Origins & Early Life

Ibn Ḥazm (Arabic: ابن حزم; November 994 – 15 August 1064) was an Andalusi Muslim polymath, historian, traditionist, jurist, philosopher, and theologian, born in the Córdoban Caliphate, present-day Spain. Described as one of the strictest hadith interpreters, Ibn Hazm was a leading proponent and codifier of the Zahiri school of Islamic jurisprudence, and produced a reported 400 works, of which 40 still survive. In all, his written works amounted to some 80,000 pages. Also described as one of the fathers of comparative religion, the Encyclopaedia of Islam refers to him as having been one of the leading thinkers of the Muslim world.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

There are two extant genealogies for Ibn Hazm. The first goes back to an ancestor, Yazīd al-Fārisī, who was a Persian mawla of Yazīd ibn Abī Sufyān, brother of Muʿāwiya or his son, the Umayyad caliph Yazīd ibn Muʿāwiya. The full nasab goes ibn Aḥmad ibn Saʿīd ibn Ḥazm ibn Ghālib ibn Ṣāliḥ ibn Khalaf ibn Maʿdān ibn Sufyān ibn Yazīd. According to this genealogy, Ibn Hazm's earliest Muslim ancestor was Yazīd and his ancestor, Khalaf, was the first to enter al-Andalus. This claim of Persian origin was pushed by the Banū Ḥazm...

Enduring Legacy & Impact

The historical impact and works continue to influence the modern world.

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