He transmitted ḥadith from his own father; from the ḥāfiẓ Abū ʿAlī al-Ghassānī; from Muḥammad ibn al-Faraj, the client of Ibn al-Tallāʿ; from Abū al-Ḥusayn Yaḥyā ibn Abī Zayd, the Qur’an reciter known as Ibn al-Bayāz; and from a number of others.

He was an unrivalled authority in jurisprudence, Qur’anic exegesis (1), and the Arabic language—widely read, exceptionally intelligent and quick-witted—one of the great repositories of knowledge.

He was born in 480 AH. His father supervised his education; he soon joined the ranks of the senior scholars and began pursuing knowledge while still in his teens, his brilliance blazing forth. He was appointed judge of Almería in 529 AH.

Among those who narrated from him were his own sons; the ḥāfiẓ Abū al-Qāsim ibn Ḥubaysh; Abū Muḥammad ibn ʿUbayd Allah; Abū Jaʿfar ibn Maḍāʾ; ʿAbd al-Munʿim ibn al-Faras; Abū Jaʿfar ibn Ḥakam; and others.

He died at the fortress of Lurqa on 25 Ramadan 541 AH.

The ḥāfiẓ Khalaf ibn Bashkuwāl, however, held that his death occurred in 542 AH, and he said: “He possessed vast learning, a powerful command of literature, and mastery of the various sciences. People took knowledge from him—may Allah, Exalted is He, have mercy upon him.”