The Role of Muslims in the Formation and Development of Sciences (Part 44)
The Most Important Methods of Writing History Among Muslims
The most important methods of writing history among Muslims are as follows:
1. Books on the Prophet’s Biography and the Battles of the Prophet (PBUH)
The attention of Muslims to the sayings and actions of the Prophet (PBUH) for guidance and reference in Islamic legislation and administrative systems encouraged writers to compile his biography. The narrators of his biography and their works can be divided into three categories based on chronological precedence:
First Category: Among the most prominent individuals in this category are Hazrat ‘Urwa Ibn Zubair Ibn Awwam (a Tabi’ee, died in 92 AH), Hazrat ‘Ab’ban Ibn Uthmaan Ibn Affan, who left behind pages documenting the life of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and ‘Shorahbil bin Sa’ad.
Second Category: Imam Muhammad ibn Muslim ibn Shihab al-Zuhri is considered one of the greatest historians of battles and biographies in this category.
Third Category: Imam Muhammad ibn Ishaq, to whom the oldest biography of the Prophet (PBUH) that has reached us is attributed, is one of the most famous individuals in this category.
These works, especially Ibn Ishaq’s biography, laid the groundwork for the tradition of writing the Prophet’s biography and had a profound impact on Islamic historiography.
2. Books of Tabaqat (Categories)
Islamic historical culture was familiar with the concept of Tabaqat from early times. These books dealt with the compilation and verification of the noble Hadith, leading to the examination of Hadith chains and the circumstances of the narrators. As a result, the concept of Tabaqat was formed.
Scholars of Hadith established criteria for accepting and validating Hadith, which included examining the authenticity, piety, family background of the narrators, their relationship with the Prophet, the length of their association with him, and their relationships with the Sahaba and the Rightly Guided Caliphs. They also emphasized the necessity of actual meetings and recorded the dates of birth and death for each person in the chain of narrations.
The systematization of narrations led to biographies that provided details about each narrator. Given the need to categorize these individuals based on succession, contemporaneity, and shared relationships, the concept of Tabaqat was further developed to classify narrators under different categories.
These methods laid the foundation for accurate and documented traditions in Islamic historiography, significantly impacting the development of Islamic scholarship. Thus, writing based on Tabaqat emerged in various fields, including:
– Categories of Hadith scholars
– Categories of Hadith memorizers
– Categories of jurists
– Categories of Shafi’i scholars
– Categories of Hanbali scholars
– Categories of Quran reciters
– Categories of commentators
– Categories of Sufi scholars
– Categories of poets
– Categories of grammarians
– Categories of physicians
Among the most famous books on Tabaqat are:
– Al-Tabaqat al-Kubra by Imam Muhammad ibn Sa’ad al-Zuhri
– Al-Tabaqat al-Shu’ara by Imam Muhammad ibn Salam al-Jamahi
– Al-Tabaqat al-Ateb’bah by Imam Ahmad ibn Abi Asiba’a and others.
3. Translation Books
These works present biographies of notable figures in encyclopedia form, focusing on individuals famous in specific fields and arts, such as scholars, writers, commanders, caliphs, etc. The most important of these books include:
– Mu’jam al-Udaba by Yaqut Hamavi
– Asad al-Ghaba fi Ma’rifat al-Sahaba by Imam Ibn al-Athir
– Wafiyyat al-A’yan by Imam Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Ibrahim ibn Khalakan (died 681 AH), recognized as one of the most accurate and systematic translation books
– Fawat al-Fawa’at by Ibn Shakir al-Kutbi
– Al-Wafi’ bi al-Wafi’at by Salah al-Din Khalil al-Safadi.
4. Books of Conquests
These works document the conquests of lands and cities and include:
– Futuh Misr wal-Maghrib wal-Andalus by Ibn Abdul Hakam
– Futuh al-Buldan by Baladhari
– Futuh al-Sham written by Waqidi.
5. Genealogical Books
These works explore the genealogies of Arab tribes. The Arabs had a special interest in this science due to their tribal affiliations before Islam. Among the most famous genealogists are:
– Muhammad ibn Sa’ib al-Kalbi, author of Jumarah al-Nasab
– Mus’ab al-Zubairi, author of Nasab al-Quraysh
– Ibn Hazm al-Andalusi, author of Jumarah al-Ansab al-Arab.
6. Local Histories
These historical works focus specifically on the history of a particular region or city in great detail. Some of the most important of these works include:
– The book Wila’at al-Misr wa-Qoza’atah by Abu ‘Umar Muhammad ibn Yusuf al-Kindi, covering the history of the governors and judges of Egypt
– The History of Baghdad by Khatib al-Baghdadi, dedicated to the city’s history
– History of Damascus by Imam Ali ibn Hassan ibn Asakir, which explores the history of Damascus in eighty volumes
– Al-Bayan al-Maghrib fi Akhbar al-Maghrib by Ibn Azari, which discusses the history of the Maghreb
– Al-Nujum al-Zahira fi Muluk Misr wa al-Qahirah by Jamal al-Din Yusuf ibn Taghri Burdi al-Atabaki, focusing on the history of the kings of Egypt and Cairo.
7. General Histories
With historians expanding their interests, more comprehensive works under the title of “General Histories” emerged. These texts documented humanity’s history from creation, including pre-Islamic prophets, the era of ignorance, the Prophet of Islam (PBUH), the rightly guided caliphs, and subsequent Islamic periods. Some prominent authors in this field include:
– Imam Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari, author of Tarikh al-Rasul wa al-Muluk, known as Tarikh al-Tabari
– Al-Masoudi, author of Morawej al-Zahab wa Ma’aden al-Jawhar, which is an encyclopedic work
– Imam Izz al-Din ibn Athir, author of Al-Kamil fi al-Tarikh, known as Tarikh Ibn Athir, considered a reliable source of Islamic history
– Imam Ibn Kathir, author of Al-Bidayah wal-Nihayah
– Imam Abu Zaid Abd al-Rahman ibn Muhammad ibn Khaldun, author of Al-Ibar wa Diwan al-Mubtada wa al-Khabar, commonly referred to as Tarikh Ibn Khaldun.
In addition, there are other forms of historical writing that historians have categorized into about a thousand different types. Al-Zahabi mentioned forty types, including the biographies of prophets, stories of the prophets, and the histories of companions, caliphs, kings, states, ministers, rulers, jurists, Hadith narrators, historians, grammarians, writers, linguists, poets, worshippers, ascetics, Sufis, judges, and governors.
Franz Rosenthal, a prominent orientalist, in his book The Science of History among Muslims, highlights the diversity and scope of Muslim historical works, stating: “Undoubtedly, the volume of Islamic historical works is extensive, and the Byzantine annals are closely related to the Islamic annals; however, Islamic history is distinguished from them by its diversity and enormous volume. In fact, there may not be anywhere in early history with as many historical works as those produced by Muslims. Muslim historical works may equal Greek and Latin works in number, but they certainly surpass those of Europe and the Middle East in the Middle Ages. Their privileged position in the Islamic literary movement was not lost on Western scholars who encountered the Arabs; yet these scholars typically focused on science, philosophy, and theology and, like their Muslim counterparts, were often reluctant to acknowledge the existence of historical works.”
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