ABSTRACT
The creation of an archetype, i.e., an ideal authoritative model or standard to which all other types must conform or emulate, is undeniably a prime concern of juristic typologies. In the case of Islamic law, this archetype is the absolute mujtahid whose legal knowledge, presumed to be all-encompassing and wholly creative, is causally connected with the founding of a school. The school is not only named after him, but he is purported to have been its originator. The comprehensive and wide-ranging knowledge attributed to the absolute mujtahid is matched only by his assumed in-depth knowledge of, among other things, legal methodology or Ufiil al-fiqh (which is by necessity of his own creation), Quranic exegesis, badlth criticism, the theory of abrogation, legal language, positive and substantive law, arithmetic, and the science of juristic disagreement.
