ʿAbd al-Malik ibn Muḥammad ibn Marwān ibn Zuhr al-Ayādī, the Sevillian.

He learned medicine from his grandfather Abū al-ʿAlāʾ and from his father. He attained the highest degree of mastery—together with a rich share of learning in language, literature, and poetry—and enjoyed an exalted position as a court physician, all while distinguished for his generosity, munificence, and dignified bearing.

Those who studied under him include Ibn Dihyah and Abū ʿAlī al-Shalūbayn.

Al-Abbār (1) said: “Abū Bakr Ibn al-Jadd endorsed him and related that he had memorized Sahih al-Bukhari, both its text and its chains of transmission.”

He died in Marrakesh during Dhu al-Ḥijjah, 595 AH, and was born in 507 AH.

Ibn Dihyah (2) said: “His footing in the Arabic language was unshakeable, and his spring in medicine ever-flowing. He knew by heart the poetry of Dhū al-Rummah—amounting to a third of the language—while keeping abreast of everything the physicians have said. Together with lofty lineage and abundant wealth, I kept his company for a time; he composed delightful verse. His great-grandfather travelled east, assumed the headship of medicine in Baghdad, then in Egypt, then in Qayrawān, and finally settled in Dāniyah, where his fame soared.”

I add: This Abū Bakr was called “the Grandson,” just as his friend Ibn Rushd is called “the Grandson,” and he enjoyed the rank of a minister.

It was also said that he was devout, just, and resolute.