, ,August 2026 ,Pages 1-13
Prof. Dr. Abdullah Mohammed Fahd Rashid Al-Azzawi
This study, entitled "The Contributions of Kurdish Scholars in Baghdad to Quranic Exegesis and Prophetic Tradition during the Seventh and Eighth Centuries AH: Imam Majd al-Din Ibn al-Athir al-Jazari as a Model," examines the efforts of Kurdish scholars who settled in Baghdad and contributed to the advancement of Islamic sciences, particularly Quranic exegesis and Prophetic traditions. The study aims to highlight their scholarly role by analyzing Baghdad's intellectual environment and presenting practical examples of their work, with a focus on the figure of Imam Majd al-Din Ibn al-Athir al-Jazari.
The study comprises two main sections, encompassing six subsections. The first section sheds light on the intellectual environment in Baghdad. The first subsection explains its status as a prominent center of learning, its embrace of schools, libraries, and scholarly gatherings, and the role of the sultans in supporting the intellectual movement. The second subsection addresses the motivations behind the migration of Kurdish scholars to Baghdad, including political instability in their homeland, the desire to pursue knowledge, and the opportunity to engage with an advanced scholarly environment. The third section presented the manifestations of their integration into Baghdad's scholarly life, through their assumption of teaching positions, authorship of books, granting of licenses, and participation in scholarly councils.
The second section focused on their contributions to exegesis and the Prophetic Sunnah. The first subsection addressed their efforts in the field of exegesis in terms of authorship and linguistic and rhetorical analysis, presenting Ibn al-Athir's book, al-Insaf, as a model. The second subsection discussed their contributions to the science of Hadith, particularly in explaining rare terms and authenticating narrations, highlighting al-Nihayah fi Gharib al-Hadith wa al-Athar. The third subsection offered an applied study of the efforts of Imam Majd al-Din Ibn al-Athir, examining his methodology, sources, and impact on Islamic sciences. The section concluded with the fourth subsection, which addressed the scholarly licenses granted or received by Kurdish scholars and their role in authenticating narrations and transmitting knowledge, while also mentioning the participation of some Kurdish female scholars. The study concluded that Kurdish scholars were an integral part of the Baghdad scholarly scene and contributed to the development of methodologies of interpretation and hadith, leaving behind a scholarly legacy that remains a reference in Islamic studies.