Mapping contemporary hadith studies: beyond the riwāyah–dirāyah bifurcation

Bin Jamil, Khairil Husaini (2026) Mapping contemporary hadith studies: beyond the riwāyah–dirāyah bifurcation. Atsar: Journal of Hadith and Contemporary Studies, 1 (1). pp. 66-85. E-ISSN 3164-1830

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Abstract

The riwāyah–dirāyah distinction has long served as a foundational map for hadith studies, especially in matters of transmission, verification, and understanding. However, contemporary hadith research now extends into wider questions of authority, interpretation, application, pedagogy, digital preservation, spirituality, and civilisation. This article proposes a complementary, function-oriented map of contemporary hadith studies based on qualitative documentary reading of dissertation records, conference proceedings, and classificatory works in ʿulūm al-ḥadīth. Rather than using bibliometric counting, the study identifies recurring research orientations through conceptual saturation. The main finding is that contemporary hadith studies can be mapped into seven overlapping domains: Form, Conception, and Terminology; Maqāṣid, Function, and Authority; Transmission, Historiography, and Verification; Text, Meaning, and Interpretation; Application, Implementation, and Practice; Preservation, Pedagogy, and Continuity; and Philosophy, Spirituality, and Civilisation. These domains do not replace the riwāyah–dirāyah framework, but place it within a broader disciplinary cartography. The inherited pair remains central to transmission, verification, and interpretation, while the newer domains make visible contemporary developments such as living hadith, digital and computational hadith studies, pedagogical continuity, and civilisational reflection. The article also argues that this map is descriptive rather than normative: it can locate tradition-affirming scholarship, orientalist source criticism, and contemporary hadith scepticism within the same analytical field without validating their assumptions. The study contributes a provisional heuristic for understanding the expanded landscape of contemporary hadith studies while preserving its classical centre.

Item Type:	Article (Journal)
Uncontrolled Keywords:	contemporary hadith studies, dirāyah, riwāyah, sunnah, thematic mapping
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BP Islam. Bahaism. Theosophy, etc > BP1 Islam B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BP Islam. Bahaism. Theosophy, etc > BP1 Islam > BP100 Sacred books > BP135 Hadith literature. Traditions. Sunna B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BP Islam. Bahaism. Theosophy, etc > BP190.5 Islamization of Knowledge
Kulliyyahs/Centres/Divisions/Institutes (Can select more than one option. Press CONTROL button):	International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilization (ISTAC) Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences > Department of Qur’an and Sunnah
Depositing User:	Dr. Khairil Husaini Bin Jamil
Date Deposited:	30 Oct 2026 16:09
Last Update:	30 Oct 2026 16:09
Queue Number:	2026-10-Q5881
URI:	http://irep.iium.edu.my/id/eprint/131122
Indexed In:	UNSPECIFIED

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