Al-Ghallābī is rated as among the Shī‘ī authors of the third/eighth century, through whom many historical traditions have been related in Shī‘ī and Sunnī sources. Examining the status of al-Ghallābī’s traditions in the two major sects (of Shī‘a and Sunnī), this writing is intended to find the reason for the permeation of his traditions into the sources belonging to the Sunnīs – who are very cautious in using the traditions of the Shī‘ī writers. The great number of his students, who were varied in their religious inclinations and were from various geographical regions such as Shām and Iraq, and the content of some of the traditions transmitted by him, which strengthen the convergence between the Shī‘as and Sunnīs, have been greatly influential in the prevalence of al-Ghallābī’s statements. In this article, the reasons for the permeation of his traditions into Sunnī sources and the number of these traditions found their way into those sources are examined and delved into.
Keywords: historiography, Sunnīs, Shī‘īs, reconciliatory traditions.