Hadith in Mecca in the first three centuries of hijri

This thesis commences by exploring the multifaceted aspects -social, political, scientific, and cultural- of Mecca, highlighting its seminal role in the foundation and development of Islamic civilization from the inception of the Prophethood. The subsequent chapters, specifically the second and third, delve into the genesis and evolution of the hadīth science within Mecca. This includes an examination of the significant figures -companions and tābiʿūn- who resided in Mecca, contributing to its scholarly environment, their disciples, the narrations they propagated, and the consistency of these modes of transmissions with established knowledge of history of hadith. The study endeavors to assess the magnitude of contributions made by muhaddithūn, qārīs, and narrators to the hadīth science throughout the first three centuries of Islamic history. It identifies the era of the tābiʿūn and the subsequent 'atbāʾ al-tābiʿīn as a zenith in the history of hadith scholarship, marked by a significant proliferation of narrators and narrations. However, post-210 A.H. despite an increase in the quantity of narrators and narrations, there was a notable decline in contributions to the hadth science within Mecca by the end of the third Islamic century. In line with these observations, Al-Dhahabī has noted that subsequent to the third century, the focal point of hadith scholarship transitioned from Mecca and Medina to other prominent Islamic centers.