PhD Degree Awarded to Mr. Ali Abdullah Saleh Abdullah in Comparative Jurisprudence

Mr. Ali Abdullah Saleh Abdullah was awarded a PhD degree in Comparative Jurisprudence for his dissertation titled: The Ummah Pillar on the Doctrines of the Imams in Jurisprudential Inquiries and Legal Secrets (Al-Umda lil-Umma fi Madhahib al-A’imma fi al-Mabahith al-Fiqhiyya wa al-Asrar al-Shariyya) by Imam Yahya ibn Hamza ibn Ali ibn Ibrahim al-Husayni (669–749 AH): A Critical Study and Investigation of the Second Volume to the End of the Ḥajj Book, which was submitted to the Department of Islamic Studies, Faculty of Arts and Humanities – Sana’a University. The dissertation defense was held on Wednesday, July 30, 2025.

The PhD Viva-Voce Committee, which was formed based on a resolution issued by the Graduate Studies and Scientific Research Council, consisted of the following:

#	Committee Members	Designation	University	Position
1	Prof. Adel Saleh Al-Faqih	Internal Examiner	Sana’a University	Chair
2	Prof. Mohammed Abdulwahid Al-Shujaa	Main Supervisor	Sana’a University	Member
3	Assoc. Prof. Ahmed Ibrahim Yahya Yabis	External Examiner	Hodeidah University	Member

The dissertation involves a critical study and investigation ‎of a section of the manuscript Al-Umda lil-Umma. The portion under focus extends from the beginning of the second volume to the conclusion of the Book of Pilgrimage (Kitab al-Ḥajj).

The study aimed to verify, refine, and critically edit the manuscript to make it more accessible and useful to researchers and readers. The researcher undertook a careful textual verification process, correcting scribal and linguistic errors, clarifying difficult passages, and thoroughly analyzing the jurisprudential discussions. Relevant issues were cross-referenced with their original sources.

The researcher concluded his dissertation defense with a number of key recommendations summarized as follows:

Giving due scholarly attention to classical jurisprudential works and manuscripts through critical studies and investigations that can provide user-friendly presentations of such works and manuscripts.
Connecting jurisprudential discussions of such works and manuscripts with contemporary issues to enhance their relevance.
Presenting such works and manuscripts in accessible formats to facilitate research and referencing.

The dissertation defense was attended by faculty members, researchers, students, colleagues, and the researcher’s family.