“This is a good chain of transmission. Ya‘qub ibn Humayd is disputed, while the remaining narrators in the chain are trustworthy.” Al-Mundhiri said (4/73): “Its chain is sound.” Al-‘Iraqi said in Takhrij al-Ihya’ (4/12): “Good.”

It has a corroborating narration of similar wording from the hadith of Anas; see what follows under “By Him in Whose Hand is my soul,” no. 1951.

904 — “The names most beloved to Allah are ‘Abd Allah, ‘Abd al-Rahman, and al-Harith.”

Ibn ‘Adi narrated it in al-Kamil (folio 8/2), through the route of Abu Ya‘la—who also narrated it in his Musnad (2/739)—from Isma‘il ibn Muslim, from al-Hasan, from Anas, as a Prophetic report with this wording.

I say: This is a weak chain of transmission. Al-Hasan is al-Basri, and he transmitted it using an ambiguous “from” formulation. Isma‘il ibn Muslim is Abu Ishaq al-Makki, who is weak in hadith, as stated in al-Taqrib. Al-Haythami likewise identified this defect in al-Majma‘ (8/49).

However, the hadith has a strong corroborating report, narrated by al-Hajjaj ibn Artah, from ‘Umayr ibn Sa‘id, from Sabrah ibn Abi Sabrah, from his father: “He came to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, who asked, ‘What are your sons called?’ He replied, ‘So-and-so, so-and-so, and ‘Abd al-‘Uzza.’ The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, ‘He is ‘Abd al-Rahman. Indeed, the most fitting of your names—or among your best names—if you name your children, are ‘Abd Allah, ‘Abd al-Rahman, and al-Harith.’” Ibn Mandah narrated it through this route, as cited in al-Isabah (2/392).

I say: This is a weak chain, owing to al-Hajjaj, for he practised tadlis and transmitted it using an ambiguous “from” formulation. As for Sabrah ibn Abi Sabrah, Ibn Abi Hatim included him in al-Jarh wa-al-Ta‘dil (2/1/296), but mentioned neither criticism nor