Maliki School

Overview

A school of Sunni jurisprudence founded by Imam Malik ibn Anas (711-795 CE) in Madinah. It places special emphasis on the practice of the people of Madinah (amal ahl al-Madinah) as a source of law, reasoning that their continuous practice reflected the Sunnah of the Prophet. The Maliki school is dominant in North Africa, West Africa, parts of the Gulf states, and historically in Al-Andalus. Imam Malik's al-Muwatta is the earliest surviving complete book of Islamic law.

Key Beliefs

• Practice of the people of Madinah as an authoritative source of law
• Use of istislah (public interest) as a legal principle
• Sadd al-dhara'i (blocking the means to harm) as a juristic tool
• Greater reliance on the living tradition alongside hadith texts
• Balance between textual evidence and communal practice