Hadith studies (علم الحديث‎ ʻilm al-ḥadīth "science of hadith", also science of hadith, or science of hadith criticism) consist of several religious disciplines used in the study and evaluation of the Islamic hadith — i.e. the record of the words, actions, and the silent approval of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad, by Muslim scholars. The sciences seeks to determine the authenticity (sihha) of ahadith, primarily by attempting to determine whether there are "other identical reports from other transmitters"; the reliability of the transmitters of the report; and "the continuity of the chain of transmission".