The word · Hadith
الإِسْنَاد
Isnad
The chain of narrators who carried a hadith, listed name by name back to its source.
Also written · Isnaad · Esnad · Isnads · Asanid · Asaneed · Chain of narration · Chain of transmission · Isnad hadith · Isnaadh
The meaning
What Isnad means in Islam
A hadith is quoted like this: so and so told me, from so and so, from so and so, that the Prophet said. Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak said the isnad is part of the religion, and that without it anyone could say whatever he wished. Few traditions built a citation system this early, or held to it this stubbornly.
Evidence · Editorial · Our own summary, drawn from the sources named
Read beside it
Rooms that name it
Words that sit beside it
- SanadThe chain itself, the line of narrators supporting a text, used almost interchangeably with isnad.السَّنَد
- MatnThe actual wording of a hadith, the part that comes after the chain of narrators.المَتْن
- RawiA narrator: one of the people in the chain who heard a report and passed it on.الرَّاوِي
- Ilm al-RijalThe biographical science of the narrators: who they were, whom they met, and how reliable each was.عِلْمُ الرِّجَال
More from Hadith
- AdalahThe uprightness of a narrator: sane, adult, Muslim, not openly sinful, not known for shameful habits.العَدَالَة
- GharibA hadith narrated by only one person at some point in its chain.الغَرِيب
- Jami'A hadith book that covers every subject, not only law: belief, manners, tafsir, history and more.الجَامِع
- Mawdu'A fabricated report, invented and then attached to the Prophet; not really a hadith at all.المَوْضُوع
- MusannafA collection arranged by legal topic that includes Companion and follower statements alongside hadith.المُصَنَّف
- SahihA hadith that meets all five conditions of authenticity, with nothing missing and no hidden flaw.الصَّحِيح