CE Tajrid al-Asma wa al-Kuna…+1.