Contested Lineages and Juristic Talent: Unravelling the Confusion of Names and Writings within the Sadr al-Din-Zadah Family of Bukhara

Abstract

This article addresses the confusion about five jurists who are all referred to as Sadr al-Din Zadah al-Mahbubi and come from the same family. Although they had a significant impact on Hanafi jurisprudence and were active in Bukhara during the sixth and seventh centuries, both the namesake scholars and their ancestor, Jamal al-Din Ubaydullah, a prominent scholar himself, have not been adequately acknowledged in current research on Islamic law. In fact, & Scedil;& uuml;kr & uuml; & Ouml;zen and Bedir Murteza authored multiple articles in the Diyanet Encyclopedia of Islam (DEI), and & Ouml;mer Faruk Atan wrote a PhD dissertation, all of which referenced the namesake scholars and other family members. However, these studies covered a lot of mixed information due to the confusion this work addresses. This paper aims to clarify the confusion of the names, titles, and works of the five namesakes and identify the reasons for this confusion. The research methods involve accessing the primary data supporting the central argument, that the scholars'work overlaps, comparing modern studies with classical sources, and analysing their findings. The study concludes with several findings. Atfirst, it suggests that Burhan al-Shari'ah Mahmud and Taj al-Shari'ah Umar are incorrectly considered the same person or confused as two separate individuals. Secondly, it establishes that the work ttled Wiqaya al-Riwaya which is contested between the two, unequivocally belongs to Burhan al-Shari'ah, whereas another book entitled al-Fur & uuml;q was authored by Sadr al-Shari'ah the First [ai-Avval].