Here lies Mujir al-Din al-Ulaymi, the Jerusalem-born qadi and historian whose chronicle became a principal source for the history of al-Quds. Abu al-Yumn…
Here lies Mujir al-Din al-Ulaymi, the Jerusalem-born qadi and historian whose chronicle became a principal source for the history of al-Quds. Abu al-Yumn Mujir al-Din Abd al-Rahman al-Ulaymi al-Umari al-Maqdisi al-Hanbali (مجير الدين العليمي) was born in 860 AH / 1456 CE and died in 928 AH / 1522 CE. His family traced its lineage through Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Umar (RA), son of Sayyiduna Umar ibn al-Khattab (RA). A scholar and judge of al-Quds Mujir al-Din studied Qur’an, hadith, Arabic and Hanbali jurisprudence in Jerusalem before continuing his education in Cairo. He later held judicial office in Ramla and became chief qadi of Jerusalem, combining the work of a judge with teaching, legal scholarship and historical writing. His writings extended beyond local history. They include Fath al-Rahman fi Tafsir al-Qur’an , works on the scholars of the Hanbali school, and al-Tarikh al-Mu‘tabar fi Anba’ man Ghabar , a wider chronicle of earlier peoples and Islamic history. The chronicle of Jerusalem and al-Khalil His best-known work is al-Uns al-Jalil bi-Tarikh al-Quds wal-Khalil . Mujir al-Din gathered accounts of the Prophets, Muslim conquests, rulers, scholars, institutions, waqfs and sacred places of Jerusalem and al-Khalil, carrying the narrative into his own lifetime under the Mamluks. The book preserves detailed descriptions of Masjid al-Aqsa, the city’s quarters, gates, madrasas and places of worship, alongside biographies of Jerusalem’s scholars and officials. Its breadth made it one of the central written sources for the medieval history and topography of al-Quds. His maqam stands at the foot of the Mount of Olives, near the grave of Sayyidah Maryam and east of the Old City walls. Mujir al-Din was born, worked and died in Jerusalem; his grave lies within the landscape he spent his life recording.