This volume contains ground-breaking studies on such matters as the early development of legal theory in Islam, the emergence of "us l al-fiqh," theory vis-a-vis practice, various controversies among Muslim theorists, the construction of juristic authority, reformist concepts, and the role of "qaw cid."

This book explores the relationship between custom and Islamic law and seeks to uncover the role of custom in the construction of legal rulings. On a deeper level, however, it deals with the perennial problem of change and continuity in the Islamic legal tradition (or any tradition for that matter).

In this book Rumee Ahmed shatters the prevailing misconceptions of the purpose and form of the Islamic legal treatise. Through a subtle interpretation of the work of major Islamic jurists, he reveals how the moral teachings of Islam were translated into a legal context in the critical, formative period of Islamic law.

This book explores the relationship between custom and Islamic law and seeks to uncover the role of custom in the construction of legal rulings. On a deeper level, however, it deals with the perennial problem of change and continuity in the Islamic legal tradition (or any tradition for that matter).

This work describes the origins and sources of Islamic law, the development of Sunni law schools and Sunni legal theory, the development of Shii legal theory and the way Islamic law relates to the modern world.

These studies by Wael Hallaq represent an important contribution to our understanding of the neglected field of medieval Islamic law and legal thought. Spanning the period from the 8th to the 16th centuries, they draw upon a wide range of original sources to offer both fresh interpretations of those sources and a careful evaluation of contemporary scholarship. The first articles expound the interrelated issues of legal reasoning, legal logic and the epistemology of the law. There follows a set of primarily historical studies, which question a series of widely held assumptions, while the last items explore issues of legal theory and methodology. One particular topic concerns the role of Shafi'i as the ’master architect’ of Islamic legal theory, and Professor Hallaq would finally argue that this image is in fact false and a creation of later centuries.

Wael B. Hallaq has already established himself as one of the most eminent scholars in the field of Islamic law. In this book, first published in 1997, the author traces the history of Islamic legal theory from its early beginnings until the modern period. Initially, he focuses on the early formation of this theory, analysing its central themes and examining the developments which gave rise to a variety of doctrines. He concludes with a discussion of modern thinking about the theoretical foundations and methodology of Islamic law. In organisation, approach to the subject and critical apparatus, the book will be an essential tool for the understanding of Islamic legal theory in particular and Islamic law in general. This, in combination with an accessibility of language and style, will guarantee a readership among students and scholars and anyone interested in Islam and its evolution.