Every ḥadīth has two parts, and the science of ḥadīth is essentially the discipline of examining each of them separately and then together.
- The isnād (إسناد) or sanad — the chain of transmission. The named sequence of people who passed the report down, each from the one before, terminating in a Companion who witnessed or heard it.
- The matn (متن) — the text itself. The words of the Prophet ﷺ, or the description of what he did or approved.
By convention the isnād is written first and the matn last. A published ḥadīth reads as a chain of names, then the report.