Dawud ibn Ali al-Zahiri

Dawud ibn Ali al-Isbahani (200–270 AH / 815–883 CE), known as Dawud al-Zahiri, was the founder of the Zahiri (literalist) school of Islamic jurisprudence. Born in Kufa and based in Baghdad, he initially studied Shafi'i fiqh but developed his own distinct methodology: adhering strictly to the apparent (zahir) meaning of Quran and hadith and rejecting analogical reasoning (qiyas). His school attracted followers but eventually dwindled, with the Andalusian scholar Ibn Hazm being its most famous later representative. Dawud al-Zahiri trained many scholars and was well respected even by those who disagreed with his methodology.