The Alfiyya of
Ibn Malik
Abu 'Abd Allah Jamal al-Din Muḥammad ibn Abd Allāh ibn Malik al-Ta'i al-Jayyani ( ar, ابو عبدالله جمال الدين محمد بن عبدالله بن محمد بن عبدالله بن مالك الطائي الجياني النحو ...
() is a rhymed book of Arabic grammar written by
Ibn Malik
Abu 'Abd Allah Jamal al-Din Muḥammad ibn Abd Allāh ibn Malik al-Ta'i al-Jayyani ( ar, ابو عبدالله جمال الدين محمد بن عبدالله بن محمد بن عبدالله بن مالك الطائي الجياني النحو ...
in the 13th century. The long title is ''al-Khulāsa al-alfiyya''. According to the historian
Al-Maqqari
Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad al-Maqqarī al-Tilmisānī (or al-Maḳḳarī) (), (1577-1632) was an Algerian scholar, biographer and historian who is best known for his , a compendium of the history of Al-Andalus which provided a basis for the scholar ...
, ''Al-Alfiyya'' was written in imitation of
Ibn Muti al-Zawawi
Ibn Mu‘ṭī al-Zawāwī ()Abū 'l-Ḥusayn Yaḥyā ibn ‘Abd al-Nur Zayn al-Dīn al-Zawāwī, or Abū Zakarīyā’ Yaḥyā ibn ‘Abd al-Mu’ṭī ibn ‘Abdannūr az-Zawāwī ( – 1231 CE (564–628 AH)); was a Ḥanafī ''faqīh'' (ju ...
's ''Al-Durra al-alfiyya''.
At least 43 commentaries have been written on this work, which was one of two major foundations of a beginner's education in Arab societies until the 20th century. In the 20th century, religious educational systems began to be replaced by colonial ones (such as the French schools in Morocco).
[Eickelman, D. F. (1992). Knowledge and Power in Morocco: The Education of a Twentieth-Century Notable. Princeton: Princeton University Press, p. 56]
Along with the
Ajārūmīya
''al-Ājurrūmiyyah'' (Arabic: الْآجُرُّومِيَّةِ) in full ' is a 13th-century book of Arabic grammar (نحو عربي naḥw ʿarabī). Very concise for easy memorization, it formed the foundation of a beginner's education in Cl ...
, the Alfiya was one of the first books to be memorized by students in religious schools after the
Qur'an
The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , sing. ...
.
This book is still used in traditional Dars (Islamic Education system in Masjid) at south Indian state
Kerala
Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...
, as well as traditional Islamic boarding schools in
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
.
References
{{commons, Explanation of Alfiya Ibn Malik
13th-century Arabic books
Medieval Arabic poems
Arabic grammar books