An Analysis of al-Shaabi’s Narrative Twists Based on His Era and Life

“Akhbarions”of the 1st and 2nd centuries AH have had lasting effects on the Islamic historiography and the understanding of the Muslims of later centuries. Amer al-Shaabi (28-105 AH) is one of Akhbarions. He, who was famous in the fields of Fiqh and Hadith, and history, has received much attention from Islamic historians. There are contradictory narratives by him about the events and the influential Muslims of the Islamic world. The main purpose of this study is to identify and analyze the contradictions in the narratives of al-Shaabi. The findings reveal that Abu Omar’s narrative changed as a result of the socio-political changes of Kufa and the interests of the nobility of Hamdān tribe and his own. These changes fall under three categories. The period of 28-66 AH was influenced by his childhood environment so that we can detect traces of Shiism in his narratives. The second episodeof his life began with his separation from Mokhtar’s uprising (66 AH) and continued until Ibn al-Ashath’s uprising (81 AH). At this stage, he distanced himself from Shiism under the influence of his status in Fiqh and as a reaction to the growth of the Ghulat. Thus, his narratives became anti-Shiite, although he was still a supporter of Ali in this period. The defeat of ibn al-Ashash (84 AH) marked the third episode of his life in which he became devoted to the Umayyad dynasty to the extent that he quoted a story in favor of the Umayyad Caliphate and against Imam Ali.