shamela
Version:
Library to interact with the Maktabah Shamela v4 APIs
867 lines (629 loc) โข 25.5 kB
Markdown
# shamela
[](https://wakatime.com/badge/user/a0b906ce-b8e7-4463-8bce-383238df6d4b/project/faef70ab-efdb-448b-ab83-0fc66c95888e)
[](https://github.com/ragaeeb/shamela/actions/workflows/e2e.yml)
[](https://shamela.vercel.app)
[](https://github.com/ragaeeb/shamela/actions/workflows/build.yml) 
[](https://codecov.io/gh/ragaeeb/shamela)
[](https://bundlejs.com/?q=shamela%40latest)
A universal TypeScript library for accessing and downloading Maktabah Shamela v4 APIs. The package runs in both Node.js and modern browsers, providing ergonomic helpers to interact with the Shamela API, download master and book databases, and retrieve book data programmatically.
> [!WARNING]
> ## API Key Notice
>
> **This library requires an API key to access Shamela's APIs.** I cannot provide API keys and am unable to assist with API key requests.
>
> **Please do not:**
> - Open issues asking for API keys
> - Contact me directly for API access
>
> **For API key inquiries, please email:** [mail@shamela.ws](mailto:mail@shamela.ws)
## Features
- ๐ **Full data lifecycle** โ fetch metadata, download master and book databases, and query the results entirely in-memory.
- ๐ **Runtime configuration** โ configure API credentials, WASM paths, and custom fetch/logging implementations at runtime.
- ๐ง **Content tooling** โ parse, sanitise, and post-process Arabic book content with utilities tailored for Shamela formatting.
- ๐ **Environment aware** โ automatically selects optimal sql.js WASM bundles for Node.js, browsers, and bundled runtimes.
- ๐งช **Well-tested** โ comprehensive unit and end-to-end coverage to ensure reliable integrations.
## Table of Contents
- [Features](#features)
- [Installation](#installation)
- [Quick Start](#quick-start)
- [Standard Node.js](#standard-nodejs)
- [Next.js / Bundled Environments](#nextjs--bundled-environments)
- [Browser (Full API)](#browser-full-api)
- [Browser (Content Utilities Only)](#browser-content-utilities-only)
- [API Reference](#api-reference)
- [Configuration](#configuration)
- [configure](#configure)
- [resetConfig](#resetconfig)
- [getConfig](#getconfig)
- [getConfigValue](#getconfigvalue)
- [requireConfigValue](#requireconfigvalue)
- [Metadata & Downloads](#metadata--downloads)
- [getMasterMetadata](#getmastermetadata)
- [downloadMasterDatabase](#downloadmasterdatabase)
- [getBookMetadata](#getbookmetadata)
- [downloadBook](#downloadbook)
- [getCoverUrl](#getcoverurl)
- [Data Access](#data-access)
- [getBook](#getbook)
- [getMaster](#getmaster)
- [denormalizeBooks](#denormalizebooks)
- [Content Utilities](#content-utilities)
- [parseContentRobust](#parsecontentrobust)
- [mapPageCharacterContent](#mappagecharactercontent)
- [splitPageBodyFromFooter](#splitpagebodyfromfooter)
- [removeArabicNumericPageMarkers](#removearabicnumericpagemarkers)
- [removeTagsExceptSpan](#removetagsexceptspan)
- [normalizeLineEndings](#normalizelineendings)
- [stripHtmlTags](#striphtmltags)
- [htmlToMarkdown](#htmltomarkdown)
- [normalizeHtml](#normalizehtml)
- [normalizeTitleSpans](#normalizetitlespans)
- [moveContentAfterLineBreakIntoSpan](#movecontentafterlinebreakintospans)
- [convertContentToMarkdown](#convertcontenttomarkdown)
- [Supporting Utilities](#supporting-utilities)
- [buildUrl](#buildurl)
- [httpsGet](#httpsget)
- [Examples](#examples)
- [Data Structures](#data-structures)
- [Next.js Demo](#nextjs-demo)
- [Troubleshooting](#troubleshooting)
- [Testing](#testing)
- [License](#license)
## Installation
```bash
npm install shamela
```
```bash
bun add shamela
```
```bash
yarn add shamela
```
```bash
pnpm install shamela
```
## Quick Start
### Standard Node.js
For simple Node.js scripts (non-bundled environments), the library auto-detects the WASM file:
```typescript
import { configure, getBook } from 'shamela';
// Configure API credentials
configure({
apiKey: process.env.SHAMELA_API_KEY,
// Configure only the endpoints you need:
booksEndpoint: process.env.SHAMELA_BOOKS_ENDPOINT, // Required for book APIs
masterPatchEndpoint: process.env.SHAMELA_MASTER_ENDPOINT, // Required for master APIs
// sqlJsWasmUrl is auto-detected in standard Node.js
});
// Use the library
const book = await getBook(26592);
console.log(`Downloaded book with ${book.pages.length} pages`);
```
### Next.js / Bundled Environments
For Next.js, webpack, Turbopack, and other bundlers, you need to explicitly configure the WASM file path.
**1. Update `next.config.ts` or `next.config.js`:**
```typescript
import type { NextConfig } from 'next';
const nextConfig: NextConfig = {
serverExternalPackages: ['shamela', 'sql.js'],
// ... rest of your config
};
export default nextConfig;
```
**2. Create a server-only configuration file:**
```typescript
// lib/shamela-server.ts
import { configure } from 'shamela';
import { join } from 'node:path';
configure({
sqlJsWasmUrl: join(process.cwd(), 'node_modules', 'sql.js', 'dist', 'sql-wasm.wasm'),
apiKey: process.env.SHAMELA_API_KEY,
booksEndpoint: process.env.SHAMELA_BOOKS_ENDPOINT,
masterPatchEndpoint: process.env.SHAMELA_MASTER_ENDPOINT,
});
export { downloadBook, getBook, getBookMetadata, getMaster, downloadMasterDatabase } from 'shamela';
```
**3. Use in Server Actions:**
```typescript
'use server';
import { getBookMetadata, downloadBook } from '@/lib/shamela-server';
export async function downloadBookAction(bookId: number) {
const metadata = await getBookMetadata(bookId);
return await downloadBook(bookId, {
bookMetadata: metadata,
outputFile: { path: `./books/${bookId}.db` }
});
}
```
**Important:** Only import `shamela` in server-side code (Server Actions, API Routes, or Server Components). Never import in client components or `layout.tsx`.
### Browser (Full API)
In browsers, the library automatically uses a CDN-hosted WASM file:
```typescript
import { configure, getBook } from 'shamela';
configure({
apiKey: 'your-api-key',
booksEndpoint: 'https://SHAMELA_INSTANCE.ws/api/books',
masterPatchEndpoint: 'https://SHAMELA_INSTANCE.ws/api/master_patch',
// Automatically uses CDN: https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/sql.js@1.13.0/dist/sql-wasm.wasm
});
const book = await getBook(26592);
```
### Browser (Content Utilities Only)
If you only need the content processing utilities (sanitization, parsing, etc.) without the database functionality, use the lightweight `shamela/content` export:
```typescript
import {
mapPageCharacterContent,
splitPageBodyFromFooter,
removeTagsExceptSpan,
parseContentRobust,
} from 'shamela/content';
// Process content without loading sql.js (~1.5KB gzipped vs ~900KB)
const clean = removeTagsExceptSpan(mapPageCharacterContent(rawContent));
const [body, footnotes] = splitPageBodyFromFooter(clean);
```
This is ideal for:
- Client-side React/Next.js components
- Bundled environments where you want to avoid sql.js WASM
- Processing pre-downloaded book data
**Available exports from `shamela/content`:**
- `parseContentRobust` - Parse HTML into structured lines preserving title spans
- `mapPageCharacterContent` - Normalize Arabic text with mapping rules
- `splitPageBodyFromFooter` - Separate body from footnotes
- `removeArabicNumericPageMarkers` - Remove page markers
- `removeTagsExceptSpan` - Strip HTML except spans
- `htmlToMarkdown` - Convert Shamela HTML to Markdown (title spans โ `##` headers)
- `normalizeHtml` - Normalize hadeeth tags to standard spans
- `normalizeLineEndings` - Normalize line endings to Unix-style (`\n`)
- `stripHtmlTags` - Strip all HTML tags from content
- `normalizeTitleSpans` - Handle consecutive title spans (merge, split, or hierarchy)
- `moveContentAfterLineBreakIntoSpan` - Move pre-title text into the span
- `convertContentToMarkdown` - Full pipeline: normalize spans โ move pre-title text โ convert to Markdown
**Available exports from `shamela/transform`:**
- `denormalizeBooks` - Resolve relationships in MasterData to return rich book objects
### Extending Content Processing Rules
You can import `DEFAULT_MAPPING_RULES` from `shamela/constants` to extend or customize the character mapping used by `mapPageCharacterContent`:
```typescript
import { mapPageCharacterContent } from 'shamela/content';
import { DEFAULT_MAPPING_RULES } from 'shamela/constants';
// Extend default rules with custom mappings
const customRules = {
...DEFAULT_MAPPING_RULES,
'customPattern': 'replacement',
};
const processed = mapPageCharacterContent(rawContent, customRules);
```
## API Reference
### Configuration
#### configure
Initialises runtime configuration including API credentials, custom fetch implementations, sql.js WASM location, and logger overrides.
```typescript
configure(options: ConfigureOptions): void
```
**Example:**
```typescript
import { configure } from 'shamela';
configure({
apiKey: process.env.SHAMELA_API_KEY!,
booksEndpoint: process.env.SHAMELA_BOOKS_ENDPOINT!,
masterPatchEndpoint: process.env.SHAMELA_MASTER_ENDPOINT!,
});
```
#### resetConfig
Clears runtime overrides and restores the default silent logger.
```typescript
resetConfig(): void
```
Use this in tests or long-running processes when you need a clean configuration slate.
#### getConfig
Returns the merged configuration snapshot combining runtime overrides with environment variables.
```typescript
getConfig(): ShamelaConfig
```
#### getConfigValue
Reads a single configuration value without throwing when it is missing.
```typescript
getConfigValue<Key extends ShamelaConfigKey>(key: Key): ShamelaConfig[Key] | undefined
```
#### requireConfigValue
Retrieves a configuration entry and throws an error if the value is not present.
```typescript
requireConfigValue(key: Exclude<ShamelaConfigKey, 'fetchImplementation'>): string
```
### Metadata & Downloads
#### getMasterMetadata
Fetches metadata for the master database, including download URLs for the latest patches.
```typescript
getMasterMetadata(version?: number): Promise<GetMasterMetadataResponsePayload>
```
- `version` (optional): The version number to check for updates (defaults to 0)
```typescript
const metadata = await getMasterMetadata();
console.log(metadata.url); // Download URL
console.log(metadata.version); // Version number
// Check for updates from a specific version
const updates = await getMasterMetadata(5);
```
#### downloadMasterDatabase
Downloads the master database containing all books, authors, and categories and writes it to disk or a custom writer.
```typescript
downloadMasterDatabase(options: DownloadMasterOptions): Promise<string>
```
- `options.masterMetadata` (optional): Pre-fetched metadata to avoid an extra HTTP call
- `options.outputFile.path`: Output file path (`.db`, `.sqlite`, or `.json`)
```typescript
// Download as SQLite database
await downloadMasterDatabase({
outputFile: { path: './master.db' }
});
// Download as JSON
await downloadMasterDatabase({
outputFile: { path: './master.json' }
});
```
#### getBookMetadata
Fetches metadata for a specific book, including patch release information.
```typescript
getBookMetadata(id: number, options?: GetBookMetadataOptions): Promise<GetBookMetadataResponsePayload>
```
- `id`: Book identifier
- `options.majorVersion` (optional): Major version to check
- `options.minorVersion` (optional): Minor version to check
```typescript
const metadata = await getBookMetadata(26592);
console.log(metadata.majorReleaseUrl);
console.log(metadata.minorReleaseUrl);
```
#### downloadBook
Downloads and processes a book from Shamela, writing it to JSON or SQLite on disk.
```typescript
downloadBook(id: number, options: DownloadBookOptions): Promise<string>
```
- `id`: Book identifier
- `options.bookMetadata` (optional): Pre-fetched metadata to avoid re-fetching
- `options.outputFile.path`: Output file path (`.db`, `.sqlite`, or `.json`)
```typescript
// Download as JSON
await downloadBook(26592, {
outputFile: { path: './book.json' }
});
// Download as SQLite
await downloadBook(26592, {
outputFile: { path: './book.db' }
});
```
#### getCoverUrl
Generates the URL for a book's cover image using the configured Shamela host.
```typescript
getCoverUrl(bookId: number): string
```
```typescript
const coverUrl = getCoverUrl(26592);
// Returns: "https://shamela.ws/covers/26592.jpg"
```
### Data Access
#### getBook
Retrieves complete book data as a JavaScript object, returning pages and title entries.
```typescript
getBook(id: number): Promise<BookData>
```
```typescript
const book = await getBook(26592);
console.log(book.pages.length);
console.log(book.titles?.length);
console.log(book.pages[0].content);
```
#### getMaster
Retrieves the entire master dataset as a JavaScript object, including version information.
```typescript
getMaster(): Promise<MasterData>
```
```typescript
const master = await getMaster();
console.log(master.version);
console.log(master.books.length);
console.log(master.authors.length);
console.log(master.categories.length);
```
#### denormalizeBooks
Resolves the relationships within the `MasterData` object, returning a flat list of books where author and category IDs have been replaced with their respective objects. It also parses complex fields like `metadata` and `pdf_links`.
```typescript
denormalizeBooks(master: MasterData): DenormalizedBook[]
```
```typescript
const master = await getMaster();
const books = denormalizeBooks(master);
const library = books[0];
console.log(library.name);
console.log(library.author.name);
console.log(library.category.name);
console.log(library.metadata.date);
```
### Content Utilities
#### parseContentRobust
Parses Shamela HTML snippets into structured lines while preserving title hierarchy and Arabic punctuation.
```typescript
parseContentRobust(content: string): Line[]
```
```typescript
const lines = parseContentRobust(rawHtml);
lines.forEach((line) => console.log(line.id, line.text));
```
#### mapPageCharacterContent
Normalises page content by applying regex-based replacement rules tuned for Shamela sources.
```typescript
mapPageCharacterContent(text: string, rules?: Record<string, string>): string
```
#### splitPageBodyFromFooter
Separates page body content from trailing footnotes using the default Shamela marker.
```typescript
splitPageBodyFromFooter(content: string, marker?: string): readonly [string, string]
```
#### removeArabicNumericPageMarkers
Removes Arabic numeral markers enclosed in โฆ โฆ, commonly used to denote page numbers.
```typescript
removeArabicNumericPageMarkers(text: string): string
```
#### removeTagsExceptSpan
Strips anchor and hadeeth tags while preserving nested `<span>` elements.
```typescript
removeTagsExceptSpan(content: string): string
```
#### normalizeLineEndings
Normalizes line endings to Unix-style (`\n`). Converts Windows (`\r\n`) and old Mac (`\r`) line endings for consistent pattern matching across platforms.
```typescript
normalizeLineEndings(content: string): string
```
#### stripHtmlTags
Strips all HTML tags from content, keeping only the text.
```typescript
stripHtmlTags(html: string): string
```
#### htmlToMarkdown
Converts Shamela HTML to Markdown format. Title spans (`<span data-type="title">`) become `##` headers, narrator links are stripped but text is preserved.
```typescript
htmlToMarkdown(html: string): string
```
#### normalizeHtml
Normalizes Shamela HTML for CSS styling by converting `<hadeeth-N>` tags to `<span class="hadeeth">` and closing `</hadeeth>` to `</span>`.
```typescript
normalizeHtml(html: string): string
```
#### normalizeTitleSpans
Normalizes consecutive Shamela-style title spans. Shamela exports sometimes contain adjacent title spans that would produce multiple headings on one line when converted to Markdown.
Some Shamela HTML exports contain adjacent title spans like:
`<span data-type="title">ุจุงุจ ุงูู
ูู
</span><span data-type="title">ู
ู ุงุณู
ู ู
ุญู
ุฏ</span>`
If you convert each title span to a markdown header, you can end up with `## ุจุงุจ ุงูู
ูู
## ู
ู ุงุณู
ู ู
ุญู
ุฏ`.
Use `normalizeTitleSpans(html, { strategy })` (exported from the library) before converting title spans to markdown:
```typescript
import { normalizeTitleSpans } from 'flappa-doormal';
const html = '<span data-type="title">ุจุงุจ ุงูู
ูู
</span><span data-type="title">ู
ู ุงุณู
ู ู
ุญู
ุฏ</span>';
const normalized = normalizeTitleSpans(html, { strategy: 'splitLines' });
// => "<span data-type=\"title\">ุจุงุจ ุงูู
ูู
</span>\n<span data-type=\"title\">ู
ู ุงุณู
ู ู
ุญู
ุฏ</span>"
```
Strategies:
- `splitLines`: each title span becomes its own line (recommended default)
- `merge`: merge adjacent titles into one (join with a separator)
- `hierarchy`: keep first as title, convert subsequent to `data-type="subtitle"` (you decide how to map subtitles in your converter)
```typescript
normalizeTitleSpans(html: string, options: NormalizeTitleSpanOptions): string
```
**Options:**
- `strategy: 'merge'` - Combines adjacent titles into a single span with a separator
- `strategy: 'splitLines'` - Places each title on its own line
- `strategy: 'hierarchy'` - Converts subsequent titles to subtitles (`data-type="subtitle"`)
- `separator` (optional) - Separator used when merging (default: ` โ `)
#### moveContentAfterLineBreakIntoSpan
Moves text that appears after a line break but before a title span into the span. Useful when chapter numbers or prefixes are placed outside the title span in the source HTML.
```typescript
moveContentAfterLineBreakIntoSpan(html: string): string
```
```typescript
// Input: "\rูก - <span data-type="title">ุงูุจุงุจ ุงูุฃูู</span>"
// Output: "\r<span data-type="title">ูก - ุงูุจุงุจ ุงูุฃูู</span>"
```
#### convertContentToMarkdown
Converts Shamela HTML to Markdown using the recommended transformation pipeline:
1. Normalizes consecutive title spans
2. Moves pre-title text into spans
3. Converts to Markdown format
```typescript
convertContentToMarkdown(content: string, options?: NormalizeTitleSpanOptions): string
```
```typescript
const html = '<span data-type="title">ูุชุงุจ</span><span data-type="title">ุงูุฅูู
ุงู</span>';
const md = convertContentToMarkdown(html);
// => "## ูุชุงุจ\n## ุงูุฅูู
ุงู"
```
### Supporting Utilities
#### buildUrl
Constructs authenticated API URLs with query parameters and optional API key injection.
```typescript
buildUrl(endpoint: string, queryParams: Record<string, any>, useAuth?: boolean): URL
```
#### httpsGet
Makes HTTPS GET requests using the configured fetch implementation, automatically parsing JSON responses and returning binary data otherwise.
```typescript
httpsGet<T extends Uint8Array | Record<string, any>>(url: string | URL, options?: { fetchImpl?: typeof fetch }): Promise<T>
```
## Examples
### Downloading the Master Database
```typescript
import { downloadMasterDatabase } from 'shamela';
// Download as SQLite
const dbPath = await downloadMasterDatabase({
outputFile: { path: './shamela_master.db' }
});
console.log(`Downloaded to: ${dbPath}`);
// Download as JSON
const jsonPath = await downloadMasterDatabase({
outputFile: { path: './shamela_master.json' }
});
```
### Downloading a Book
```typescript
import { downloadBook, getBookMetadata } from 'shamela';
const bookId = 26592;
// Download book
await downloadBook(bookId, {
outputFile: { path: `./book_${bookId}.db` }
});
// With pre-fetched metadata
const metadata = await getBookMetadata(bookId);
await downloadBook(bookId, {
bookMetadata: metadata,
outputFile: { path: `./book_${bookId}.json` }
});
```
### Retrieving Book Data
```typescript
import { getBook } from 'shamela';
const book = await getBook(26592);
console.log(`Book has ${book.pages.length} pages`);
// Display table of contents
book.titles?.forEach(title => {
console.log(`${title.id}: ${title.content} (Page ${title.page})`);
});
// Access page content
const firstPage = book.pages[0];
console.log(firstPage.content.substring(0, 100));
```
### Getting Book Covers
```typescript
import { getCoverUrl, getMaster } from 'shamela';
const master = await getMaster();
// Generate cover URLs for all books
master.books.forEach(book => {
const coverUrl = getCoverUrl(book.id);
console.log(`${book.name}: ${coverUrl}`);
});
```
## Data Structures
### BookData
```typescript
type BookData = {
pages: Page[];
titles: Title[];
};
```
### MasterData
```typescript
type MasterData = {
authors: Author[];
books: Book[];
categories: Category[];
version: number;
};
```
### Page
```typescript
type Page = {
id: number;
content: string;
part?: string;
page?: number;
number?: string;
};
```
### Title
```typescript
type Title = {
id: number;
content: string;
page: number;
parent?: number;
};
```
### Content Helpers
- `parseContentRobust(content: string)`: Converts Shamela page HTML into structured lines
- `mapPageCharacterContent(content: string)`: Removes footnote markers and normalizes text
- `splitPageBodyFromFooter(content: string)`: Separates page content from footnotes
- `removeArabicNumericPageMarkers(text: string)`: Removes Arabic page number markers
- `removeTagsExceptSpan(content: string)`: Strips HTML tags except span elements
## Next.js Demo
A minimal Next.js 16 demo application is available in the `demo/` directory.
**Setup:**
Create `demo/.env.local`:
```env
SHAMELA_API_KEY=your_api_key
SHAMELA_API_MASTER_PATCH_ENDPOINT=https://SHAMELA_INSTANCE.ws/api/master_patch
SHAMELA_API_BOOKS_ENDPOINT=https://SHAMELA_INSTANCE.ws/api/books
```
**Run:**
```bash
bun run demo # Development
bun run demo:build # Production build
bun run demo:start # Production server
```
Visit [http://localhost:3000](http://localhost:3000) to explore the API.
## Troubleshooting
### Error: "Unable to automatically locate sql-wasm.wasm file"
This occurs in bundled environments (Next.js, webpack, Turbopack).
**Solution:** Add explicit configuration:
```typescript
import { configure } from 'shamela';
import { join } from 'node:path';
configure({
sqlJsWasmUrl: join(process.cwd(), 'node_modules', 'sql.js', 'dist', 'sql-wasm.wasm'),
apiKey: process.env.SHAMELA_API_KEY,
booksEndpoint: process.env.SHAMELA_BOOKS_ENDPOINT,
masterPatchEndpoint: process.env.SHAMELA_MASTER_ENDPOINT,
});
```
### Next.js: Module not found errors
1. Add to `next.config.ts`:
```typescript
serverExternalPackages: ['shamela', 'sql.js']
```
2. Only import shamela in server-side code
3. Create a separate `lib/shamela-server.ts` for configuration
### Production build works differently than development
Ensure `serverExternalPackages` is set in your Next.js config for both development and production.
### Monorepo setup issues
Adjust the WASM path based on your structure:
```typescript
configure({
sqlJsWasmUrl: join(process.cwd(), '../../node_modules/sql.js/dist/sql-wasm.wasm'),
// ... other config
});
```
## Testing
Run tests with Bun:
```bash
bun test src # Unit tests
bun run e2e # End-to-end tests
bun run test:exports # Build-output validation
bun run format # Format code
bun run lint # Lint code
```
## Scripts Folder
The `scripts/` directory contains standalone reverse-engineering tools for extracting and decoding data from Shamela's desktop application databases. These are **development tools**, not part of the published npm package.
### Available Scripts
| Script | Purpose |
|--------|---------|
| `shamela-decoder.ts` | Core decoder for Shamela's custom character encoding |
| `export-narrators.ts` | Exports 18,989 narrator biographies from S1.db |
| `export-roots.ts` | Exports 3.2M Arabic wordโroot morphological mappings from S2.db |
### Running Scripts
```bash
# Export narrators to JSON
bun run scripts/export-narrators.ts
# Export Arabic roots
bun run scripts/export-roots.ts
# Run script tests
bun test scripts/
```
### Script Documentation
- `scripts/README.md` โ Quick start guide and reverse-engineering methodology
- `scripts/AGENTS.md` โ Comprehensive documentation including:
- Database schema discoveries
- Character encoding algorithm (substitution cipher)
- Validation approaches and coverage statistics
- Common patterns and debugging techniques
## License
MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.