until its revenues reached just under fifty million dirhams. From it came his stipends and gifts. The caliphs after him continued to administer it, until, in the Year of al-Jamājim—82 AH—during the revolt of Ibn al-Ashʿath, the administrative register was burned and each group took whatever lay next to it.

This type of developed land may not have its underlying ownership granted, because, by being selected for the public treasury, it had become dedicated to the purposes for which the treasury is established. The ruler may choose, in consideration of what is most beneficial, either to exploit it for the public treasury, as Umar did, or to select from among those possessing the ability, means, and labor someone who will cultivate and develop the land itself in return for an assessed kharaj. The kharaj would constitute rent, to be spent on public interests, unless the land had been acquired as khums, in which case it would be spent on those entitled to khums.

If the kharaj imposed is a crop-share consisting of half the fruits and crops, this is permissible in the case of date palms, just as the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) entered into a sharecropping arrangement with the people of Khaybar for half the dates produced by the palm trees. Its permissibility in the case of field crops depends on the jurists’ disagreement over the permissibility of sharecropping (mukhābara): whoever permits it permits kharaj on that basis, while whoever prohibits it prohibits kharaj on that basis. It has also been said that kharaj is permissible on this basis even if sharecropping is prohibited, because of the general public interests connected with it, whose legal scope is broader than the rules governing private contracts. The tithe (ʿushr) is due on field crops but not on tree fruit, because the crops belong to those who cultivate them, whereas the fruit belongs to all Muslims and is allocated to their public interests.

The second category of developed land is land subject to kharaj. Its underlying ownership may not be granted as a transfer of ownership, because it falls into two types. In one type, the underlying title is held as a waqf (endowment) and the kharaj is rent; ownership of an endowment cannot validly be transferred by concession, sale, or gift. In the other type, the underlying title is privately owned and the kharaj is a jizya levy; thus, it is invalid to grant property belonging to one person to anyone other than its owner. As for granting its kharaj, we shall discuss it later, after the concession of exploitation.

Aḥmad said, according to a report transmitted by al-Athram and Muḥammad ibn Ḥarb—when it was mentioned to him that Uthman had granted ʿAbdullah and Khabbāb parts of it: “This strengthens the view that the land of al-Sawad is not owned by those who possess it. Had Umar made it the property of those who held it, Uthman would not have granted it.” Thus, he explicitly held that granting the underlying ownership of property already owned by another is impermissible.

The third category is land whose owners have died, leaving no heir entitled to it by a prescribed share or agnatic succession. It therefore passes to the public treasury, to be spent on the interests of the Muslims—not by way of inheritance. Aḥmad said, according to al-Marwazi’s narration: “Regarding dead land: if it has never been owned—but if it has been owned, it is fayʾ for the Muslims, like the property left by someone who died without a known heir.”