Imam al-Shafii

الإِمَام الشَّافِعِي

Founder of the Shafii school and father of Islamic legal theory

Born: 767 CE, Gaza

Died: 820 CE, Cairo

Era: Classical

Field: Fiqh, Usul al-Fiqh

Origin: Gaza/Mecca

Muhammad ibn Idris al-Shafii founded the Shafii school and wrote Al-Risala — the first systematic treatise on Islamic legal theory. He studied under both Imam Malik and Muhammad al-Shaybani.