Abu Ishaq Ibrahim ibn Abd Allah, Al-Hamdani Al-Hamawi, Shihab Al-Din
Born on 1187
Died on 1244
Abu Ishaq Ibrahim ibn Abd Allah, Al-Hamdani Al-Hamawi, Shihab Al-Din was born in Hama in 1187-8, where he flourished and where he died in 1244-5. He is a Shafiite Qadi (judge) historian who wrote Tarikh (History) of the Prophet and of the caliphs down to 1231. He dedicated to the Ayyubid prince Al-Muzaffar Ghazi (ruled 1230-1244/5) an elaborate history of Islam in six volumes (Al-Tarikh al-Muzaffari). A good number of Italian authors have made use of the relevant extracts from this work, which they have especially used in their works on Sicily. Hence, Agostino Inveges (1595-1677) has translated into Italian extracts dealing with Palermo. A century after Inveges, Carusius made translations into Latin of the same extracts. The famed historian of Sicily, Muratory, and Gregorio also made similar usages.