TheEpistleonLegalTheoryistheoldestsurvivingArabicworkonIslamiclegaltheoryandthefoundationaldocumentofIslamicjurisprudence.Itsauthor,MuhammadibnIdrisal-Shafi’i(d.204/820),wastheeponymoftheShafi’ischooloflegalthought,oneofthefourritesinSunniIslam.ThisfascinatingworkoffersthefirstsystematictreatmentinArabicofkeyissuesinIslamiclegalthought.TheseincludeasurveyoftheimportanceofArabicasthelanguageofrevelation,principlesoftextualinterpretationtobeappliedtotheQur’anandpropheticTraditions,techniquesforharmonizingapparentlycontradictoryprecedents,legalepistemology,rulesofinference,anddiscussionsofwhenlegalinterpretationisrequired.TheauthorillustrateshistheoreticalclaimswithnumerousexamplesdrawnfromnearlyallareasofIslamiclaw,includingrituallaw,commerciallaw,tortlaw,andcriminallaw.ThetextthusprovidesanimportantwindowintobothIslamiclawandlegalthoughtinparticularandearlyIslamicintellectualhistoryingeneral.Thisnewtranslationbyaleadingscholarofal-Shafi’iandhisthoughtmakesavailableinlucid,modernEnglishoneoftheearliestcompleteworksonIslamiclaw--onethatiscentrallyimportantfortheformationofIslamiclegalthoughtandtheIslamiclegaltradition.AnEnglish-onlyedition.
