devolved upon him, and students from every land journeyed to study under him. He had transmitted ḥadith from Abū al-ʿAbbās al-Aṣamm and Abū al-Qāsim al-Ṭabarānī, among others, and the caliph al-Ṭāʾiʿ li-llāh (1) sought to appoint him to the judgeship, but he refused. He died in Dhū al-Ḥijjah of the present year, and Abū Bakr Muḥammad ibn Mūsā al-Khwārazmī (2) led the funeral prayer over him.
Muḥammad ibn Jaʿfar ibn al-Ḥusayn (3) ibn Muḥammad ibn Zakariyyā, Abū Bakr al-Warrāq (4), also nicknamed Ghundar (5), was a tireless voyager. He travelled widely, hearing large numbers of ḥadith in the lands of Fārs and Khurāsān, and studied under al-Bāghandī, Ibn Ṣāʿid, Ibn Durayd, and others. Al-Ḥāfiẓ Abū Nuʿaym al-Iṣfahānī narrated from him. He was trustworthy and possessed an excellent memory. May Allah Most High have mercy on him.
Ibn Khālawayh (6), al-Ḥusayn ibn Aḥmad ibn Khālawayh, Abū ʿAbd Allah—the grammarian and philologist, author of many works—was originally from Hamadhān. He later came to Baghdad, where he met (7) the leading scholars of the discipline: Abū Bakr ibn al-Anbārī, Ibn Durayd, Ibn Mujāhid, and Abū ʿAmr (8) al-Zāhid. He studied under Abū Saʿīd al-Sīrāfī, then moved to Aleppo, enjoying high standing with the Banū Ḥamdān. Sayf al-Dawla honored him and counted him among his close companions, and he held debates with al-Mutanabbī. Ibn Khallikān listed many of his writings, including the book “Laysa” (9)—so called because he frequently states therein, “This does not occur in the speech of the Arabs”—and the book “al-Āl,” in which he discusses its various forms (10). He also authored a biography of the Twelve Imāms, parsed thirty sūrahs of the Quran, produced a commentary on “al-Duraydiyyah,” and other works besides. He composed fine poetry as well (11) and was without peer in his age. May Allah Almighty show him mercy.
(1) Manuscripts Ḥ, B, and Ṭ, and Tārīkh Baghdād (vol. 4, p. 314) read al-Khalīfa al-Muṭīʿ li-llāh (“the Caliph Obedient to God”) as the intended reading for al-qaḍāʾ (the judge).
(2) His biography is recorded under the year 403 AH in the Wafayāt section of this work.
(3) In manuscripts Ḥ and B it appears as al-Ḥasan, a scribal error; the correct reading is confirmed by Tārīkh Baghdād (vol. 2, p. 152). His biography also appears in al-Muntaẓam (vol. 7, p. 107); Tadhkira al-Ḥuffāẓ (vol. 3, pp. 960–961); Siyar A‘lām al-Nubalā’ (vol. 16, pp. 214–215); al-Wāfī bil-Wafayāt (vol. 2, pp. 302–303); al-Nujūm al-Zāhira (vol. 4, p. 139); Ṭabaqāt al-Ḥuffāẓ (pp. 384–385); and Shadharāt al-Dhahab (vol. 3, p. 73).
(4) In manuscript Ḥ it reads al-Daqāq, a distortion; the correct reading is confirmed by B and Ṭ.
(5) The most renowned bearer of this epithet is the great ḥadīth scholar Muḥammad ibn Jaʿfar, known as Ṣāḥib Shuʿba; his biography was given under the year 193 AH in this work’s Wafayāt section.
(6) References include Yatīmat al-Dahr (vol. 1, p. 123); Nuzhat al-Albā’ (p. 383); Mu‘jam al-Adabā’ (vol. 9, p. 200); Inbāh al-Ruwā (vol. 1, p. 324); Wafayāt al-A‘yān (vol. 2, p. 178); al-‘Ibar (vol. 2, p. 356); Lisān al-Mīzān (vol. 2, p. 267); al-Nujūm al-Zāhira (vol. 4, p. 139); Shadharāt al-Dhahab (vol. 3, p. 71).
(7) In manuscript Ṭ it is enclosed between two instances of the letter ḥā.
(8) In manuscript Ḥ it reads Abū ʿAmr, a scribal error; his biography appears under the year 345 AH in this work’s Wafayāt section.
(9) In manuscript Ṭ the title is given as Kitāb Laysa fī al-Kalām al-‘Arab (“There Is No Such in the Language of the Arabs”), with the added phrase fī al-kalām al-‘Arab, an addition not found in Wafayāt al-A‘yān (vol. 2, p. 179) or in any of our manuscript copies.
(10) In manuscripts Ḥ and B it reads ansābuh (“his genealogies”); this reading is confirmed by Ṭ.
(11) See Wafayāt al-A‘yān (vol. 2, p. 179).