Tirmidhis

Tirmidhis refers to the tradition of hadith scholarship associated with Imam Abu Isa Muhammad ibn Isa al-Tirmidhi, a 9th‑century Muslim scholar from Termez in Transoxiana. He is best known as the compiler of one of the major Sunni hadith collections and for his distinctive evaluative method. The nisba al-Tirmidhi indicates origin and has come to label both the author and the body of work and scholars connected to his tradition.

The principal work associated with the name is Jami' al-Tirmidhi, commonly called Sunan al-Tirmidhi. Compiled in the late 9th century, it presents hadith organized by subject matter, with the text, the isnad (chain of transmission), and al-Tirmidhi’s evaluation of authenticity. He typically marks reports as sahih, hasan, or da'if, and adds remarks about narrator reliability and cross-references with other chains. The collection is one of the Kutub al-Sittah in many Sunni traditions, though its ranking and evaluative conventions vary among schools.

In addition to the Sunan, al-Tirmidhi authored works such as al-Shama'il al-Muhammadiyya, which describes the Prophet’s appearance and manners, and he engaged in critical analysis of narrations by comparing chains across sources. His method emphasized practical guidance for jurists and readers and contributed to later hadith scholarship through careful noting of routes and potential defects (illat) in chains. His works were studied and cited by generations of scholars and editors.

Today, the term Tirmidhi or Tirmidhis can refer to the author, his works, and the scholars influenced by his approach. The Tirmidhi corpus has been printed, annotated, and translated in various languages, maintaining a continuing presence in traditional Islamic sciences.