Demonstrating the central role of third/ninth century ḥadīth scholars in the articulation of Sunnī Islam, this book bases its findings largely upon the analysis of multiple biographical dictionaries, such as al-Dhahabī's Tadhkirat al-ḥuffāẓ, Ibn Saʿd's Kitāb al-ṭabaqāt al-kabīr, and collections of the critical comments of Ibn Maʿīn and Ibn Ḥanbal. Part I establishes conceptual and historical frameworks for the study of Sunnī ḥadīth scholarship. Part II examines in...