Wikipedia's first sentence called it “chief representative and eponym of the awzai school of islamic jurisprudence”. Today it says “sunni muslim scholar”.
Measured, not asserted. Every count, date and revision on this page was taken from Wikipedia's own history and checked against the live article. The words quoted are theirs.
Machine-checked against the full current article on 2026-08-03.
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The opening as it read in 2015
Abd al-Rahman ibn Amr al-Awzai (707–774) was the chief representative and eponym of the Awzai school of Islamic jurisprudence .1Apparently, born in Baalbeck, Lebanon in 707, very little of al-Awzai's writings survive, but his style of Islamic jurisprudence ( usul al-fiqh ) is preserved in Abu Yusuf 's (died 798) book Al-radd ala siyar al-Awzai , in particular his reliance on the "living tradition," or the uninterrupted practice of Muslims handed down from preceding generations. Awzai's school flourished in Syria , the Maghreb , and Muslim Spain but was eventually overcome by the Maliki school of Islamic law in the 9th century. However, given his authority and reputation as a Sunni Imam and pious ancestry, his views retain potential as a source of law and a basis for alternative legal approaches and solutions. He died in 774 and was buried near Beirut, Lebanon , where his tomb is still visited.2
This is Wikipedia's own text, saved in our repository. Their copy of it is revision 662985037.
The opening as it stood in 2010
Abu Amr Abd al-Rahman ibn Amr al-Awzai (707 - 774) was the chief representative and eponym of the Awzai school of Islamic jurisprudence , which descended from the ancient Syrian school. Apparently, born in Damascus, Syria in 707, very little of al-Awzai's writings survive, but his style of Islamic jurisprudence ( usul al-fiqh ) is preserved in Abu Yusuf 's (d.798) book Al-radd ala siyar al-Awzai , in particular his reliance on the "living tradition," or the uninterrupted practice of Muslims handed down from preceding generations. Awzai's school flourished in Syria , the Maghreb , and Muslim Spain but was eventually overcome by the Maliki school of Islamic law in the 9th century. However, given his authority and reputation as a Sunni Imam and pious ancestry, his views retain potential as a source of law and a basis for alternative legal approaches and solutions. He died in 774 and was buried near Beirut, Lebanon , where his tomb is still visited.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 369470476.
The opening as it stood in 2020 4 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
8th-century Islamic scholar Abu Amr Abd al-Rahman ibn Amr al-Awzai ( ) (707–774) was the chief representative and eponym of the Awza'i school of Islamic jurisprudence .Awzai was referred to by his tribe " Awza " (الأوزاع), part of Banu Hamdan ."سير أعلام النبلاء" . shamela (in Arabic) .
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 958222462.
The opening as it stood on October 6, 2023 3 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
8th-century Islamic scholar Abū ʿAmr ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn ʿAmr al-ʾAwzāʿī ( ) (707–774) was an Islamic scholar, traditionalist and the chief representative and eponym of the ʾAwzāʿī school of Islamic jurisprudence ."Debating the Doctrine of jabr (Compulsion): Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya Reads Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī".The prominent traditionalists, such as Abū ʿAmr al-Awzāʿī (d.157/774) and Ahmad b. Ḥanbal (d.241/855).. : CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list ( link )
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1171601317.
The opening as it stood in 2025
Muslim scholar, jurist, and theologian (707–774) Abū ʿAmr ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn ʿAmr al-Awzāʿī ( Arabic : أَبُو عَمْرو عَبْد ٱلرَّحْمَٰن بْن عَمْرو ٱلْأَوْزَاعِيّ ; 707–774) was a Sunni Muslim scholar , jurist , theologian , and the chief representative and eponym of the Awza'i school of Islamic jurisprudence . "Debating the Doctrine of jabr (Compulsion): Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya Reads Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī". The prominent traditionalists, such as Abū ʿAmr al-Awzāʿī (d.157/774) and Ahmad b. Ḥanbal (d.241/855)..
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1297433127. This is our newest snapshot; the live article may have moved again since.
Today
Wikipedia's first sentence called it “chief representative and eponym of the awzai school of islamic jurisprudence”. Today it says “sunni muslim scholar”. Read the current article and compare.
2010
2015
2020
Oct '23
2025
Counts in the opening at each snapshot. Green: the word gained ground. Red: it was cut. Grey: no change.
What Wikipedia says this is
Every article opens by defining its subject. This one was redefined since 2010, and today's defining sentence is their current revision.
Then
chief representative and eponym of the awzai school of islamic jurisprudence
Now
sunni muslim scholar
Struck red text is no longer in the article; dotted amber text was rewritten. Every revision id links to Wikipedia's copy; the text shown is our own saved copy. Data: /data. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA; quoted for the record; not affiliated with Wikipedia.
