An Introduction to the History of the Twelver's Kalam in Aleppo

Aleppo, one of the northern cities of the Levant, was never known as a Shiite center during the presence of Shia Imams, but gradually Ismailis, Shia families and descendants of Prophet were scattered in the area. The rule of Hamdanids prepared an appropriate field for Shia scholars to develop Shia doctrine in these regions. Migration of figures such as Muhammad Ibn Yaqub al-Kulayni, Nu’mani and Salamat Ibn Muhammad was in this regard. One effort of these figures was to explain and resolve the problem of the absence of Imam for Shia community in the early days of “greater occultation”. By this time Aleppo Twelver’s Kalam was influenced by Qom school. Then, with the return of great Imami scholars like Abu Al-salah and Ibn Zohreh of Aleppo, Twelver’s Kalam got flourished in the region, especially in conflict with Ismailia and other Muslim sects. In brief, we can hold Aleppo Twelver’s Kalam after the mid fifth century as influenced by the school of Baghdad.