Tarikh Ibn Muin - Riwayat Ibn Muhriz
- Author died
- 233 AH
- Editions
- Majma‘ al-Lughah al-‘Arabīyah
Tarikh Ibn Muin (Riwayat Ibn Muhriz) is a work on hadith transmitter criticism (al-jarh wa-l-tadil) that records the evaluations and inquiries put to the Baghdadi hadith critic Yahya ibn Maeen (158–233 AH / 775–848 CE) by his student Abu al-Abbas Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn al-Qasim ibn Muhriz .
Title and Scope
The book is an early source for the knowledge of hadith narrators (marifat al-rijal) and is cited across biographical and critical literature under several titles, including Tarikh Ibn Main: Riwayat Ibn Muhriz, Marifat al-Rijal an Yahya ibn Main, and Su'alat Ibn Muhriz . In addition to transmitting the critical judgments of Yahya ibn Maeen, the text incorporates narrations and evaluations from other contemporary authorities in hadith criticism, such as Ali ibn al-Madini, Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah, and Muhammad ibn Abd Allah ibn Numayr .
Transmission and Reception
The transmitter of the work is Abu al-Abbas Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn al-Qasim ibn Muhriz . Abd al-Rahman al-Muallami observed that Ibn Muhriz has a brief entry in Tarikh Baghdad by al-Khatib al-Baghdadi, which mentions only that he narrated from Yahya ibn Maeen and that Jafar ibn Durustawayh transmitted from him . Despite the absence of extensive biographical details or explicit ratings of disparagement or commendation regarding Ibn Muhriz himself, classical scholars consistently cite Ibn Maeen’s statements through his transmission without reservation, and al-Khatib al-Baghdadi drew extensively on his route when documenting Ibn Maeen's views .
Content and Method
The work is structured around direct questions and oral statements transcribed by Ibn Muhriz using transmission formulas such as "I asked Yahya ibn Maeen" (sa'altu Yahya ibn Maeen) and "I heard Yahya ibn Maeen" (samitu Yahya ibn Maeen) . It covers critical verdicts on individual transmitters—designating them with terms such as trustworthy (thiqah), acceptable (la ba'sa bihi / laysa bihi ba's), or weak (da'if)—as well as the clarification of obscure names, patronymics (kuna), and family lineages . Ibn Muhriz also interjects personal annotations regarding the context and collation of his written entries .
Printed Editions
The work has been published in several modern scholarly editions:
- Edited by Muhammad Kamil al-Qassar, Muhammad al-Hafiz, and Ghazwah Budayr under the title Marifat al-Rijal an Yahya ibn Main, published in Damascus by the Arab Academy of Damascus (Majma al-Lughah al-Arabiyyah) in 1405 AH / 1985 CE .
- Edited by Abu Umar Muhammad ibn Ali al-Azhari, published in Cairo by al-Faruq al-Hadithah in 1430 AH / 2009 CE .
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