Tabaqat (طبقات) is a genre of Islamic biographical literature that is organized according to the century in which the notable individuals (such as scholars, poets etc.) lived. Each century or generation is known as a ''Tabaqah'', the plural of which is ''Tabaqat''. The ''Tabaqat'' writings depict the past of a particular tradition of religious affiliation or scholarship and follows a chronological parameter that stretch from an authoritative starting-point to the generation (''tabaqa'') immediately preceding the assumed author.

Development

The tabaqat literature originated sometime within the late eighth and ninth centuries. Another account also cited that the tabaqat format became popular during the period of early ''

hadith Ḥadīth ( or ; ar, حديث, , , , , , , literally "talk" or "discourse") or Athar ( ar, أثر, , literally "remnant"/"effect") refers to what the majority of Muslims believe to be a record of the words, actions, and the silent approval ...

'' transmitter critics, emerging amid the effort to identify, classify, and evaluate transmitters in the discipline known as ''ilm al-rijāl''. The ''Tabaqat'' literature were written as tools to assist the

muhaddiths Hadith studies ( ar, علم الحديث ''ʻilm al-ḥadīth'' "science of hadith", also science of hadith, or science of hadith criticism or hadith criticism) consists of several religious scholarly disciplines used by Muslim scholars in th ...

in their efforts to classify ''hadith'' transmitters and to determine the quality of particular

isnads Hadith studies ( ar, علم الحديث ''ʻilm al-ḥadīth'' "science of hadith", also science of hadith, or science of hadith criticism or hadith criticism) consists of several religious scholarly disciplines used by Muslim scholars in th ...

. The

isnad Hadith studies ( ar, علم الحديث ''ʻilm al-ḥadīth'' "science of hadith", also science of hadith, or science of hadith criticism or hadith criticism) consists of several religious scholarly disciplines used by Muslim scholars in th ...

as a system for authenticating the memory of the prophetic period required righteous, honest, and competent transmitters in every generation. Biographical entries in the ''Tabaqat'' literature typically offer evaluations of the personal, religious and intellectual quality of their subjects.

Examples

Famous examples of Tabaqat literature include

Tabaqat al-Hanabilah Ṭabaqāt al-Ḥanābilah ( en, History of the Hanbalites) ( ar, طبقات الحنابلة, lit=Generations of Hanbalis) is a biographical dictionary covering Hanbali scholars, written by Ibn Abi Ya'la (d. 1131 AD). The book starts from t ...

originally by Ibn Abi Ya'la and then by

Ibn Rajab Imam Abd Al-Rahman ibn Ahmad ibn Rajab (736-795 AH/1335–1393 CE), best known as ''Ibn Rajab Al-Hanbali'' and also ''Ibn Rajab'', which was a nickname he inherited from his grandfather who was born in the month of Rajab, was a Muslim scholar. B ...

Tabaqat ul-Mutazilah Tabaqat (طبقات) is a genre of Islamic biographical literature that is organized according to the century in which the notable individuals (such as scholars, poets etc.) lived. Each century or generation is known as a ''Tabaqah'', the plural o ...

(as the title suggests, concerned with Islamic theologians of the

Mutazilite Muʿtazila ( ar, المعتزلة ', English: "Those Who Withdraw, or Stand Apart", and who called themselves ''Ahl al-ʿAdl wa al-Tawḥīd'', English: "Party of ivineJustice and Oneness f God); was an Islamic group that appeared in early Islami ...

school) by

Ahmad bin Yahya al-Murtada Ahmad ( ar, أحمد, ʾAḥmad) is an Arabic male given name common in most parts of the Muslim world. Other spellings of the name include Ahmed and Ahmet. Etymology The word derives from the root (ḥ-m-d), from the Arabic (), from the ...

, at-Tabaqat ul-Kubra (about the

companions of the Prophet The Companions of the Prophet ( ar, اَلصَّحَابَةُ; ''aṣ-ṣaḥāba'' meaning "the companions", from the verb meaning "accompany", "keep company with", "associate with") were the disciples and followers of Muhammad who saw or ...

and their successors) by

Ibn Sa'd Abū ‘Abd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Sa‘d ibn Manī‘ al-Baṣrī al-Hāshimī or simply Ibn Sa'd ( ar, ابن سعد) and nicknamed ''Scribe of Waqidi'' (''Katib al-Waqidi''), was a scholar and Arabian biographer. Ibn Sa'd was born in 784/785 CE ...

and - more recently -

Tabaqat 'Alam ul-Shi'ah Tabaqat (طبقات) is a genre of Islamic biographical literature that is organized according to the century in which the notable individuals (such as scholars, poets etc.) lived. Each century or generation is known as a ''Tabaqah'', the plural o ...

(about famous

Shi'a Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his successor (''khalīfa'') and the Imam (spiritual and political leader) after him, most ...

scholars] by

Aqa Buzurg Tehrani AQA, formerly the Assessment and Qualifications Alliance, is an awarding body in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It compiles specifications and holds examinations in various subjects at GCSE, AS and A Level and offers vocational qu ...

. The case of Ibrahim Hafsi's compendium of works, which are based on the Tabaqat

historiographical Historiography is the study of the methods of historians in developing history as an academic discipline, and by extension is any body of historical work on a particular subject. The historiography of a specific topic covers how historians hav ...

framework, also demonstrate how the genre is applied in various fields in the Arabo-Islamic civilization and religious disciplines.

References

Literary genres Islamic literature Arabic literature Islamic terminology {{lit-genre-stub