Muhammad Ibn Sa[d, Kitab at-Tabaqat al-Kabir, Vol. VI (The Scholars of Kufa).

Aisha Abdurrahman al-Tarjumana Bewley has no less than 15 books to her credit, mostly co-authored. They run from Islam: The Empowering of Women and The Four Madhhabs of Islam to Muslim Women and Dictionary and a Glossary of Islamic Terms. Moreover, she has been, for more than 25 years, one of the most prolific translators into English of classical Arabic works. Her translations include Imam Malik’s al-Muwatta’ and the Kitab al-Tabaqat al-Kabir by Muhammad Ibn Sa[d of which Vol. VI (“The Scholars of Kufa”) is reviewed here. Most useful is her 18 page glossary and an appendix listing all governors and qadis of Kufah from the time [Umar ibn al-Khattab to the last Abbasid ones. This is a work of love as well, and is the author’s ninth generation list of Companions settled in Makkah or Kufah. In fact, this is one of the best collections of biographical data on early Muslims from 764-850 CE.