Kitab Al Amwal - كتاب الاموال

An edited and annotated English translation of a hitherto unpublished treatise on Islamic finance written by a scholar of the tenth century, Abu Jafar Ahmad Ibn Nasr Al-Daudi Al-Maliki Al-Asadi (d. 402/1011).

The text has been edited on the basis of a unique manuscript, preserved in the Escurial Library, Madrid (MS No.1165).

It deals (from the Maliki point of view) with the broad principles of:

State revenues

Military administration

International law of war and peace,

The authors verdicts ( fatawa ) on the settlements of lands in Al-Ifraqiyaah, Al-Maghrib, Spain and Sicily.

It also deals with the administration of the properties acquired unlawfully and those abandoned with no legal owners.

The work throws light on various kinds of earnings and suggests methods to maintain balance in society between various groups or rich and poor people.

About The Author

Abu Jafar Ahmad ibn Nasr al-Daudi lived in the fourth-fifth Hijri, eleventh century CE in North Africa. Although we do not have an excellent chronological account of his life and career, we have at our disposal some authentic and valuable data about his life, his students, and his works in the writings of his near contemporary and later authors like the biographer Qadl Iyad (476/1084-544/1150), Ibn Khayr (502/1108-575/il79), Ibni Bushkuwal (494/1101-578/1185) and Ibn Farhun (720/1321-799/397), which when pieced together give us an integrated view of our author.

Qadi Abul-Fadl Iyad ibn Musa ibn Iyad (476/1084-544/1150), mentions al-Daudi, belonging to Banu Asad, as an Imam of the Malikl school of law in al-Maghrib. According to him, al-Daudi hailed from al-Masilah or Biskarah. He lived in Tripoli (Trabulus) where he wrote his book, Fi Sharh al-Muwatta. After that, he moved to Tlemcen (Tilimsan). Qadi Iyad further adds that al-Daudi was a very learned jurist and scholar in various branches of knowledge and an excellent author. He had a good command of Arabic language, Hadith and speculative science.