Ibn al-Najjar

Abū ʿAbdallāh Muḥammad b. Maḥmūd b. al-Ḥasan b. Hibatallāh b. Maḥāsin al-Baghdādī, Muḥibb al-Dīn Ibn al-Najjār, commonly known as Ibn al-Najjār, was a Baghdadi Sunni scholar of the late Abbasid era. He is regarded as the leading Shafi'i muhaddith of his age and the leading authority on biographical history as well. He was the senior pupil of Ibn al-Dubaythi.

Early life
Ibn al - Najjār was born in Baghdad in the year of 578 AH/1183 CE. Born into a modest family, he was son of the leader carpenter of the Dar al-Khilafah located in the Abbasid Palace of Baghdad. His father died when he was eight and his older brother Ali began raising him instead. Ali was a textile seller who had knowledge in calculation of inheritance, anecdotes, and history. Ibn al-Najjār studied the Hadith and the Qur'an with scholars of Baghdad.

Education
When he was twenty-eight, he travelled to the Hejaz (Mecca & Medina), the Levant, Egypt, Khurasan, Herat, and Nishapur, studying with sheikhs. Ibn al-Najjar had over 3000 teachers with 400 of his teachers being women. He was heard in every city he stayed in, and established himself as the worlds most famous memorizer.

Then he returned to Baghdad and studied history. He left for Isfahan for about a year (620 AH/1223 CE), then made the Hajj (pilgrimage) to Mecca, then moved to Egypt, then returned to Baghdad.

Career
After more than 20 years of travelling, he became the director of the newly founded Al-Mustansiriya School which was opened in Baghdad in the year (630 AH/1233 AD). In this new institution, he would teach the science of hadith and was known for his humility, piety, and good delivery. He held the post until his death.

Death
His death was on Tuesday, the fifth of Shaban of the year (643 AH = 1246 AD). Prayers were offered over him in the Nizamiyya school, and a large crowd witnessed his funeral. He was buried in the martyrs cemetery in Bab Harb, Baghdad.

History

 * A [Useful] Extract from the continuation of the Ta'rikh Baghdad (al-Mustafad min Dhayl Ta'rikh Baghdad), is his magnum opus coming in 30 volumes which is an appendix to the "History of Baghdad" by Al-Khatib Al-Baghdadi.
 * Nuzha al-Wari fi Akhbar Umm al-Qura, a history compilation of Mecca.
 * Al-Durrah al-Thaminah fi Akhbar al-Madinah, a history compilation of Medina.
 * Manaqib Al-Shafi’i, a biography of Imam Shafi'i

Hadith

 * Al-Qamar Al-Munir fi Al-Musnad Al-Kabir, in which he mentioned the Companions and the narrators, and what each of them had from the hadith.
 * Kanz Al-Ayyam fi Ma’rifat Al-Sunan and Al-Ahkam
 * The Different and Al-Moatalif, appendix to Ibn Makula
 * The previous and the later
 * The agreement and the intersection
 * The book of titles
 * The approach of injury in the knowledge of the companions
 * Al-Kafi in the names of men
 * Attribution of hadiths to fathers and countries
 * Kitab Awaliah
 * Kitab Mu’jam, the dictionary of his sheikhs (narrators).
 * Paradise of the beholders in the knowledge of the followers
 * Perfection in the knowledge of men

Literature

 * Anwar Al-Zahr in the beauties of the poets of the era
 * Al-Azhar fi types of poetry
 * Nuzhat al-Tarf fi Akhbar Ahl al-Darf
 * Gharar al-Fawa’id full of six volumes
 * The only consolation
 * Telling the longing about the news of lovers
 * Nashwar Al-Muhadara