• Addressed issues not dealt with in the Quran
  • Became indispensable tool in formation of Islamic law
• In earliest stages, were muddled and unregulated
• In less than two centuries after Muhammad’s death, 700 were being circulated
  • Great majority were fabricated to legitimize personal beliefs
• After few generations, anything connected to Muhammad was given status of hadith
• In ninth and tenth centuries, effort was made to separate reliable hadith