Abū Jaʿfar Aḥmad ibn Isḥāq ibn al-Bahlūl transmitted—through his father from his grandfather—who said: “Thābit, the father of Abū Ḥanīfah, was from the people of al-Anbār.”

The judge Mukram ibn Aḥmad related: “Aḥmad ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Shādhān al-Marwazī narrated to us, from his father, from his grandfather, who said: I heard Ismāʿīl say:

‘Ismāʿīl ibn Ḥammād ibn Abī Ḥanīfah al-Nuʿmān ibn Thābit ibn al-Marzubān was one of the freeborn Persians; by Allah, no member of our line has ever been enslaved. My grandfather was born in the year 80 AH. When Thābit was still a child he went to ʿAlī, who prayed that blessing be granted to him and to his descendants; we hope Allah answered ʿAlī’s supplication on our behalf.

‘Al-Nuʿmān ibn al-Marzubān, Thābit’s father, was the one who presented falūdhaj (a honeyed Persian sweet) to ʿAlī on the day of Nawruz. ʿAlī remarked, “Let every day be a Nawruz for us.” It is also said that this occurred at the Mihrjān festival, whereupon he said, “Let every day be a Mihrjān for us.”’”

Muḥammad ibn Saʿd al-ʿAwfī said: “I heard Yaḥyā ibn Maʿīn say, ‘Abū Ḥanīfah was trustworthy; he would transmit a ḥadīth only after committing it to memory, and he would not relate what he had not memorised.’”

Ṣāliḥ ibn Muḥammad reported: “I heard Yaḥyā ibn Maʿīn say, ‘Abū Ḥanīfah was reliable in ḥadīth.’”

Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn al-Qāsim ibn Muḥriz narrated from Ibn Maʿīn: “There was no objection to Abū Ḥanīfah.” On another occasion he said, “In our view he is among the truthful; he was never accused of lying. Ibn Hubayrah beat him in an attempt to compel him to accept the judiciary, but he refused to become a judge.”

Ibn ʿAllān informed us in writing: al-Kindī narrated to us; al-Qazzāz narrated to us; al-Khaṭīb narrated to us; al-Khallāl narrated to us; ʿAlī ibn ʿAmr al-Ḥarīrī narrated to us; ʿAlī ibn Muḥammad ibn Kās al-Nakhāʿī narrated to us; Muḥammad ibn Maḥmūd al-Ṣaydanānī narrated to us; Muḥammad ibn Shujāʿ ath-Thaljī narrated to us; al-Ḥasan ibn Abī Mālik narrated, from Abū Yūsuf, who said:

“Abū Ḥanīfah said: ‘When I first decided to seek knowledge, I began weighing the various sciences and asking about their ultimate outcomes. It was said to me, “Learn—”’