İbnü’l-Cevzî

İbnü'l-Cevzî (Ebü'l-Ferec; d. 597/1201) is one of the leading historians and scholars of the medieval Islamic world. His most renowned work, the general history el-Muntazam fî Târîhi'l-Mülûk ve'l-Ümem, holds an important place among classical Arabic sources concerning Kurdish history.

His Work and Method

İbnü'l-Cevzî's work, el-Muntazam fî Târîhi'l-Mülûk ve'l-Ümem, which presents events chronologically from Prophet Adam up to the year 574 (1179), is a biography-heavy general history that, after recounting the events of each year, also includes biographies of important figures who died in that year. In el-Muntazam, İbnü'l-Cevzî recorded not only events or only biographies, but both, under separate headings according to years (Cilt 1, s. 145).

The author not only extensively utilized the historical heritage in his works; he also benefited from his own observations, documents, and other contemporary figures. Furthermore, his critical examination of narrations in his works, identifying the weak ones, demonstrates his meticulousness in historical writing (Cilt 1, s. 145).

Importance for Annâzî History

el-Muntazam is considered among the fundamental sources providing information on the political history of the Annâzî dynasty, which is part of Kurdish history. Along with İbn Miskeveyh's Tecâribü'l-Ümem, Hilâl b. Muhassin es-Sâbî's Kitâbü't-Târîh, İbnü'l-Esîr's el-Kâmil fi't-Târîh, Hamdullah el-Müstevfî's Târîh-i Güzîde, and Şerefhân's Şerefnâme, it constitutes the main sources for the history of this dynasty (Cilt 1, s. 147).

İbnü'l-Cevzî is one of the decisive parties in the dispute among historians regarding the spelling of the Annâzî dynasty's name. While historians like Hilâl b. Muhassin es-Sâbî and İbnü'l-Esîr mention the dynasty's name as Benû Annâz, İbnü'l-Cevzî, Hamdullah Müstevfî, and Şerefhan give the dynasty's name as Benû Ayyâr, in relation to Ayyâr (Cilt 1, s. 141).

His Grandson Sıbt İbnü'l-Cevzî

İbnü'l-Cevzî's grandson, Sıbt İbnü'l-Cevzî, was also one of the leading scholars of his time. Sıbt İbnü'l-Cevzî, who came to Dımaşk at a young age, settled there and began giving fiqh lessons, was favored by the children of the Ayyubid ruler el-Melikü'l-Âdil and appointed as a mudarris to the Şibliyye and Bedriyye madrasas. Although initially a follower of the Hanbali mezheb, he converted to the Hanafi mezheb at the encouragement of the Ayyubid ruler el-Melikü'l-Muazzam, who was himself a Hanafi. Sıbt İbnü'l-Cevzî, considered an unparalleled scholar of his time in the art of preaching and oratory, served as a preacher in the Emevî Camii for a long time, encouraged the public to jihad against the Haçlılar with his sermons, and personally participated in wars against the Haçlılar. Sıbt İbnü'l-Cevzî, who died in Dımaşk in 654/1256, has a work titled Mir'âtü'z-Zamân fî Tevârihi'l-A'yân (Cilt 1, s. 173).