Ibn Manzur

Jamal ad-Din Abu al-Fadl Muhammad ibn Mukarram ibn Ali ibn Manzur al-Ansari al-Misri (630-711 AH / 1233-1312 CE) was an Egyptian lexicographer and the author of Lisan al-Arab (The Tongue of the Arabs), the most comprehensive dictionary of the Arabic language in the classical tradition. Born in Cairo, he served as a judge in Tripoli (Libya) before returning to Egypt, where he spent his scholarly career.

Lisan al-Arab is a monumental Arabic dictionary running to several dozen large volumes in modern editions. It systematically documents the vocabulary of the Arabic language, citing its usage in classical Arabic poetry, the Quran and its commentary tradition, hadith literature, and earlier dictionaries. Ibn Manzur compiled it primarily from five earlier lexicographical works, preserving their content while organizing and cross-referencing it comprehensively. He reportedly completed the work in his later years as an act of piety and service to the Arabic language and Islamic scholarship.

The work has been an indispensable reference for scholars of Arabic language, Islamic jurisprudence, Quranic commentary, and hadith for seven centuries. It remains the most comprehensive classical Arabic lexicon in existence and is cited in virtually every serious work on Arabic philology and Islamic scholarship.

Ibn Manzur also authored numerous other works on Arabic linguistics, poetry, and history. He passed away in Cairo in 711 AH. His Lisan al-Arab is an enduring monument of Islamic scholarly achievement and the greatest single lexicographical work in the Arabic linguistic tradition.