Welcome to Al-Furqan’s E-Database
The largest gateway of Islamic written heritage
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‘World Collections’ databank / collection
The ‘World Collections’ databank / collection holds the digitised outcome of the survey on the collections of Islamic manuscripts in the world, completed and published by the Al-Furqan Foundation in 1994, under the title “The World Survey of Islamic Manuscripts”.. This Survey is available in both the English and Arabic language.
This flagship project (the only one of this type to date) started in 1989, focusing on identifying and recording undocumented Islamic manuscript collections in the world, with the aim to support and instigate research into the field of Islamic manuscripts. A number of known scholars and experts contributed to this encyclopaedic work.
The Survey identified collections in 106 countries. It is a compilation of detailed independent studies, highlighting just over a million and a half Islamic manuscripts from just over 2,500 collections. These collections, in more than 40 languages, belong to public and private libraries in almost 1,300 cities. It gathered extensive information about these libraries, including details about their establishment and the status of their collections, unveiling in the process rare manuscripts. For example, the collection of manuscripts at the Institute of Oriental Culture (University of Tokyo) - that was acquired in 1987 - included several new and unique Islamic manuscripts. The noteworthy discoveries were two copies of Risala fi anwaʿ al-mashruʿat, a comprehensive work on the terminology of jurisprudence, by Luṭf Allah al-Kaydani (died 1349 AD /750 AH). These were significant findings, as they had not even been mentioned in the most renowned classical period references, such as Brockelmann's famous work Geschichte der Arabischen Litteratur (GAL), Sezgin's Geschichte Des Arabischens Schriftums (GAS), and Kaḥḥala's Muʿjam al-muʾallifin.
A large number of the identified libraries have listed and included detailed descriptions about the manuscripts held in their collection, in a form of a document or publication. This publication is known as a ‘catalogue’; with most of them published and available for purchase. Another form of a published catalogue is one that was compiled by a group of libraries, known as ‘library consortium’. These libraries partnered to combine their collections into one unified published catalogue, known as a ‘union catalogue’.
Some libraries held collections that were not catalogued or documented. Others made an attempt to describe their collections in simplified lists and general documentations. These were usually not published and are known as ‘unpublished catalogues’.
A unique outcome of the Survey was the identification of all the various catalogues. Just over 5,500 catalogues of Islamic manuscripts were surveyed, including the listing of almost 700 union catalogues, and almost 1,000 unpublished catalogues.
All this information and much more is ready to be explored on theAl-Furqan Digital Library, under the ‘World Collections’ databank.
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| Contact: | al-Madina al-Sakaniya Dhamar |
| Date of establishment: | Early 14th century AH |
| Status: | Private |
| Condition of access: | MSS may be consulted at the residence of the owner of the collection. |
| Total number of Islamic MSS: | ca. 40. |
| Description of Collection: | The library is known by the name of its owner al-Qaḍi Zayd Ibn ʿAli Ibn Muḥammad Al-Akwaʿ of the al-Akwaʿ family which is celebrated for its scholarship. The MSS were primarily accumulated through inheritance and also through purchase and copying. The collection has diminished through distribution of the MSS between different individuals of the family. It is in good condition and well looked after. The MSS were copied between the 9th and the 14th centuries AH. Subjects include uṣul al-din, uṣul al-fiqh, tafsir, Ḥadith, fiqh, and sciences of the Arabic language. An example from the collection is Kitab Sharḥ al-Jami, a work on grammar by ʿAbd al-Raḥman al-Jami (10th century AH). The MS. was copied in 1220 AH. The father of the owner of the library, al-Qaḍi al-ʿAllama ʿAli ibn Muḥammad al-Akwaʿ himself copied several MSS during his lifetime. Among the works copied by him and still found in the collection are: (i) Kitab Sharḥ al-Azhar, original work on fiqh by al-Imam al-Mahdi Aḥmad ibn Yaḥyá 'l-Murtaḍá and commentary by al-ʿAllama ʿAbd Allah ibn Abi 'l-Qasim ibn Miftaḥ (d. 877 AH); (ii) Kitab al-Manahil al-Ṣafiya: Sharḥ al-Shafiya, a commentary by al-ʿAllama Raḍi al-Din al-Astarabadhi (d. 686 AH) on a work on Arabic language sciences by the famous grammarian Ibn al-Ḥajib. |
| Notes: | See published World Survey of Islamic Manuscripts. 1992 - 1994, Vol.3, p 652. |
| Published Catalogues: | 0 |
| Unpublished Catalogues: | 0 |
| Union Catalogues & Surveys Total: 26 | 1947 |
1949 – 1950 | |
1952 | |
1955 | |
1962 | |
1964 | |
1965 | |
1967 | |
1972 | |
1972 | |
1972 | |
1972 | |
1973 | |
1973 | |
1974 | |
1974 | |
1974 | |
1976 | |
1976 | |
1976 | |
1978 | |
1979 | |
1980 | |
1983 | |
1983 | |
1994 | |
| Bibliographical appendix Total: 12 | 1967 |
1977 | |
1978 | |
1980 | |
1980 | |
1982 | |
1983 | |
1983 | |
1983 | |
1984 | |
1986 | |
1986 |
Cities surveyed
Libraries surveyed
Catalogues surveyed
