Ahmad ibn 'Ali Ibn Hajar al-'Asqalani
Abu al-Fadl · Hafiz al-Asr
Ibn Hajar al-ʿAsqalani was a preeminent 15th-century Shafi'i Sunni hadith scholar from Egypt, renowned for his commentary on Sahih al-Bukhari, Fath al-Bari. He authored approximately 150 works across various Islamic sciences and served multiple times as chief judge in Egypt.
Born in Cairo in 1372 into an Arab Kinani family originally from Ascalon, Ibn Hajar al-ʿAsqalani was the son of the Shafi'i scholar and poet Nur ad-Din 'Ali. Orphaned in infancy, he was raised by his guardian Zaki ad-Din al-Kharrubi and excelled in Qur'anic memorisation and Islamic studies from a young age. He studied under numerous scholars across Egypt, Damascus, Jerusalem, Mecca, Medina, and Yemen, becoming a leading authority in hadith and Shafi'i jurisprudence. Ibn Hajar authored around 150 works, with his Fath al-Bari commentary on Sahih al-Bukhari being the most celebrated. He held the position of Egyptian chief judge multiple times and was honoured with titles such as Hafiz al-Asr and Shaykh al-Islam. He died in Cairo in 1449, with a large funeral attended by dignitaries and scholars.
Significance
Reputation in tradition
Foremost late-medieval hadith scholar; compiler of Bulugh al-Maram and author of Fath al-Bari.