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Tabi'un

The (, or , , ) are the generation of Muslims who followed the companions () of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, and thus received their teachings secondhand. A knew at least one . As such, they played an important part in the development of Islamic thought and knowledge, and in the political development of the early caliphate.

The next generation of Muslims after the are called the . The first three generations of Muhammad's followers make up the of Islam.

Sunni definition

Muslims from the Sunni branch of Islam define a tābiʿ as a Muslim who:

  1. Saw at least one of the companions of Muhammad
  2. Was rightly-guided (ar-rāšidūn)
  3. One who died in that state. The Khawarij are therefore not referred to as tābiʿūn even though they saw many of Muhammad's companions.

Sunni Muslims also regard the tābiʿūn as the best generation after the companions. According to Sunni Muslims, Muhammad said: "The best people are those living in my generation, then those coming after them, and then those coming after (the second generation)"

The tābiʿūn are divided by most Muslim scholars into three classes:

  1. The students of companions who accepted Islam before the conquest of Mecca
  2. The students of companions who accepted Islam after the conquest of Mecca
  3. The students of companions who were not yet adults at the time of Muhammad's passing

List of tābiʿūn

The first tābiʿ to die was Zayd ibn Ma'mar ibn Zayd, 30 years after the hijra, and the last to die was Khalaf ibn Khalifa, who died in 180 AH. Alternatively, since the status of Khalaf ibn Khalifa as a tābiʿ is strongly challenged by reputed scholars, the last to die from amongst them may have been Jarir bin Haazim in 170 AH. Therefore, many of the tābiʿūn were tasked with the preservation of Islamic traditions from the era of the companions to later Muslims.

See also

References