Jurisprudence is one of the most important subjects of Islamic Studies because it is the means of deducing religious categorisation of human acts and of deducing the rules which regulate human affairs in a just manner. This study attempts to define the nature of Islamic jurisprudence and its historical development as a discipline through the first seven centuries of the Islamic era and somewhat beyond; to produce a critical edition and to study one of the fundamental texts of Islamic jurisprudence: Bad' al-Nim al-Jmi' Bayna Kitbay al Bazdaw wa al-Ikm. This work is of great importance on account of its unifying influence but its text has never received a critical edition or publication. This thesis consists of two volumes, Volume One is written in English and is divided into three parts. Part One is confined to the history of Islamic jurisprudence from the inception of Islam, through the various stages of development and until the end of the seventh century al-Hijra (1300 AD). Part Two concerns itself with the development of Islamic jurisprudence where the main focus is to present a reasonably clear picture of the various processes that practitioners in the field of Islamic jurisprudence have followed in order to derive (new) rules. Finally Part Three deals, through a critical study, with the manuscript entitled Bad' al-Nim al-Jmi' Bayna Kitbay al Bazdaw wa al-Ikm.