4 min read
The Al-Mufahris search engine: an illustrated, step-by-step guide to the advanced search
Excluding words under the fields and choosing several countries at once: seven steps with one example, Ibn al-Ḥājib's Mukhtaṣar al-uṣūl.
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Search Guide
A step-by-step guide to using the tool and entering keywords to find manuscripts precisely.
1. Open the app
Tap “Open Al-Mufahris” or start the bot in Telegram; the Mini-App opens directly inside Telegram.
2. Choose a search field
Decide whether to search by title, author, scribe or library — or pick “Total search” to search every field at once.
3. Type a precise keyword
Use a word stem rather than a long phrase; e.g. “al-Shifa” instead of “Kitāb al-Shifā’ by Ibn Sina”, then narrow results by adding the author.
4. Browse and open a record
Results appear collapsed; open any record to see its 57 fields and copy any field with one tap.
5. Save or share
Add the record to a bookmark folder or a critical-edition project, or share it as an image in any Telegram chat.
Tips for sharper searches
- Start with one distinctive word, then add constraints.
- Try different spellings of a name.
- Search by shelf number if you know it.
- Use total search when you don’t know which field a word belongs to.
Video guides
Watch the video · The video is in Arabic
In this video
How to save, organise and follow your manuscript search results in Al-Mufahris, inside Telegram.
- Save any record with one tap on the button under the card
- Organise your bookmarks into five folders and name each folder after its topic
- If a file becomes available for the copy after you save it, or its data are corrected, you see it in your bookmarks
- Move any saved record into a research project
- Export the folder to Excel
- For Researcher-plan subscribers (since 15 October 2026 the free plan also includes one folder of 10 records)
Watch the video · The video is in Arabic
In this video
- Add any copy from the search results to your project, with its siglum (A, B, C…) and its level of importance.
- Examine each copy against the weighting criteria: proximity to the author, attestation and integrity of the text.
- Set the weight of each criterion yourself according to your method, so the copies are weighed and ranked by your judgement, not by a ready-made template.
- Document every judgement with its evidence: the place of the collation note, the text of the samāʿ (audition) note and a sample of the corruption.
- Rank the copies and choose the base copy; we suggest an order, the decision is yours, and every change is kept in a log.
- Record your own reading of the catalogue data and, if you wish, send it to Al-Mufahris.
Notes & materials
Start searching manuscripts in seconds
No new account, no install — just open the app inside Telegram.