The four schools of Islamic jurisprudence (Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi’i, and Hanbali) are widely known and followed across the Muslim world. They have preserved and enriched the Islamic legal tradition for centuries. Yet few are aware that these four schools are the last survivors of a much larger family of once-flourishing madhahib (legal schools). In early Islamic history, more than ninety distinct schools existed, each founded by an imam of knowledge and insight. Today, all but four have vanished.
What happened to those other schools?
Why did their voices go silent?
And what does their disappearance mean for Islamic jurisprudence today?
This is the story of the extinct madhahib — the great schools that once shaped the ummah’s legal imagination, only to be buried by time, politics, and changing societal forces.
A Glorious Beginning: The Diversity of Early Fiqh
In the generations following the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, the Muslim world witnessed a vibrant explosion of scholarly activity. The Companions and their students, the Tabi‘in, spread across the Islamic lands, teaching, interpreting, and deducing rulings from the Qur’an and Sunnah.
This era saw the rise of numerous jurists who each had distinct methodologies in reasoning, authentication, consensus, and analogy. Some leaned toward strict textualism, others emphasised qiyas (analogy) or maslahah (public welfare). Each school drew strength from its founder’s personality and scholarly method.
Among the most notable extinct schools were:
- The School of al-Awza’i (d. 157 AH) in the Levant
- The School of al-Thawri (d. 161 AH) in Kufa
- The School of al-Layth ibn Sa‘d (d. 175 AH) in Egypt
- The School of Ibn Jarir al-Tabari (d. 310 AH)
- The School of al-Daoud al-Zahiri (d. 270 AH), founder of the literalist Zahiri madhhab
At one point in history, Basra alone had six independent schools coexisting. The Islamic world was not divided into four madhahib — it was a dynamic, evolving arena of ijtihad and scholarly debate.
Why Did So Many Schools Disappear?
The extinction of these schools wasn’t due to intellectual weakness. Many of them were led by scholars whose piety, brilliance, and depth of knowledge rivalled — and in some cases exceeded — those of the four surviving imams.
Instead, the disappearance was largely due to external forces, such as:
1. Lack of Students or Institutional Support
Many schools faded simply because their founders didn’t establish strong networks of students, or because their legal opinions weren’t documented systematically. When the imam died, his legacy wasn’t preserved.
2. State Patronage and Political Support
In some regions, rulers favoured certain schools over others. For example, the Abbasids supported the Hanafi school, while the Ayyubids favoured the Shafi‘i school. State funding, judicial appointments, and official decrees played a major role in consolidating some schools and marginalising others.
3. The Power of Codification
The schools that survived invested in institutionalisation: they wrote encyclopedias, trained judges, and built enduring legal traditions. The Hanafi, Shafi‘i, Maliki, and Hanbali schools each developed legal texts, commentaries, and usul frameworks that could be passed down and debated across centuries.
4. The Mongol Invasions and Regional Upheaval
Devastating wars and social upheavals destroyed many centres of learning. The Mongol invasions wiped out entire cities, libraries, and communities, causing some schools to vanish completely.
5. Fusion or Absorption
Some schools didn’t disappear — they were absorbed. The opinions of scholars like al-Awza‘i or al-Thawri lived on in the writings of the surviving schools. Their views may have ceased being followed independently, but they were preserved as minority opinions within other madhahib.
Great Imams, Forgotten Schools
Among the most striking examples of a vanished school is that of Imam al-Layth ibn Saʿd — a giant of Islamic jurisprudence in Egypt. Born in 94 AH and passing in 175 AH, al-Layth was a master of hadith and fiqh, renowned across the Muslim world. Yet despite his brilliance, his school is no longer followed. Why?
Imam al-Shafi‘i — who studied under Imam Malik and founded his own school — once said:
“Al-Layth was more knowledgeable than Malik, but his students failed to carry his knowledge.”
This statement sums up the fate of many schools. Even the greatest of scholars cannot preserve a madhhab without disciples, books, institutions, and a structured legal methodology. Al-Layth’s opinions were known and respected, but they were not systematically preserved. Egypt eventually became a stronghold of the Maliki madhhab under state support, then later a centre for the Shafi‘i school, leaving al-Layth’s school to fade into obscurity.
The Zahiri School: Literalism and Isolation
Another significant case is the Zahiri (literalist) school, founded by Da’ud ibn ‘Ali al-Zahiri and later developed by the legendary Ibn Hazm of al-Andalus. The Zahiri madhhab rejected analogy (qiyas), public interest (maslahah), and juristic preference (istihsan), insisting on a strict literal interpretation of the Qur’an and Sunnah.
The Zahiris produced towering scholars and powerful legal arguments, but their uncompromising methodology made them isolated. They often clashed with other jurists and failed to gain institutional support. The Zahiri madhhab eventually disappeared from most regions, though some of its ideas continued to influence scholars across time, even as an undercurrent.
Today, some fringe movements claim to revive Zahiri literalism, but often without the depth or scholarship of the original school.
The Danger of Narrowing the Horizon of Fiqh
While the survival of the four madhahib is a blessing, their dominance has also led to a narrowing of the Muslim legal horizon. At times, it produced an environment where ijtihad (independent reasoning) was discouraged, and scholarly diversity was reduced to sectarian rigidity.
Some scholars — including reformers and revivalists — have argued that the closure of the “gates of ijtihad” limited the ummah’s ability to address new challenges. Others argue that limiting legal practice to four schools ensured consistency and avoided chaos.
But the truth is more complex.
Throughout Islamic history, the major schools themselves were not monolithic. Within each madhhab existed multiple viewpoints, minority opinions, and evolving jurisprudence. The classical scholars did not see disagreement as division — they saw it as rahmah (mercy) and a sign of intellectual health.
What We Lost… and What We Must Revive
The extinction of over 90 schools of jurisprudence isn’t just a historical curiosity. It’s a reminder that Islamic law has always been dynamic, responsive, and diverse — until it was gradually reduced to just a few voices.
We lost:
- Brilliant methodologies that offered unique approaches to legal reasoning
- Fiqh tailored to different regions and realities
- The courage of ijtihad — jurists speaking truth without fear of authority or conformity
But these voices are not gone forever. Their books, opinions, and ideas remain, waiting to be rediscovered by a new generation of scholars and students.
Conclusion: Toward a Revived Legal Spirit
The story of the extinct madhahib isn’t just about loss — it’s about responsibility. As Muslims today navigate a world of unprecedented challenges, we need to revive the spirit of scholarship that once defined our civilisation. Not by inventing new religions or abandoning the madhahib — but by honouring their legacy, embracing their diversity, and re-opening the doors of reason, sincerity, and scholarly courage.
The future of Islamic jurisprudence will not come from blind imitation, nor from chaotic innovation, but from a balanced path that remembers the richness of its past while facing the world ahead with clarity and confidence.
