Ibn Jarir al-Tabari

Muhammad ibn Jarir ibn Yazid al-Tabari al-Amuli was born in Amul (Tabaristan, modern Iran) and became one of the most encyclopedic scholars in Islamic history. He traveled across the Islamic world and settled in Baghdad. He reportedly offered to write 30 volumes of Quran commentary and 30 volumes of history but his students said they could not write so much — so he condensed each to the known versions. His Jami' al-Bayan fi Ta'wil al-Quran (Tafsir al-Tabari) is the most comprehensive early Quran commentary, running to 30 volumes, and is the foundational reference for classical tafsir methodology. His Tarikh al-Rusul wal-Muluk (History of Prophets and Kings) is the foundational work of Islamic historiography. He also independently derived legal principles (and his school, the Jariri madhab, existed briefly). He died in Baghdad in 310 AH.