Sunan Ibn Majah
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What is Sunan Ibn Majah?
Sunan Ibn Majah is a hadith collection compiled by Muhammad ibn Yazid Ibn Majah. Sirah's current dataset contains 4,341 source records across 39 available chapters. Browse the chapter index to read the available Arabic texts, translations and grading labels. These figures describe the records available here; editions can differ in numbering and chapter divisions.
- Sirah dataset
- 4,341 source records
- Available chapters
- 39
- Compiler
- Imam Ibn Majah
- Source records
- HadithAPI
Sirah displays source records and does not independently authenticate narrations. Read the source methodology
Sirah dataset: 4,341 source records across 39 available chapters. Historical descriptions below may use a different edition’s numbering.
Collection history
Sunan Ibn Mājah is a collection of hadīth compiled by Imām Muḥammad bin Yazīd Ibn Mājah al-Qazvīnī (raḥimahullāh). It is widely considered to be the sixth of the six canonical collection of Ḥadīth (Kutub as-Sittah) of the Sunnah of the Prophet (ﷺ). It consists of 4341 aḥādīth in 37 books.
Compiler biography
Abū `Abdullāh Muḥammad bin Yazīd bin `Abdullāh ar-Rab`ī al- Qazvīnī, famously known as Ibn Mājah, was born in 209 AH to a non-Arab tribe by the name of Rab`i in Qazvin (Iran). Various explanations have been given for his nickname, Ibn Mājah, the more prominent being that Mājah was his mother. Some scholars believe that Mājah was the nickname of his father.
Structure
The Sunan of Ibn Mājah is a collection of aḥādīth mostly arranged according to Fiqh chapters, but also includes other topics such as ‘Aqīdah, interpretation of dreams, tribulations, and asceticism. Sunan Ibn Mājah is considered one of the greatest works of Ḥadīth. When Imām Abū Zur`ah ar-Rāzī, a Ḥadīth authority of his time was shown this work, he remarked, 'If this book reached the public, all or most of the existing Jāmi` would cease to be used.' These words were proven true later when Sunan Ibn Mājah eclipsed several of the Jawāmi`, Musnad and Sunan of those times. Sunan Ibn Mājah contains 37 books, 1560 chapters and 4341 aḥādīth. It includes 1339 additional aḥādīth, known as Zawā’id of Sunan Ibn Mājah which are not found in the other five major books of Ḥadīth. According to Fuwad `Abdul Bāqi, of the 1339 additional aḥādīth contained therein, 428 aḥādīth are Ṣaḥīḥ, 199 are Hasan, 613 Ḍa`īf, and 99 are Munkar (denounced) and Mauḍū` (fabricated). Sheikh Nāṣiruddīn al-Albānī, in his book Ṣaḥīḥ wa Ḍa`īf Sunan Ibn Mājah counted 948 Ḍa`īf aḥādīth. Ibn Mājah did not write an introduction to his book, so the conditions for the aḥādīth in his collection are not explicit. However, there are indications that he was concerned with collecting as many aḥādīth as possible on Fiqh issues. Sunan Ibn Mājah contains a larger number of aḥādīth than any of the other five books without repetition. It also includes a greater number of weak aḥādīth than the other five. Ibn Mājah was enthusiastic about finding evidences for Fiqh issues. His purpose may have been to collect as many aḥādīth, and find the chain of narrations for the aḥādīth that were the basis of rulings on Fiqh issues of the time, regardless of their authenticity or chain of narrators. Certain qualities of Sunan Ibn Mājah set it apart from the other books of Ḥadīth and made it popular among scholars of all times: It is written in an excellent style; the chapter titles are in harmony with the ḥadīth listed and follow the same order as books of Islamic Jurisprudence. The chapters are well-ordered and well-arranged, with no repetition of aḥādīth (a quality lacking in other Ḥadīth books). It is brief but comprehensive with respect to legal rulings. On several occasions, Ibn Mājah identified aḥādīth that are Gharīb (unfamiliar). Imām at-Tirmidhī had done this earlier, but Ibn Mājah’s classification in some special chapters are unique. Ibn Mājah gives the name of the town the narrator of a ḥadīth belonged to. He added 482 new Ṣaḥīḥ aḥādīth that are not in the other five books of Ḥadīth. Sunan Ibn Mājah includes 3002 aḥādīth that are common with the other five books, but Ibn Mājah narrated them with different channels of narration. The multiplicity of channels strengthen these aḥādīth. This distinguishing quality is unique to Ibn Mājah and is not found in any other book of Ḥadīth. It contains 1339 aḥādīth that are not found in any of the other five books. These additions, also known as Zawā’id have elevated Sunan Ibn Mājah to the position of the 'sixth of the Six'.
Reading sources on Sirah
Sirah displays hadith records from HadithAPI and additional collections imported into its database. Texts, translations and grading labels reflect the available source records; Sirah does not independently authenticate narrations or verify manuscripts.
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