Taqreeb At-Tahdheeb (تقريب التهذيب) by Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani is a condensed version of his more detailed work, Tahdheeb al-Tahdheeb. The book categorises narrators from the six major hadith collections—Sahih al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim, Sunan Abu Dawood, Sunan an-Nasa’i, Jami’ at-Tirmidhi, and Sunan Ibn Majah—as well as other works by the authors of these collections.

Tabaqaat (Generational Classes) in Taqreeb At-Tahdheeb

Ibn Hajar categorises narrators into twelve generational levels (طبقات). These levels represent the narrators’ positions in the chain of narration (Isnad) and their proximity to the Prophet ﷺ. Memorising these levels is essential for students of Hadith, as it helps them fully understand and effectively utilise Taqreeb al-Tahdheeb to evaluate narrators’ reliability and their roles in hadith transmission.

Example:

Under entry 3 in Taqreeb al-Tahdheeb, Ibn Hajar mentions:

٣- أحمد ابن إبراهيم ابن كثير ابن زيد الدورقي النكري بضم النون البغدادي ثقة حافظ من العاشرة مات سنة ست وأربعين م د ت ق

Translation:

3. Ahmad ibn Ibrahim ibn Kathir ibn Zayd al-Durqi al-Nukri (with a damma on the letter noon), al-Baghdadi: A trustworthy and reliable memoriser (ḥāfiẓ) from the tenth generation. He passed away in the year 246 AH. He is referenced in the following hadith collections: م – Sahih Muslim, د – Sunan Abu Dawood, ت – Jami’ at-Tirmidhi, and ق – Sunan Ibn Majah.

Understanding “من العاشرة” [From the Tenth Generation]

To understand من العاشرة (from the tenth generation), we need to know how Ibn Hajar categorised narrators into twelve classes. He explains the طبقات (generations) as follows:

وأما الطبقات:

فالأولى: الصحابة، على اختلاف مراتبهم، وتمييز من ليس له منهم إلا مجرد الرؤية من غيره.

الثانية: طبقة كبار التابعين، كابن المسيب، فإن كان مخضرما صرحت بذلك.

الثالثة: الطبقة الوسطى من التابعين، كالحسن وابن سيرين.

الرابعة: طبقة تليها جل روايتهم عن كبار التابعين، كالزهري وقتادة.

الخامسة: الطبقة الصغرى منهم، الذين رأوا الواحد والاثنين، ولم يثبت لبعضهم السماع من الصحابة، كالأعمش.

السادسة: طبقة عاصروا الخامسة، لكن لم يثبت لهم لقاء أحد من الصحابة، كابن جريج.

السابعة: طبقة كبار أتباع التابعين، كمالك والثوري.

الثامنة: الطبقة الوسطى منهم، كابن عيينة وابن علية.

التاسعة: الطبقة الصغرى من أتباع التابعين، كيزيد بن هارون، والشافعي، وأبي داود الطيالسي، وعبد الرزاق.

العاشرة: كبار الآخذين عن تبع الأتباع، ممن لم يلق التابعين، كأحمد بن حنبل.

الحادية عشرة: الطبقة الوسطى من ذلك، كالذهلي والبخاري.

الطبقة الثانية عشرة: صغار الآخذين عن تبع الأتباع، كالترمذي، وألحقت بها باقي شيوخ الأئمة الستة، الذين تأخرت وفاتهم قليلا، كبعض شيوخ النسائي.

(تقريب التهذيب – ص: 75)

The classes are as follows:

1. First Generation (الطبقة الأولى): The Companions of the Prophet ﷺ, with distinction made between those who only saw the Prophet and those who had a deeper connection with him.
2. Second Generation (الطبقة الثانية): The senior Tabi‘un (Followers), such as Ibn al-Musayyib. If any of them were “Khudrami” (born during the Prophet’s time but did not meet him), this is explicitly mentioned.
3. Third Generation (الطبقة الثالثة): The middle Tabi‘un, such as Al-Hasan al-Basri and Ibn Sirin.
4. Fourth Generation (الطبقة الرابعة): The next layer, most of whom narrated from the senior Tabi‘un, such as Az-Zuhri and Qatadah.
5. Fifth Generation (الطبقة الخامسة): The lower Tabi‘un, who met only one or two Companions and whose hearing from them was not confirmed, like Al-A‘mash.
6. Sixth Generation (الطبقة السادسة): A generation contemporary to the fifth, but they did not meet any of the Companions, like Ibn Jurayj.
7. Seventh Generation (الطبقة السابعة): The senior followers of the Tabi‘un, such as Malik and Ath-Thawri.
8. Eighth Generation (الطبقة الثامنة): The middle group among them, such as Ibn ’Uyaynah and Ibn ’Aliyah.
9. Ninth Generation (الطبقة التاسعة): The younger Tabi‘un, such as Yazid ibn Harun, Ash-Shafi‘i, Abu Dawood at-Tayalisi, and ’Abd ar-Razzaq.
10. Tenth Generation (الطبقة العاشرة): The senior followers who did not meet the Tabi‘un, like Ahmad ibn Hanbal.
11. Eleventh Generation (الطبقة الحادية عشرة): The middle group of this generation, such as Al-Dhuhli and Al-Bukhari.
12. Twelfth Generation (الطبقة الثانية عشرة): The younger members of this group, such as At-Tirmidhi, along with other scholars who were part of the six major Hadith compilers but passed away a little later, like some of the scholars of An-Nasa’i.

Applying “من العاشرة” in the Example

In the example above, من العاشرة (from the tenth generation) means that Ahmad ibn Ibrahim ibn Kathir ibn Zayd al-Durqi al-Nukri belonged to the tenth generation. This corresponds to the Atbaa’ Atbaa’ At-Tabi‘in (followers of the followers’ followers).

Determining the Year of Death

The phrase مات سنة ست وأربعين (literally: “died in the year 46”) requires contextual understanding because Ibn Hajar drops the hundreds. To determine the correct century, we reference the generation as Ibn Ḥajar mentioned:

فإن كان من الأولى والثانية: فهم قبل المائة، وإن كان من الثالثة إلى آخر الثامنة: فهم بعد المائة، وإن كان من التاسعة إلى آخر الطبقات: فهم بعد المائتين، ومن ندر عن ذلك بينته.

If the individual is from the first and second generations, they passed away before the 100th year. If they are from the third to the eighth generations, they passed away after the 100th year but before the 200th year. If they are from the ninth class and beyond, they passed away after the 200th year. In cases where there is an exception to this, I have clarified it.

Therefore in summary: 

• For narrators from the first and second generations, they passed away before 100 AH.
• From the third to eighth generations, they passed away between 100 AH and 200 AH.
• From the ninth generation onwards, they passed away after 200 AH.

Since Ahmad ibn Ibrahim ibn Kathir ibn Zayd al-Durqi is from the tenth generation, he passed away after 200 AH, making سنة ست وأربعين the year 246 AH.

Symbols Used by Ibn Hajar

The symbols م د ت ق in the entry indicate the hadith collections in which the narrator is referenced:

• م: Sahih Muslim

• د: Sunan Abu Dawood

• ت: Jami’ at-Tirmidhi

• ق: Sunan Ibn MajahFor further details on Ibn Hajar’s use of symbols, refer to his introductory explanations in Taqreeb At-Tahdheeb.

For further details on Ibn Hajar’s use of symbols in his Taqreeb see here.