Abu Abdallah al-Damaghani

أبو عبد الله الدامغاني

Chief qadi of Baghdad through the Seljuk transition: invested on 10 Dhu'l-Qa'da 447, witness of the caliph's marriage to Tughril's niece (448) and of the 449 investiture, the only dignitary left in Baghdad — with three witnesses — to receive al-Qa'im back from exile in 451, present at al-Muqtadi's bay'a in 467, and arbiter of the famous false-hilal ruling (Hanafi: two hundred witnesses under a clear sky; Shafi'i: two suffice) 1.

Depth

At a glance

Roles
qadi
Era
The Buyid, Fatimid and Seljuk Era
Region
Levant & Iraq
Review
Draft Completeness 1/5 · Help complete it

Overview

Al-Damaghani, qadi al-qudat of Baghdad; he took office on Tuesday 10 Dhu'l-Qa'da 447 with the robe of honour — the chief judge of the Tughril Beg and Malikshah era. He attended the caliph al-Qa'im's marriage contract to Khadija, the Sultan's niece, in 448 alongside Judge al-Mawardi, stood among his attendants at Tughril's investiture in 449, received al-Qa'im returning from exile in 451 when only he and three witnesses met him, pledged to al-Muqtadi in 467, and inspected the slain in the Madrasa-market riot of 470. 2

His hilal fatwa

Asked in the hilal-sighting disturbance of 448 about the Sharif who had made the people break their fast, he said: "on Abu Hanifa's school — and it is mine — with a clear sky no testimony counts unless a large number up to two hundred; the Shafi'i school decides on the testimony of two." 3

Sources

  1. al-Muntazam fi Tarikh al-Muluk wa'l-Umam — Ibn al-Jawzi , j.8 p.507,514,550,634
  2. al-Muntazam fi Tarikh al-Muluk wa'l-Umam — Ibn al-Jawzi , j.8 p.507,511,523,550,634,655
  3. al-Muntazam fi Tarikh al-Muluk wa'l-Umam — Ibn al-Jawzi
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Abu Abdallah al-Damaghani”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/person/al-damaghani/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-21.

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