Aside from the early biographies of Muhammad, the first major biographer to weigh character rather than just producing a hymn of praise was al-Baladhuri with his "Kitab ansab al-ashraf" or "Book of the Genealogies of the Noble", a collection of biographies. Another important biographical dictionary was begun by ibn Khallikan and expanded by al-Safadi and one of the first significant autobiographies was "Kitab al-I'tibar" which told of Usamah ibn Munqidh and his experiences in fighting in the Crusades. This time period saw the emergence of the genre of "tabaqat" (biographical dictionaries or biographical compendia).