Isnad
An isnad is the chain of transmitters through whom a hadith was passed down. Its named links let scholars assess how a report was transmitted.
Hadith criticism: The scholarly evaluation of hadith reports, including their chains of transmission and textual content. Isnad is the evidence examined when scholars assess a report’s transmission.
Hadith: A report about the words, actions, or approvals of the Prophet Muhammad. An isnad is the transmission chain attached to a hadith report.
Hadith studies: The scholarly disciplines devoted to collecting, interpreting, and evaluating hadith reports. Isnad became a central method within the broader study of hadith.
Matn criticism: The evaluation of a hadith’s content for inconsistencies, anomalies, or other grounds for criticism. It assesses the report’s wording rather than primarily tracing its transmitters.
Narrator criticism: The assessment of hadith transmitters’ reliability, accuracy, and capacity to report. Evaluations of each transmitter help determine whether an isnad can be trusted.
Matn: The wording or substantive content of a hadith, distinguished from its chain of transmission. Hadith scholarship examines the matn alongside the isnad.
Hadith collections: Compiled books of hadith reports, commonly preserving both their chains and texts. Collections made isnads visible and available for comparison.
Tawatur: Transmission of a report through so many independent channels that collusion on a falsehood is deemed implausible. Its evidentiary force rests on numerous routes, unlike scrutiny of a single isnad.
Ilm al-rijal: The study of hadith transmitters, including their biographies, teachers, students, and reliability. Biographical records help establish who appears in an isnad and how they were judged.
Companions of the Prophet: People who met Muhammad as believers and transmitted accounts of his words and actions. Companions frequently appear near the beginning of hadith chains.