The Qazi family of Lakhnauti () was a medieval

Bengali Muslim Bengali Muslims (; ) 'Mussalman'' also used in this work./ref> are adherents of Islam who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. Comprising over 70% of the global Bengali population, they are the second-largest ...

family who lived in the royal city of Lakhnauti in the

Bengal Sultanate The Bengal Sultanate (Middle Bengali: , Classical Persian: ) was a Post-classical history, late medieval sultanate based in the Bengal region in the eastern South Asia between the 14th and 16th century. It was the dominant power of the Ganges- ...

. The family was founded by Taj ad-Din an-Nahwi in the 15th century, and has produced numerous influential judges and scholars. The descendants of Shah Manjhan later moved to Gujarat and neighbouring states.

Members

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The Qazi family are descended from Taj ad-Din an-Nahwi, who had

Arab Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...

lineage from his ancestor, Shaykh Mahmud al-Qurashi al-Ishqi Randposh. Prior to settling in Lakhnauti, the family was based in

Balkh Balkh is a town in the Balkh Province of Afghanistan. It is located approximately to the northwest of the provincial capital city Mazar-i-Sharif and approximately to the south of the Amu Darya and the Afghanistan–Uzbekistan border. In 2021 ...

in present-day

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

. In Bengal, it is said that they became the spiritual successors of the family of

Nur Qutb Alam Nūr Qut̤b ʿĀlam (, ) was a 14th-century Bengali Islamic scholar, author and poet. Based in the erstwhile Bengali capital Hazrat Pandua, he was the son and successor of Alaul Haq, a senior scholar of the Bengal Sultanate. He is noted for his ...

of the

Chishti Order The Chishti order () is a Sufi Tariqa, order of Sunni Islam named after the town of Chishti Sharif District, Chisht, Afghanistan where it was initiated by Abu Ishaq Shami. The order was brought to Herat and later spread across South Asia by Mu ...

Taj ad-Din an-Nahwi

Tāj ad-Dīn al-Naḥwī al-Balkhī al-Lakhnawtawī was a 15th-century

Islamic scholar In Islam, the ''ulama'' ( ; also spelled ''ulema''; ; singular ; feminine singular , plural ) are scholars of Islamic doctrine and law. They are considered the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious knowledge in Islam. "Ulama ...

, ''

qadi A qadi (; ) is the magistrate or judge of a Sharia court, who also exercises extrajudicial functions such as mediation, guardianship over orphans and minors, and supervision and auditing of public works. History The term '' was in use from ...

'' and

grammar In linguistics, grammar is the set of rules for how a natural language is structured, as demonstrated by its speakers or writers. Grammar rules may concern the use of clauses, phrases, and words. The term may also refer to the study of such rul ...

ian of the

Arabic language Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

. According to

Abd al-Hayy al-Lucknawi Abdul Hayy Lucknawi Firangi Mahali (24 October 1848 - 27 December 1886) was an Indian Sunni Islamic scholar of Hanafi school of Islamic thought. Lineage Abdul Hayy was born in Banda, India. He was an Indo-Arab and a descendant of Abu Ayyub al ...

, he was one of the leading scholars in the fields of grammar and Arabic language during his time. He was born into a

Sunni Muslim Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Musli ...

family in

, then part of the

Timurid Empire The Timurid Empire was a late medieval, culturally Persianate, Turco-Mongol empire that dominated Greater Iran in the early 15th century, comprising modern-day Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, much of Central Asia, the South Caucasus, and parts of co ...

, where he was raised. He was famed by the

epithet An epithet (, ), also a byname, is a descriptive term (word or phrase) commonly accompanying or occurring in place of the name of a real or fictitious person, place, or thing. It is usually literally descriptive, as in Alfred the Great, Suleima ...

al-naḥwī ('the grammarian') and khulāṣah al-ʿulamāʾ ('epitome of the

ulama In Islam, the ''ulama'' ( ; also spelled ''ulema''; ; singular ; feminine singular , plural ) are scholars of Islamic doctrine and law. They are considered the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious knowledge in Islam. "Ulama ...

'), and had a famous

khanqah A Sufi lodge is a building designed specifically for gatherings of a Sufi brotherhood or ''tariqa'' and is a place for spiritual practice and religious education. They include structures also known as ''khānaqāh'', ''zāwiya'', ''ribāṭ'' ...

in Balkh. It is said that he left Balkh, after hearing of the scholarly patronage of Sultan Ibrahim Shah Sharqi (r. 1402–1440). However, Taj ad-Din ended up settling in the neighbouring

Sultanate of Bengal The Bengal Sultanate ( Middle Bengali: , Classical Persian: ) was a late medieval sultanate based in the Bengal region in the eastern South Asia between the 14th and 16th century. It was the dominant power of the Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta, ...

instead. He benefitted many students in Lakhnauti and the family established themselves there.

Shah Manjhan

Shah Manjhan al-Lakhnawtawī (d.

Rabi' al-Awwal Rabiʽ al-Awwal (, also known as Rabi' al-Ula (), or Rabi' I) is the third month of the Islamic calendar. The name ''Rabī‘ al-awwal'' means "''the first month'' or ''beginning of Spring (season), spring''", referring to its position in the ...

1001 AH / 1592 CE) was a prominent 16th-century

Sufi saint The term ''wali'' is most commonly used by Muslims to refer to a saint, or literally a "friend of God in Islam, God".John Renard, ''Friends of God: Islamic Images of Piety, Commitment, and Servanthood'' (Berkeley: University of California Press ...

and leading figure of the Shattari Order. He was the son of Abdullah, son of Khayr ad-Dīn al-Lakhnawtawī, who was a direct descendant of Taj ad-Din an-Nahwi. From his mother's side, Shah Manjhan was a descendant of Qadi Samāʾ ad-Din of

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

. Manjhan was born and raised in Lakhnauti, and initially studied under Shaykh Ahmadi. He then became a ''

murid In Sufism, a (Arabic ) is a novice committed to spiritual enlightenment by (traversing a path) under a spiritual guide, who may take the title , or . A or Sufi follower only becomes a when he makes a pledge () to a . The equivalent Pers ...

'' of Shaykh Taj ad-Din al-Husayni al-Bukhari for a long time. He dedicated much of his time in Lakhnauti towards teaching the

Islamic sciences The Islamic sciences () are a set of traditionally defined religious sciences practiced by Islamic scholars ( ), aimed at the construction and interpretation of Islamic religious knowledge. Different sciences These sciences include: * : Islami ...

. Taj ad-Din al-Bukhari eventually instructed Manjhan to become a disciple of

Muhammad Ghawth Muhammad Ghawth (Ghouse, Ghaus or Gwath) Gwaliyari (1500–1562) was a 16th-century Sufism, Sufi master of the Shattari order and Sufi saint, a musician, Segoogle book search and the author of ''Jawahir-i Khams'' (Arabic: ''al-Jawahir al-Khams' ...

, the Sufi master of the Shattari Order in

Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...

. After the Conquest of

Malwa Malwa () is a historical region, historical list of regions in India, region of west-central India occupying a plateau of volcanic origin. Geologically, the Malwa Plateau generally refers to the volcanic plateau, volcanic upland north of the ...

Sher Shah Suri Sher Shah Suri (born Farid al-Din Khan; 1472 or 1486 – 22 May 1545), also known by his title Sultan Adil (), was the ruler of Bihar from 1530 to 1540, and Sultan of Hindustan from 1540 until his death in 1545. He defeated the Mughal Empire, ...

, Manjhan moved there as he was appointed as the religious administrator of the newly conquered fort-town of

Raisen Raisen is a town and a municipality in Raisen district in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of Raisen District. Raisen takes its name from the massive fort at the top of a hill. The town is located at ...

. Due to political instability, he later relocated to Sarangpur, settling in the village of Ashnah, where he wrote several works on the Islamic sciences and was received by Emperor

Akbar Akbar (Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar, – ), popularly known as Akbar the Great, was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Humayun, under a regent, Bairam Khan, who helped the young emperor expa ...

. His son, Uthman, was a leading scholar in

Islamic jurisprudence ''Fiqh'' (; ) is the term for Islamic jurisprudence.Fiqh
Encyclopædia Britannica ''Fiqh'' is of ...

and Arabic language.

References

Bibliography

*{{cite book, language=ar, title=Nuzhat al-khawatir, last=al-Lucknawi, first=Abd al-Hayy, author-link=Abd al-Hayy al-Lucknawi, publisher=Dar Ibn Hazm, location=

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

, year=1999 Bengali families Muslim families People from Chapai Nawabganj district People from Balkh Province Quraysh