Abu ʿAbd Allah al-Hakim said: “Alongside his distinguished mastery of hadith, Hamzah of Egypt was also counted among those renowned for asceticism, scrupulous piety, and devoted worship.
He studied under al-Nasa’i, Abu Khalifah, and their contemporaries in the Hijaz and the two Iraqs.

Muhammad ibn ʿAli al-Suri related: “I heard the hadith master ʿAbd al-Ghani say—when Hamzah ibn Muhammad was mentioned—‘Everything about him occurred in a “five” year: he was born in 275 AH, his first audition was in 295 AH, and he set out for Iraq in 305 AH.’”
Al-Suri added: “Hamzah was a precise and reliable memoriser.”

Ibn Zulaq reported: “The ḥāfiẓ told me, ‘I set out in a year ending in five. I entered Aleppo, whose judge was Abu ʿAbd Allah ibn ʿAbdah, and I wrote hadith from him. He used to say to me, ‘Had I met you in Egypt I would have loaded your mounts with gold.’ It is said that he gave him two hundred dinars with which he travelled on to Iraq.’”

Abu ʿUmar ibn ʿAbd al-Barr said: “I heard ʿAbd Allah ibn Muhammad ibn Asad say: I heard Hamzah al-Kinani remark, ‘I extracted a single prophetic hadith through nearly two hundred separate chains. The joy that filled me was immense, and I was quite pleased with myself. Then I saw Yahya ibn Maʿin in a dream, so I said, “Abu Zakariyya, I have produced a hadith through two hundred isnads.” He was silent for a moment and then said, “I fear this may fall under the verse, ‘Competition in [worldly] increase distracts you’ (Al-Takathur 1).”’”

Abu ʿAbd Allah ibn Mandah said: “I heard Hamzah ibn Muhammad, the ḥāfiẓ, say: ‘I used to write hadith but would omit the phrase “and peace” after “may Allah bless him.” I then saw the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, in a dream, and he said to me, “Will you not complete the invocation of blessings upon me in your writing?”’”

Al-Khidr ibn Hamuwayh informed us, on the authority of al-Qasim ibn ʿAli, who said: ‘My father narrated to us, [saying]: Ibn…’