The Biographical Work of al-Ṭabarī

In the introduction to his Taʾrīkh al-rusul wa-l-mulūk (History of Prophets and Kings), al-Ṭabarī declares his intention to append to the work biographical notes on the Prophet’s Companions, on the Successors, and on transmitters of subsequent generations. These notes, no doubt, constitute the work entitled Dhayl al-mudhayyal min taʾrīkh al-ṣaḥāba wa-l-tābiʿīn (The Supplement to the Supplemented: Biographies of Companions and Their Successors). It is usually referred to as Taʾrīkh al-rijāl (Biographies of Transmitters),¹ but the title Ṭabaqāt (Generations) is also sometimes applied to it.² It consists of biographies, followed by a list of names and kunyas (patronyms).In compiling