The Dars-e-Nizami is the syllabus of the traditional Alim course. It takes its name from Mulla Nizamuddin Sihalwi of Farangi Mahal in Lucknow, who set it in the eighteenth century, and in revised forms it is taught at Darul Ulooms across South Asia, the UK and beyond. Students begin with Arabic grammar and logic, move through Fiqh, Usul al-Fiqh, rhetoric, Aqidah and Tafseer, and finish with a year of Hadith, the Dawrah.
No two institutes teach it quite the same way. The traditional course runs over eight years; many UK Darul Ulooms teach it in six or seven, and swap or move kitabs between years. What follows is the common pattern, with the classic eight years run together into seven, so take each year as where a kitab usually sits, not where it must. Every kitab named here is in the Labbaik Library; follow a title to see its contents.
Year 1: Sarf, Nahw and reading Arabic
The first year builds the grammar everything else rests on: word patterns in Sarf, sentence grammar in Nahw, and reading and writing simple Arabic.
Year 2: Hidayat un-Nahw, Quduri and Mantiq
Grammar moves on to a full Arabic text, Fiqh to the first complete Hanafi matn, and logic begins.
| Subject | Kitabs commonly taught |
|---|---|
| Sarf | Ilm us-Seghah |
| Nahw | Hidayat un-Nahw |
| Arabic | Al-Qira'ah ar-Rashidah, Mu'allim al-Insha, Part 2, Nafhat al-Yaman |
| Fiqh | Mukhtasar al-Quduri |
| Mantiq | Taisir al-Mantiq, Al-Mirqat (with the commentary Al-Mir'at) |
Year 3: Kafiyah, Kanz and Usul ash-Shashi
Students meet the classical texts proper: Ibn al-Hajib's Kafiyah, Kanz ad-Daqa'iq, the first book of Usul al-Fiqh and the core texts of logic.
| Subject | Kitabs commonly taught |
|---|---|
| Nahw | Al-Kafiyah (Ibn al-Hajib) |
| Fiqh | Kanz ad-Daqa'iq |
| Usul al-Fiqh | Usul ash-Shashi |
| Mantiq | Sharh Tahdhib (with Tuhfa Shahjahani), Al-Qutbi (Sharh ar-Risalah ash-Shamsiyyah) |
| Arabic | Nafhat al-Arab, Mu'allim al-Insha, Part 3 |
| Seerah | Seerat Khatam al-Anbiya (Awjaz as-Siyar li-Khayr al-Bashar) |
Year 4: Sharh Jami, Sharh al-Wiqayah and Balaghah
Grammar ends with Sharh Jami, Fiqh moves to Sharh al-Wiqayah and Usul to Nur al-Anwar, and rhetoric and classical prose begin.
| Subject | Kitabs commonly taught |
|---|---|
| Nahw | Sharh al-Jami (al-Fawa'id al-Diya'iyyah) |
| Fiqh | Sharh al-Wiqayah (new edition) |
| Usul al-Fiqh | Nur al-Anwar (Sharh al-Manar) |
| Balaghah | Duroos ul-Balaghah (with Shumus al-Bara'ah) |
| Adab | Al-Maqamat al-Hariri (with at-Ta'liqat al-Arabiyyah) |
Year 5: Jalalayn, Hidayah and Mukhtasar al-Ma'ani
The Qur'an is read through with Tafsir al-Jalalayn and its principles with al-Fawz al-Kabir, and Al-Hidayah, the summit of the Hanafi syllabus, begins.
| Subject | Kitabs commonly taught |
|---|---|
| Tafseer | Tafsir al-Jalalayn (Jalalain Kalan), Al-Fawz al-Kabir fi Usul at-Tafsir |
| Fiqh | Al-Hidayah |
| Usul al-Fiqh | At-Tawdih ma'at-Talwih |
| Balaghah | Mukhtasar al-Ma'ani |
| Aqidah | Matn al-Aqidah at-Tahawiyyah |
| Inheritance | Al-Sirajiyyah fi al-Mirath (al-Sirajī) |
| Arabic | Diwan al-Hamasah |
Year 6 (Mawquf Alayh): Mishkat, Baydawi and Sharh al-Aqa'id
The year before Dawrah, often called Mawquf Alayh: Mishkat al-Masabih, the last volumes of Al-Hidayah, Tafsir al-Baydawi, Sharh al-Aqa'id and the Jahili and Abbasid poets.
| Subject | Kitabs commonly taught |
|---|---|
| Hadith | Mishkat al-Masabih, Taysir Mustalah al-Hadith |
| Fiqh | Al-Hidayah |
| Tafseer | Tafsir al-Baydawi (Anwar al-Tanzil wa Asrar al-Ta'wil) |
| Aqidah | Sharh al-Aqa'id al-Nasafiyyah |
| Arabic | Al-Mu'allaqat as-Sab' with al-Zawzani's commentary, Diwan al-Mutanabbi with as-Sahab as-Sayyib |
Final year: Dawrah al-Hadith
The final year reads the six canonical collections with both Muwattas and Imam al-Tahawi's Sharh Ma'ani al-Athar, usually finishing Sahih al-Bukhari last.
Tracking the Dars-e-Nizami in Labbaik
A principal should be able to see that Year 3 is halfway through Kanz ad-Daqa’iq and which students are behind, without asking every ustadh. In Labbaik, each year group gets its own kitab list. Every kitab above is already in the Library with its sections set out, so adding a year’s kitabs takes a tap each, and teachers mark each section as the class reaches it. A kitab your syllabus uses that isn’t there can be uploaded as a PDF, even in several volumes, and Labbaik splits it into sections from its fihrist. More in the guide to Darul Uloom software.
Common questions
What is the Dars-e-Nizami?
The syllabus of the traditional Alim course, named after Mulla Nizamuddin Sihalwi (d. 1748) of Farangi Mahal in Lucknow, who first set it. Revised over the centuries, it is taught today at Darul Ulooms across South Asia, the UK and beyond, and those who complete it graduate as an Alim or Alimah.
How many years is the Alimiyyah course?
Traditionally eight years in India and Pakistan. Many UK Darul Ulooms teach it in six or seven, often alongside or after GCSEs, sometimes with a preparatory year in Arabic first, so a kitab can sit a year earlier or later than shown here.
What is Dawrah al-Hadith?
The final year of the Alimiyyah course, in which students read the six canonical hadith collections, both Muwattas and Sharh Ma'ani al-Athar with their teachers, usually finishing with Sahih al-Bukhari.
Does every Darul Uloom teach the same kitabs?
No. The core is shared, but institutes swap texts, add modern Arabic and English-medium books, and move kitabs between years. Treat this as the common pattern, not a fixed list.
How can a Darul Uloom track progress through the Dars-e-Nizami?
In Labbaik, every kitab on this page is in the Labbaik Library with its sections already set out. Add a year group's kitabs in one tap, and teachers mark each section as the class reaches it, so the principal sees where every class and student is. A kitab that isn't in the Library can be uploaded as a PDF and split into sections automatically.