ABSTRACT
This was the first mosque in Egypt. The mosque standing on the site today was extensively renovated in 1397/1977. (See Manāra; Masjid.) al-Amr bi '1-Ma'rūf wa '1-Nahy 'an al-Munkar (Ar.) Classi cal Arabic phrase meaning 'Commanding the good and forbid ding the evil'. This was one of the five key principles of the Mu'tazila (q.v.). The phrase has a clear Qur'ānic foundation as may be seen from v. 104 of Sūrat Āl 'Imrān (q.v.) and elsewhere. (See al-Wa'd wa 'l-Wa'īd.) 'An (Ar.) Technical term used in hadīth (q.v.) to denote 'on the authority of. It formed part of the chain of authorities, called the isnād (q.v.), in the hadīth. An example might run as follows: 'He informed me on the authority of ('an) Sulaymān . . .' Analogy See Qiyās. al-An'ām (Ar.) The title of the 6th sura of the Qur'ān; it means 'The Cattle'. The sura belongs to the Meccan period and contains 165 verses. Its title comes from the references to cattle and pagan practice in vv.136, 138-139. The sura begins by praising God as the Creator of the Heavens and the earth; He has given every man his ajal (q.v.). There is much in the sura about God's attributes and also many of the Islamic prophets. (See Alyasa'.) al-Anbiyā' (Ar.) The tide of the 21st sura of the Qur'ān; it means 'The Prophets'. The sura belongs to the Meccan period and has 112 verses. It is so-called because of the references to many of the great prophets revered by Islam. These include Mūs (q.v.) and Hārūn (q.v.), who were given the Torah; Ibrahim (q.v.), whom pagans attempt to burn to death (see vv.68-69); and Dāwūd (q.v.) and Sulaymān (q.v.). (See Dhū '1-Kifl; Idrīs; Jibrīl.) al-Andalus This Arabic word probably derived from a word for Atlantis, rather than from Vandalicia (Land of the Vandals) as 34
