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Allamah
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Allamah (Arabic: عَلَّامَة[1]) is an Islamic honorary title for a profound scholar, a polymath, a man of vast reading and erudition, or a great learned one.[2]
The title is carried by scholars of Islamic fiqh (jurisprudence) and philosophy. It is used as an honorific in Sunni Islam as well as in Shia Islam, mostly in South Asia, the Middle East and Iran. Sunnis and Shias who have achieved scholarship in several disciplines are often referred to by the title. It is also used for philosophers, such as Allama Iqbal.One of the best orators of Bangladesh Maulana Delwar Hossain Sayeedi is addressed as Allama Sayeedi.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Team, Almaany. "تعريف و شرح و معنى علامة بالعربي في معاجم اللغة العربية معجم المعاني الجامع، المعجم الوسيط ،اللغة العربية المعاصر ،الرائد ،لسان العرب ،القاموس المحيط - معجم عربي عربي صفحة 1". www.almaany.com. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
- ^ Phyllis G. Jestice (2004). Holy People of the World: A Cross-cultural Encyclopedia, Volume 3. ABC-CLIO. p. 367. ISBN 9781576073551. Archived from the original on April 17, 2019. Retrieved July 2, 2020.
Allamah
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Allamah (Arabic: عَلَّامَة, romanized: ʿallāma), derived from the root meaning "sign" or "indication," is an honorific title in Islamic tradition reserved for scholars who exhibit exceptional mastery over diverse branches of religious knowledge, including jurisprudence (fiqh), principles of jurisprudence (usul al-fiqh), hadith, Qur'anic exegesis (tafsir), theology (kalam), and philosophy.[1] The title signifies a polymathic depth of learning, distinguishing its bearers as among the elite in Islamic intellectual history, often applied more prominently within Twelver Shia circles to denote comprehensive erudition beyond routine scholarly attainment.[2]
The conferral of the title lacks formal institutional criteria but emerges through peer recognition of a scholar's authoritative contributions across disciplines, typically requiring decades of rigorous study and original works that advance Islamic thought. In Shia contexts, Allamahs have historically shaped doctrinal consolidation and revival, as exemplified by Muhammad Baqir al-Majlisi (d. 1699), whose encyclopedic compilation Bihar al-Anwar preserved and systematized thousands of hadiths, influencing Shia religious reforms during the Safavid era.[3][4] Similarly, Muhammad Husayn Tabatabai (1904–1981) exemplified the title through his multi-volume Tafsir al-Mizan, a philosophical exegesis integrating rational analysis with traditional sources, alongside defenses of transcendent theosophy (hikmat al-muta'aliyah), establishing him as a pivotal 20th-century thinker.[5] These figures underscore the Allamah's role in bridging textual tradition with philosophical inquiry, often amid efforts to counter perceived dilutions of orthodox teachings.[6]
Early fiqh principles, as developed in this period, underscored the scholarly rigor later embodied by Allamah-level expertise, emphasizing empirical derivation from texts over speculative expansion.[11]
Etymology and Definition
Linguistic Origins and Meaning
The Arabic term ʿallāmah (عَلَّامَة), commonly transliterated as Allamah, originates from the triliteral Semitic root ʿ-l-m (ع-ل-م), which fundamentally denotes knowledge, knowing, and intellectual discernment. This root produces core vocabulary such as ʿilm (knowledge or science) and ʿālim (one who knows, or scholar), with ʿallāmah emerging as an intensive or elative morphological form (faʿʿālah pattern) that intensifies the sense of profundity, implying "one who knows thoroughly" or "endowed with exhaustive learning". Linguistically, it carries connotations of recognizing and interpreting signs (ʿalāmāt), extending from the root's association with markers of understanding to a metaphor for penetrating insight into complex matters.[7] In Islamic scholarly parlance, ʿallāmah specifically signifies exceptional erudition, reserved for polymaths who master subtle textual indications in fiqh (jurisprudence), usul al-fiqh (principles of jurisprudence), theology, and related fields, distinguishing it from lesser titles like shaykh or mujtahid. The term's application underscores a causal link between linguistic morphology—amplifying knowledge via repetition in the root—and the epistemological demands of Islamic intellectual tradition, where true scholarship requires discerning hidden evidentiary signs (dalīl) amid apparent meanings. This evolution aligns with classical Arabic lexicography, where intensive forms denote rarity and depth, as seen in analogous terms from the same root.[8]Historical Development
Early Islamic Period
In the early Islamic period, following the Prophet Muhammad's death in 632 CE, the transmission of religious knowledge relied heavily on the Sahaba (companions) and Tabi'un (successors), who served as primary authorities without formalized honorific titles like Allamah. Expertise centered on memorization and interpretation of the Qur'an and Sunnah, with figures such as Abdullah ibn Abbas (d. 687 CE) recognized for comprehensive grasp of tafsir and fiqh, earning descriptive epithets like "the exegete of this ummah" rather than Allamah. Similarly, early jurists like Abu Hanifa (d. 767 CE) founded madhabs through ijtihad but operated in a decentralized system of scholarly circles (halqas), where recognition stemmed from chains of transmission (isnad) and consensus among peers, not standardized polymath titles.[9] The absence of the Allamah designation reflects the era's focus on specialized roles—muhaddithun for hadith, fuqaha for law—amid conquests and caliphal patronage under the Umayyads (661–750 CE) and early Abbasids (750–833 CE), when sciences like kalam and usul al-fiqh began systematization but lacked the institutional breadth for "profound scholar" honorifics. By the 9th–10th centuries, as Baghdad's Bayt al-Hikma facilitated translation and synthesis of Greek works, proto-polymaths emerged, yet titles remained ad hoc, evolving toward later formalities like Allamah only with madrasa proliferation post-10th century. This foundational phase prioritized causal fidelity to primary sources over titular hierarchy, fostering causal realism in rulings via direct analogy (qiyas) and consensus (ijma).[10]Early fiqh principles, as developed in this period, underscored the scholarly rigor later embodied by Allamah-level expertise, emphasizing empirical derivation from texts over speculative expansion.[11]