Abū al-ʿAbbās Abd Allāh ibn Hārūn al-Maʾmūn, better known by his regnal name al-Ma'mun, was the seventh Abbasid caliph, who reigned from 813 until his death in 833. He succeeded his half-brother al-Amin after a civil war, during which the cohesion of the Abbasid Caliphate was weakened by rebellions and the rise of local strongmen; much of his domestic reign was consumed in pacification campaigns. Well educated and with a considerable interest in scholarship, al-Ma'mun promoted the Translation Movement, the flowering of learning and the sciences in Baghdad, and the publishing of al-Khwarizmi's book now known as "Algebra". He is also known for supporting the doctrine of Mu'tazilism and for imprisoning Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, the rise of religious persecution (mihna), and for the resumption of large-scale warfare with the Byzantine Empire.
Muhammad ibn Ali al-Jawad was a descendant of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the ninth of the Twelve Imams, succeeding his father, Ali al-Rida. He is known by the epithets al-Jawād and al-Taqī. Like most of his predecessors, Muhammad kept aloof from politics and engaged in religious teaching, while organizing the affairs of the Imamite Shia community through a network of representatives. The extensive correspondence of al-Jawad with his followers on questions of Islamic law has been preserved in Shia sources and numerous pithy religio-ethical sayings are also attributed to him.
A caliphate is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with the title of caliph, a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of the entire Muslim world (ummah). Historically, the caliphates were polities based on Islam which developed into multi-ethnic trans-national empires.
Abu’l-ʿAbbās Aḥmad ibn Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Muʿtamid ʿalā’Llāh, better known by his regnal name al-Muʿtamid ʿalā ’llāh, was the caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate from 870 to 892. His reign marks the end of the "Anarchy at Samarra" and the start of the Abbasid restoration, but he was largely a ruler in name only. Power was held by his brother al-Muwaffaq, who held the loyalty of the military. Al-Mu'tamid's authority was circumscribed further after a failed attempt to flee to the domains controlled by Ahmad ibn Tulun in late 882, and he was placed under house arrest by his brother. In 891, when al-Muwaffaq died, loyalists attempted to restore power to the Caliph, but were quickly overcome by al-Muwaffaq's son al-Mu'tadid, who assumed his father's powers. When al-Mu'tamid died in 892, al-Mu'tadid succeeded him as caliph.
Abū Muḥammad ʿAlī ibn Aḥmad ibn Ṭalḥa ibn Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Muktafī bi'Llāh, better known by his regnal name al-Muktafī bi-Llāh, was the caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate from 902 to 908. More liberal and sedentary than his militaristic father al-Mu'tadid, al-Muktafi essentially continued his policies, although most of the actual conduct of government was left to his viziers and officials. His reign saw the defeat of the Qarmatians of the Syrian Desert, and the reincorporation of Egypt and the parts of Syria ruled by the Tulunid dynasty. The war with the Byzantine Empire continued with alternating success, although the Arabs scored a major victory in the Sack of Thessalonica in 904. His death in 908 opened the way for the installation of a weak ruler, al-Muqtadir, by the palace bureaucracy, and began the terminal decline of the Abbasid Caliphate that ended in 946 with the caliphs becoming puppet rulers under the Buyid dynasty.
Sa‘īd ibn Jubayr (665–714), also known as Abū ‘Abd Allāh, was originally from Kufa, in modern-day Iraq. He was regarded as one of the leading members of the Tabi'in. Sa'īd is held in the highest esteem by scholars of the Shi'a and Sunni Islamic tradition and was considered one of the leading jurists of the time. He also narrated several hadith from Ibn Abbas.
Ali ibn Muhammad ibn Habib, commonly known by the nisbaal-Mawardi, was a Sunni polymath and a Shafi'i jurist, legal theoretician, muhaddith, theologian, sociologist and an expert in political science. He is considered to be an eminent scholar of his time who wrote on numerous subjects, including Qur'anic interpretations, religion, government, public and constitutional law, language, ethics and belles-lettres.
Abū Bakr Aḥmad ibn ʿAlī ibn Thābit ibn Aḥmad ibn Māhdī al-Shāfiʿī, commonly known as al-Khaṭīb al-Baghdādī or "the lecturer from Baghdad", was a Sunni Muslim scholar known for being one of the foremost leading hadith scholars and historians at his time. He is widely considered an important authority in hadith, fiqh and history.
‘Izz al-Dīn ‘Abu Hamīd ‘Abd al-Hamīd bin Hībat-Allah ibn Abi al-Hadīd al Mutazilī al-Mada'ini, also known as Ibn abi'l-Hadid, was a Shafe'i Mutazili scholar and writer during the Middle Ages. He studied under Abu'l-Khayr Musaddiq ibn Shabib al-Wasiti and is best known for his commentary on the Nahj al-Balagha, which he titled Sharh Nahj al-Balagha.
Abū ʿAbd Allāh Sufyān ibn Saʿīd ibn Masrūq ibn Ḥamza al-Thawrī al-Muḍarī al-Kūfī, commonly known as Sufyān al-Thawrī, was a Sunni Muslim scholar, jurist, ascetic, traditionist, and eponymous founder of the Thawri school of Islamic jurisprudence, considered one of the Eight Ascetics.
Muqātil ibn Sulaymān was an 8th-century Muslim scholar of the Quran, controversial for his anthropomorphism. He wrote one of the earliest, if not first, commentaries of the Qur'an which is still available today.
ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, commonly known as Ibn Umar, was a companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a son of the second Caliph Umar. He was a prominent authority in hadith and law. He remained neutral during the events of the first Fitna (656–661).
Tulayha ibn Khuwaylid ibn Nawfal al-Asadi was a wealthy Arab clan chief and military commander during the time of Muhammad; he belonged to the Banu Asad ibn Khuzaymah tribe.
Abu'l-Najm Badr al-Mu'tadidi was the chief military commander of the Abbasid Caliphate during the reign of Caliph al-Mu'tadid (892–902). Originally a military slave who served under the future al-Mu'tadid in the suppression of the Zanj Rebellion, his ability and loyalty led him to become the Caliph's commander-in-chief, exercising considerable influence in the governance of the state throughout Mu'tadid's reign. He was executed on 14 August 902 due to the machinations of the ambitious vizier, al-Qasim ibn Ubayd Allah.
Sahifah of al-Ridha, also known as Sahifat of al-Reza and Sahifatal-Imam al-Ridha, is a collection of 240 hadiths attributed to Ali ibn Musa al-Ridha, the eighth Shia Imam.
Imam al-Ajurri was an Islamic scholar from 10th century. He came from Darb al-Ajurr in western Baghdad, after studying with many scholar in Iraq he moved to Mecca and start teaching there. He lived in Mecca for 30 years until he died there in 970 / 320 AH. Al-Ajurri commonly known as Shafi'is scholar, while Ibn Abi Ya'la stated he is a Hanbali. Among his teacher is Al-Hafiz Abul Muslim Ibrahim bin Abdillah bin Muslim Al-Bashri Al-Kajji and also Abu Bakr Abd-allah bin Sulayman bin Al-Ash’ath As-Sijistani one of sheikh in Baghdad, the son of Imam Abu Dawud of Sunan Abu Dawud. While one of his famous student is Abu Nu'aym al-Asbahani who transmitted hadith from him.
Ziyād ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Yazīd ibn Muʿāwiya, commonly known as Abū Muḥammad al-Sufyānī was an Umayyad prince and a pretender to the Umayyad Caliphate, which had been overthrown by the Abbasid Caliphate in early 750. Abu Muhammad led a revolt against the Abbasids, but his forces were defeated and he fled to the Hejaz, where he was killed in the early part of the Abbasid caliph al-Mansur's reign.
Aḥmad ibn ʿĪsā ibn Zayd Islamic theologian, Hadith scholar and Faqih, was the grandson of Zayd ibn Ali, one of the famous Alids of the early Abbasid Caliphate and one of the famous Zaydiyyah scholars who lived most of his life on the run. His kunya was Abū ʿAbd Allāh and his nickname was Al-Mukhtafī. His father ʿĪsā Mu'tam al-Ashbal ibn Zayd is considered as the 13th Imām of Zaydiyyā. Ahmad ibn Isa ibn Zayd 's sixty years of secret life is proof of the nickname given to him.
Great Qadi is a religious and secular position established during Abbasid Caliphate, specifically under the caliphate of Harun al-Rashid. The position emerged from the necessity to establish a clear separation between the Judiciary and executive authorities, particularly following the flourishing of the Islamic state, the diversification of its institutions, and the expansion of its territories. This expansion rendered it imperative that each individual in the state have an administrative position that was distinct from those held by others, to ensure the effective fulfillment of their duties.
