Muhammad's Marriages
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Thirteen women were married to the
Islamic prophet Prophets in Islam ( ar, الأنبياء في الإسلام, translit=al-ʾAnbiyāʾ fī al-ʾIslām) are individuals in Islam who are believed to spread God in Islam, God's message on Earth and to serve as models of ideal human behaviour. So ...
Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد;  570 – 8 June 632 Common Era, CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Muhammad in Islam, Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet Divine inspiration, di ...
. Muslims use the term ''Umm al-Mu'minin'' ( ar, أم ٱلْمُؤْمِنِين‎; meaning '
Mother of the Believers Thirteen women were married to the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Muslims use the term ''Umm al-Mu'minin'' ( ar, أم ٱلْمُؤْمِنِين‎; meaning 'Mother of the Believers') prominently before or after referring to them as a sign of respect ...
') prominently before or after referring to them as a sign of respect, a term derived from Quran 33:6. At the age of 25, Muhammad married his first wife, the widow
Khadija bint Khuwaylid Khadijah bint Khuwaylid ( ar, خَدِيجَة بِنْت خُوَيْلِد, Khadīja bint Khuwaylid, 555 – November 619 CE) was the first wife and is considered to be the first follower of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Khadija was the da ...
. This marriage lasted for 25 years. After her death in 619 CE, he married a total of 12 women over the remaining years of his life. From these wives, two bore him
children A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person younger ...
:
Khadija Khadija, Khadeeja or Khadijah ( ar, خديجة, Khadīja) is an Arabic feminine given name, the name of Khadija bint Khuwaylid, first wife of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. In 1995, it was one of the three most popular Arabic feminine names in t ...
and
Maria al-Qibtiyya (), better known as or ( ar, مارية القبطية), or Mary the Copt, died 637, was an Egyptian woman who, along with her sister Sirin, was sent to the Islamic prophet Muhammad in 628 as a gift by Al-Muqawqis, a Christian governor of Alex ...
. All of Muhammad's wives were widows or had divorced, with the exception of
Aisha Aisha ( ar, , translit=ʿĀʾisha bint Abī Bakr; , also , ; ) was Muhammad's third and youngest wife. In Islamic writings, her name is thus often prefixed by the title "Mother of the Believers" ( ar, links=no, , ʾumm al-mu'min, muʾminīn), ...
. Muhammad's life is traditionally delineated by two epochs: pre-hijra
Mecca Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red ...
, a city in western
Arabia The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate. ...
, from the year 570 to 622 CE, and post-hijra in
Medina Medina,, ', "the radiant city"; or , ', (), "the city" officially Al Madinah Al Munawwarah (, , Turkish: Medine-i Münevvere) and also commonly simplified as Madīnah or Madinah (, ), is the Holiest sites in Islam, second-holiest city in Islam, ...
, from 622 until his death in 632.
Hijrah The Hijrah or Hijra () was the journey of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his followers from Mecca to Medina. The year in which the Hijrah took place is also identified as the epoch of the Lunar Hijri and Solar Hijri calendars; its date eq ...
refers to the mass migration of Muhammad and his followers to Medina due to persecution faced by Muslims in Mecca. All but two of his marriages were contracted after this migration.


Objectives

Muhammad was first married at age 25 to Khadijah. He remained monogamously married to her for another 25 years until her death. after which he is believed to have had multiple wives for the reasons explained below. With the exception of Aisha, Muhammad only married widows, divorcées or captives.
Watt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James Wa ...
states that all of Muhammad's marriages had the political aspect of strengthening friendly relationships and were based on the Arabian custom.
Esposito Esposito () is a common Italian surname. It ranks fourth among the most widespread surnames in Italy. It originates from the Campania region, most specifically, in the Naples area. Etymology and history Etymology, Etymologically, this surname i ...
points out that some of Muhammad's marriages were aimed at providing a livelihood for widows. He noted that remarriage was difficult for widows in a society that emphasized virgin marriages.
F.E. Peters Francis Edward Peters, SJ (June 23, 1927 – April 30, 2020), who generally published as F. E. Peters, was Professor Emeritus of History, Religion and Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies at New York University (NYU). He died on April 30, 2020 in hosp ...
says that it is hard to make generalizations about Muhammad's marriages: many of them were political, some compassionate, and some perhaps affairs of the heart.
John Victor Tolan John Victor Tolan (; born 1959) is a historian of religious and cultural relations between the Arab and Latin-speaking civilizations of the Middle Ages. Biography He was born in Milwaukee and received a BA in Classics from Yale (1981), an MA (1 ...
writes that Muhammad's marriages mainly attempts at forging political alliances. The objectives of Muhammad's marriages have been described as:Anwar Al Awlaki, The Life of the Prophet Muhammad, the Makkan Period, CD 5 # Helping out the widows of his companions. # Creating family bonds between him and his companions (Muhammad married the daughters of Abu Bakr and Umar, whereas Uthman and Ali married his daughters. He therefore had family bonds with all the first four Caliphs). # Spreading the message by uniting different clans through marriage. # Increasing credibility and sources for conveying his private family life. If he only had one wife, then it would have been a tremendous responsibility on her to convey Muhammad's private acts of worship and family life, and people would try to discredit her to destroy the credibility of these practices. However, with multiple wives, there were a lot more sources to the knowledge, making it more difficult to discredit it. Therefore, his marriages gave more women the opportunity to learn and teach the matters of his private life. In
Arabian The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate. ...
culture, marriage was contracted in accordance with the larger needs of the tribe and was based on the need to form alliances within the tribe and with other tribes. Virginity at the time of a first marriage was emphasized as a tribal honor.


Terminology

"Mother of the Believers" is a term by which each of Muhammad's wives came to be prefixed over time. It is derived from Quran 33:6: "The Prophet is closer to the believers than their selves, and his wives are (as) their mothers" is applied to all of the wives.


Family life

Muhammad and his family lived in small apartments adjacent to the mosque at Medina. Each of these was six to seven spans wide (1.7  meters) and ten spans long (2.3  meters). The height of the ceiling was that of an average man standing. Blankets were used as curtains to screen the doors. According to an account by
Anas bin Malik Anas ibn Mālik ibn Naḍr al-Khazrajī al-Anṣārī ( ar, أنس بن مالك الخزرجي الأنصاري (c.612 – c.712 Finding the Truth in Judging the Companions, 1. 84-5; EI2, 1. 482 A. J. Wensinck J. Robson) was a well-known ''saha ...
, "The Prophet used to visit all his wives in a round, during the day and night and they were eleven in number." I asked Anas, "Had the Prophet the strength for it?" Anas replied, "We used to say that the Prophet was given the strength of thirty (men)." And Sa'id said on the authority of Qatada that Anas had told him about nine wives only (not eleven).": Narrated Qatada: Anas bin Malik said, "The Prophet used to visit all his wives in a round, during the day and night and they were eleven in number." I asked Anas, "Had the Prophet the strength for it?" Anas replied, "We used to say that the Prophet was given the strength of thirty (men)." And Sa'id said on the authority of Qatada that Anas had told him about nine wives only (not eleven)." Although Muhammad's wives had a special status as ''Mothers of the Believers'', he did not allow them to use his status as a prophet to obtain special treatment in public.Ramadan (2007), p. 168-9


Marriages


Khadija bint Khuwaylid

Around the age of 25, Muhammad wed his wealthy employer,
Khadija Khadija, Khadeeja or Khadijah ( ar, خديجة, Khadīja) is an Arabic feminine given name, the name of Khadija bint Khuwaylid, first wife of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. In 1995, it was one of the three most popular Arabic feminine names in t ...
, the 28-or 40-year-old widow, and daughter of a merchant. Muhammad used to manage her caravans; and Khadija, being impressed by the skills of Muhammad, sent a proposal to the Islamic prophet. Around 595, the couple married, and this marriage, his first, would be both happy and monogamous; Muhammad would rely on the Khadija in many ways, until her death 25 years later.Esposito (1998), p.18 They had two sons,
Qasim Qasim, Qasem or Casim may refer to: * Qasim (name), a given name of Arabic origin and the name of several people * Port Qasim, port in Karachi, Pakistan * ''Kasım'' and ''Casim'', respectively the Ottoman Turkish and Romanian names for General To ...
and Abd Allah (nicknamed ''al-Ṭāhir'' and ''al-Ṭayyib'' respectively), both died young, and four daughters— Zaynab, Ruqaiya,
Umm Kulthum Umm Kulthum ( ar, أم كلثوم, , also spelled ''Oum Kalthoum'' in English; born Fatima Ibrahim es-Sayyid el-Beltagi, ar, فاطمة إبراهيم السيد البلتاجي, Fāṭima ʾIbrāhīm es-Sayyid el-Beltāǧī, link=no; 31 Dece ...
and
Fatimah Fāṭima bint Muḥammad ( ar, فَاطِمَة ٱبْنَت مُحَمَّد}, 605/15–632 CE), commonly known as Fāṭima al-Zahrāʾ (), was the daughter of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his wife Khadija. Fatima's husband was Ali, th ...
. Some
Shia Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that the Prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali, ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his S ...
scholars dispute the paternity of Khadija's daughters, as they view the first three of them as the daughters from previous marriages and only
Fatimah Fāṭima bint Muḥammad ( ar, فَاطِمَة ٱبْنَت مُحَمَّد}, 605/15–632 CE), commonly known as Fāṭima al-Zahrāʾ (), was the daughter of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his wife Khadija. Fatima's husband was Ali, th ...
as the daughter of Muhammad and Khadija. During their marriage, Khadija purchased the slave
Zayd ibn Harithah Zayd ibn Haritha ( ar, زَيْد ٱبْن حَارِثَة, ') (), was an early Muslim, sahabah and the adopted son of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad. He is commonly regarded as the fourth person to have accepted Islam, after Muhammad's wife Khad ...
, then adopted the young man as her son at Muhammad's request.
Muhammad Husayn Haykal Mohammed Hussein Heikal ( ar, محمد حسين هيكل ; August 20, 1888 – December 8, 1956) was an Egyptian writer, journalist, politician. He held several cabinet posts, including minister of education. Life Haekal was born in Kafr Ghann ...
.
The Life of Muhammad
'': "From Marriage to Prophethood." Translated by Isma'il Razi A. al-Faruqi
Muhammad's uncle Abu Talib and Khadija died in 620 and the Islamic prophet declared the year as ''Aam al-Huzn'' ('Year of Sorrow').


Hijrah (migration) to Medina


Sawda bint Zamʿah

Before he left for Medina, it was suggested by
Khawlah bint Hakim Khawlah bint Hakim ( ar, خولة بنت حكيم) was one of the female companions of Muhammad. She was married to Uthman bin Maz'oon, both being two of the earliest converts to Islam. She was the woman who asked the Prophet whether he would l ...
that he should marry
Sawdah bint Zam'ah Sawdah bint Zamʿah ( ar, سودة بنت زمعة) was the second wife of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and therefore regarded as, Umm-ul-Mu'mineen (Arabic: أمّ المؤمنين, romanized: ''ʾumm al- muʾminīn''), "Mother of the ...
, who had suffered many hardships after she became a Muslim. Prior to that, Sawdah was married to a paternal cousin of hers named As-Sakran ibn ‘Amr and had five or six children from her previous marriage. She along with her husband migrated to Abyssinia due to persecution of Muslims by Meccans. Her husband died in Abyssinia and hence Sawdah had to come back to Makkah. There are disagreements in Muslim tradition whether Muhammad first married Sawda or
Aisha Aisha ( ar, , translit=ʿĀʾisha bint Abī Bakr; , also , ; ) was Muhammad's third and youngest wife. In Islamic writings, her name is thus often prefixed by the title "Mother of the Believers" ( ar, links=no, , ʾumm al-mu'min, muʾminīn), ...
, but Sawda is usually regarded as his second wife and she was living with him before Aisha joined the household. In one account, he married Sawda in
Shawwal Shawwal ( ar, شَوَّال, ') is the tenth month of the lunar based Islamic calendar. ''Shawwāl'' stems from the verb ''shāla'' () which means to 'lift or carry', generally to take or move things from one place to another, Fasting during S ...
, when Sawda was about 55 years old, in the tenth year of prophethood, after the death of Khadija. At about the same period, Aisha was betrothed to him.Watt,"Aisha bint Abu Bakr", ''
Encyclopaedia of Islam The ''Encyclopaedia of Islam'' (''EI'') is an encyclopaedia of the academic discipline of Islamic studies published by Brill. It is considered to be the standard reference work in the field of Islamic studies. The first edition was published in ...
'' Online
As Sawda got older, and some time after Muhammad's marriage to
Umm Salama Hind bint Abi Umayya ( ar, هِنْد بِنْت أَبِي أُمَيَّة, Hind ʾibnat ʾAbī ʾUmayya, 580 or 596 – 680 or 683), better known as Umm Salama ( ar, أُمّ سَلَمَة, link=no) or Hind al-Makhzūmiyah ( ar, هِنْد ...
, some sources claim that Muhammad wished to
divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...
Sawda. Some traditions maintain that Muhammad did not intend to divorce her, but only Sawda feared or thought that he would.
Ibn Kathir Abū al-Fiḍā’ ‘Imād ad-Dīn Ismā‘īl ibn ‘Umar ibn Kathīr al-Qurashī al-Damishqī (Arabic: إسماعيل بن عمر بن كثير القرشي الدمشقي أبو الفداء عماد; – 1373), known as Ibn Kathīr (, was ...
said that Muhammad was worried that Sawda might be upset about having to compete with so many younger wives, and offered to divorce her. Sawda offered to give her turn of Muhammad's conjugal visits to Aisha, of whom she was very fond, stating that she "was old, and cared not for men; her only desire was to rise on the Day of Judgment as one of his wives". While some Muslim historians cite this story as a reason of revelation, citing Quran 4:128, others like
Rashid Rida Muḥammad Rashīd ibn ʿAlī Riḍā ibn Muḥammad Shams al-Dīn ibn Muḥammad Bahāʾ al-Dīn ibn Munlā ʿAlī Khalīfa (23 September 1865 or 18 October 1865 – 22 August 1935 CE/ 1282 - 1354 AH), widely known as Sayyid Rashid Rida ( ar, ...
dispute this whole account as "poorly supported", or mursal.


Aisha bint Abu Bakr

Aisha was the daughter of Muhammad's close friend
Abu Bakr Abu Bakr Abdallah ibn Uthman Abi Quhafa (; – 23 August 634) was the senior companion and was, through his daughter Aisha, a father-in-law of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, as well as the first caliph of Islam. He is known with the honor ...
. She was initially betrothed to Jubayr ibn Muṭʽim, a Muslim whose father, though
pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. ...
, was friendly to the Muslims. When
Khawlah bint Hakim Khawlah bint Hakim ( ar, خولة بنت حكيم) was one of the female companions of Muhammad. She was married to Uthman bin Maz'oon, both being two of the earliest converts to Islam. She was the woman who asked the Prophet whether he would l ...
suggested that Muhammad marry Aisha after the death of Muhammad's first wife (Khadija), the previous agreement regarding the marriage of Aisha with ibn Mut'im was put aside by common consent. Muhammad converted friendship of his four friends who later became the four Islamic rulers or successors, into relationship through marriage. He married Aisha and Hafsa daughters of
Abu Bakr Abu Bakr Abdallah ibn Uthman Abi Quhafa (; – 23 August 634) was the senior companion and was, through his daughter Aisha, a father-in-law of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, as well as the first caliph of Islam. He is known with the honor ...
and
Umar ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb ( ar, عمر بن الخطاب, also spelled Omar, ) was the second Rashidun caliph, ruling from August 634 until his assassination in 644. He succeeded Abu Bakr () as the second caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate o ...
and he gave his daughters to
Uthman Uthman ibn Affan ( ar, عثمان بن عفان, ʿUthmān ibn ʿAffān; – 17 June 656), also spelled by Colloquial Arabic, Turkish and Persian rendering Osman, was a second cousin, son-in-law and notable companion of the Islamic proph ...
and
Ali ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib ( ar, عَلِيّ بْن أَبِي طَالِب; 600 – 661 CE) was the last of four Rightly Guided Caliphs to rule Islam (r. 656 – 661) immediately after the death of Muhammad, and he was the first Shia Imam. ...
. Aisha was the only virgin he married. The majority of traditional sources state that Aisha was betrothed to Muhammad at the age of six or seven, but she stayed in her parents' home until the age of nine, or ten according to
Ibn Hisham Abū Muḥammad ʿAbd al-Malik ibn Hishām ibn Ayyūb al-Ḥimyarī al-Muʿāfirī al-Baṣrī ( ar, أبو محمد عبدالملك بن هشام ابن أيوب الحميري المعافري البصري; died 7 May 833), or Ibn Hisham, e ...
, when the marriage was
consummated In many traditions and statutes of civil or religious law, the consummation of a marriage, often called simply ''consummation'', is the first (or first officially credited) act of sexual intercourse between two people, following their marriage t ...
with Muhammad, then 53, in
Medina Medina,, ', "the radiant city"; or , ', (), "the city" officially Al Madinah Al Munawwarah (, , Turkish: Medine-i Münevvere) and also commonly simplified as Madīnah or Madinah (, ), is the Holiest sites in Islam, second-holiest city in Islam, ...
., , , , , , , , , Aisha's age at marriage has been a source of controversy and debate, and some historians, Islamic scholars, and Muslim writers have challenged the previously-accepted timeline of her life. Both Aisha and Sawda, his two wives, were given apartments adjoined to the
Al-Masjid al-Nabawi Al-Masjid an-Nabawi (), known in English as the Prophet's Mosque, is a mosque built by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the city of Medina in the Al Madinah Province of Saudi Arabia. It was the second mosque built by Muhammad in Medina, after Qub ...
mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...
.Nomani (1970), p. 257-9 Aisha was extremely scholarly and inquisitive. Her contribution to the spread of Muhammad's message was extraordinary, and she served the Muslim community for 44 years after his death. She is also known for narrating 2210 hadith, not just on matters related to Muhammad's private life, but also on topics such as
marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...
,
Islamic inheritance Islamic Inheritance jurisprudence is a field of Islamic jurisprudence ( ar, فقه) that deals with inheritance, a topic that is prominently dealt with in the Qur'an. It is often called ''Mīrāth'', and its branch of Islamic law is technically ...
,
Hajj The Hajj (; ar, حَجّ '; sometimes also spelled Hadj, Hadji or Haj in English) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried ...
and
Islamic eschatology Islamic eschatology ( ar, علم آخر الزمان في الإسلام, ) is a field of study in Islam concerning future events that would happen in the end times. It is primarily based on hypothesis and speculations based on sources from t ...
, among other subjects. She was highly regarded for her intellect and knowledge in various fields, including poetry and medicine, which received plenty of praise by the traditionist
al-Zuhri al-Zuhri is an Arabic name which may refer to: *Ibn Shihab al-Zuhri, 8th-century hadith scholar and jurist *Ahmad ibn Abi Bakr al-Zuhri (767–856), 9th-century Maliki jurist * Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr al-Zuhri, 12th-century Andalusian geographer See ...
and by her student
Urwa ibn al-Zubayr ʿUrwah ibn al-Zubayr ibn al-ʿAwwām al-Asadī ( ar , عروة بن الزبير بن العوام الأسدي, ) was among the seven '' fuqaha'' (jurists) who formulated the fiqh of Medina in the time of the Tabi‘in and one of the Muslim ...
.


Widows of the war with Mecca


Hafsa bint Umar and Zaynab bint Khuzayma

During the Muslim war with Mecca, many men were killed leaving behind widows and orphans.
Hafsa bint Umar Ḥafṣa bint ʿUmar ( ar, حفصة بنت عمر; 605–665), was a wife of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and daughter of ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, the second caliph of Islam. In Islamic writings, her name is thus often prefixed by the titl ...
, daughter of
Umar ibn Al-Khattab ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb ( ar, عمر بن الخطاب, also spelled Omar, ) was the second Rashidun caliph, ruling from August 634 until his assassination in 644. He succeeded Abu Bakr () as the second caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate o ...
, was widowed at
Battle of Badr The Battle of Badr ( ar, غَزْوَةُ بَدِرْ ), also referred to as The Day of the Criterion (, ) in the Quran, Qur'an and by Muslims, was fought on 13 March 624 CE (17 Ramadan (calendar month), Ramadan, 2 Anno Hegirae, AH), near the ...
when her husband Khunais ibn Hudhaifa was killed in action. Muhammad married her in 3 A.H./625 CE.
Zaynab bint Khuzayma Zaynab bint Khuzaymah ( ar, زينب بنت خزيمة) ( 596 – 625), also known as Umm al-Masākīn ( ar, أم المساكين, link=no, "Mother of the Poor"), was the fifth wife of the Prophets in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad. As a resul ...
was also widowed at the battle of Badr. She was the wife of
Ubaydah ibn al-Harith ʿUbayda ibn al-Ḥārith ( ar, عبيدة بن الحارث) () was a relative and companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. He is known for commanding the expedition in which Islam’s first arrow was shot and for being the first Muslim to b ...
, a faithful Muslim and from the tribe of Al-Muttalib, for which Muhammad had special responsibility. When her husband died, Muhammad aiming to provide for her, married her in 4 A.H. She was nicknamed Umm Al-Masakeen (roughly translates as the mother of the poor), because of her kindness and charity. Close to Aisha's age, the two younger wives Hafsa and Zaynab were welcomed into the household. Sawda, who was much older, extended her motherly benevolence to the younger women. Aisha and Hafsa had a lasting relationship. As for Zaynab, however, she became ill and died about three months after her marriage.Lings (1983), p. 206


Hind bint Suhayl (Umm Salama)

The death of Zaynab coincided with that of Abu Salamah, a devout Muslim and Muhammad's foster brother, as a result of his wounds from the
Battle of Uhud The Battle of Uhud ( ar, غَزْوَة أُحُد, ) was fought on Saturday, 23 March 625 AD (7 Shawwal, 3 AH), in the valley north of Mount Uhud.Watt (1974) p. 136. The Qurayshi Meccans, led by Abu Sufyan ibn Harb, commanded an army of 3,000 m ...
. Abu Salamah's widow,
Umm Salama Hind bint Abi Umayya ( ar, هِنْد بِنْت أَبِي أُمَيَّة, Hind ʾibnat ʾAbī ʾUmayya, 580 or 596 – 680 or 683), better known as Umm Salama ( ar, أُمّ سَلَمَة, link=no) or Hind al-Makhzūmiyah ( ar, هِنْد ...
, also a devoted Muslim, had none but her young children. Her plight of being without a man reportedly saddened the Muslims, and after her ''
iddah In Islam, ''iddah'' or ''iddat'' ( ar, العدة, al-ʿidda; "period of waiting") is the period a woman must observe after the death of her husband or after a divorce, during which she may not marry another man. One of its main purposes is to re ...
'' some Muslims proposed marriage to her; but she declined. She was the paternal cousin of Khalid Ibn Al Waleed, the military commander who fought against Muhammad in many battles. Her marriage made Khalid take an indecisive attitude at the
battle of Uhud The Battle of Uhud ( ar, غَزْوَة أُحُد, ) was fought on Saturday, 23 March 625 AD (7 Shawwal, 3 AH), in the valley north of Mount Uhud.Watt (1974) p. 136. The Qurayshi Meccans, led by Abu Sufyan ibn Harb, commanded an army of 3,000 m ...
. When Muhammad proposed her marriage, she was reluctant for three reasons: she claimed to suffer from jealousy and pointed out the prospect of an unsuccessful marriage, her old age, and her young family that needed support. But Muhammad replied that he would pray to God to free her from jealousy, that he too was of old age, and that her family was like his family. She married Muhammad around the end of 4 AH.


Rayhana bint Zayd

Rayhana bint Zayd Rayḥānah bint Zayd ( ar, ريحانة بنت زيد) was a Jewish woman from the Banu Nadir tribe, who became a concubine of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, after the Incident of Banu Qurayza in 627 CE (5 AH).Rodinson, ''Muhammad: Prophet of ...
was a
Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
woman from the
Banu Nadir The Banu Nadir ( ar, بَنُو ٱلنَّضِير, he, בני נצ'יר) were a Jewish Arab tribe which lived in northern Arabia at the oasis of Medina until the 7th century. The tribe refused to convert to Islam as Muhammad had ordered it to d ...
tribe. In 627, the
Banu Qurayza The Banu Qurayza ( ar, بنو قريظة, he, בני קוריט'ה; alternate spellings include Quraiza, Qurayzah, Quraytha, and the archaic Koreiza) were a Jewish tribe which lived in northern Arabia, at the oasis of Yathrib (now known as M ...
tribe was defeated and Rayhana was enslaved.
Ibn Sa'd Abū ‘Abd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Sa‘d ibn Manī‘ al-Baṣrī al-Hāshimī or simply Ibn Sa'd ( ar, ابن سعد) and nicknamed ''Scribe of Waqidi'' (''Katib al-Waqidi''), was a scholar and Arabian biographer. Ibn Sa'd was born in 784/785 C ...
wrote that Rayhana went on to be manumitted and subsequently married to the prophet upon her conversion to Islam.
Al-Tha'labi Al-Tha''ʿ''labi (''Abū Isḥāḳ Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn Ibrāhīm al-Nīsābūrī al-Thaʿlabī'' ; died November 1035) was an eleventh-century Islamic scholar of Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically ...
reports that the prophet paid a
mahr In Islam, a mahr (in ar, مهر; fa, مهريه; tr, mehir; sw, mahari; also transliterated ''mehr'', ''meher'', ''mehrieh'', or ''mahriyeh'') is the obligation, in the form of money or possessions paid by the groom, to the bride at the time ...
for her and Ibn Hajar makes reference to Muhammad giving Rayhana a home upon their marriage.


Internal dissension

After Muhammad's final battle against his Meccan enemies, he diverted his attention to stopping the
Banu Mustaliq The Banu Mustaliq ( ar, بنو المصطلق) is an Arab tribe. The tribe is a sub-clan of the Banu Khuza'a, descended from Azdi Qahtani. They occupied the territory of Qadid on the Red Sea shore between Jeddah and Rabigh. History The Banu a ...
's raid on Medina. During this skirmish, Medinan dissidents, begrudging Muhammad's influence, attempted to attack him in the more sensitive areas of his life, including his marriage to
Zaynab bint Jahsh Zaynab bint Jaḥsh ( ar, زينب بنت جحش; 590–641 CE), was a first cousin and wife of Muhammad and therefore considered by Muslims to be a Mother of the Believers. Abdulmalik ibn Hisham. ''Notes to Ibn Ishaq's "Life of the Prophet"'' ...
, and an incident in which Aisha left her camp to search for her lost necklace, and returned with a companion of Muhammad. Denise A. Spellberg, Aisha bint Abī Bakr, Encyclopedia of the Qur'an


Zaynab bint Jahsh

Zaynab bint Jahsh Zaynab bint Jaḥsh ( ar, زينب بنت جحش; 590–641 CE), was a first cousin and wife of Muhammad and therefore considered by Muslims to be a Mother of the Believers. Abdulmalik ibn Hisham. ''Notes to Ibn Ishaq's "Life of the Prophet"'' ...
was Muhammad's cousin, the daughter of one of his father's sisters.Watt (1974), p.156-159 In the Pre Islamic Era, Arabs used to consider children who had been sponsored exactly the same as their biological children as far as rights such as inheritance and sanctities were concerned. However, after marriage the sponsored children lost their inheritance rights and were henceforth known as the children of their biological parents. After attaining puberty, they could not live with the sponsoring family but were still subsidised. This was to reduce the enmity of biological children towards sponsored children and to prevent the mingling of male sponsors with adult sponsored females. In Medina Muhammad arranged the widowed Zaynab's marriage to his adopted son Zayd ibn Harithah.
Caesar E. Farah Caesar E. Farah (March 13, 1929 - November 26, 2009) was a professor of history at the University of Minnesota. Farah was born in Portland, Oregon, and received a B.A. (1952) from Stanford University, before then studying at Princeton University, ...
states that Muhammad was determined to establish the legitimacy and right to equal treatment of the adopted. Zaynab disapproved of the marriage, and her brothers rejected it, because according to
Ibn Sa'd Abū ‘Abd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Sa‘d ibn Manī‘ al-Baṣrī al-Hāshimī or simply Ibn Sa'd ( ar, ابن سعد) and nicknamed ''Scribe of Waqidi'' (''Katib al-Waqidi''), was a scholar and Arabian biographer. Ibn Sa'd was born in 784/785 C ...
, she was of aristocratic lineage and Zayd was a former slave.Watt (1974), p. 158.
Watt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James Wa ...
states that it is not clear why Zaynab was unwilling to marry Zayd as Muhammad esteemed him highly. He postulates that Zaynab, being an ambitious woman, was already hoping to marry Muhammad; or that she might have wanted to marry someone of whom Muhammad disapproved for political reasons.Watt (1974), p. 157-158. According to
Maududi Abul A'la al-Maududi ( ur, , translit=Abū al-Aʿlā al-Mawdūdī; – ) was an Islamic scholar, Islamist ideologue, Muslim philosopher, jurist, historian, journalist, activist and scholar active in British India and later, following the parti ...
, after the Qur'anic verse was revealed, Zaynab acquiesced and married Zayd. Zaynab's marriage was unharmonious.Freyer Stowasser (1996), p. 88, Oxford University Press According to Watt, it is almost certain that she was working for marriage with Muhammad before the end of 626. "Zaynab had dressed in haste when she was told 'the Messenger of God is at the door.' She jumped up in haste and excited the admiration of the Messenger of God, so that he turned away murmuring something that could scarcely be understood. However, he did say overtly: 'Glory be to God the Almighty! Glory be to God, who causes the hearts to turn!'" Zaynab told Zayd about this, and he offered to divorce her, but Muhammad told him to keep her. The story laid much stress on Zaynab's perceived beauty. Nomani considers this story to be a rumor.Nomani (1970). ''Sirat al-Nabi''. Watt doubts the accuracy of this portion of the narrative since it does not occur in the earliest source. He thinks that even if there is a basis of fact underlying the narrative, it would have been subject to exaggeration in the course of transmission as the later Muslims liked to maintain that there was no celibacy and monkery in Islam. Rodinson disagrees with Watt arguing that the story is stressed in the traditional texts and that it would not have aroused any adverse comment or criticism. This story has been rejected by most Muslim scholars mainly because of its lack of having any chain of narration and its complete absence from any authentic hadith. Some commentators have found it absurd that Muhammad would suddenly become aware of Zaynab's beauty one day after having known her all her life; if her beauty had been the reason for Muhammad to marry her, he would have married her himself in the first place rather than arranging her marriage to Zayd. Muhammad, fearing public opinion, was initially reluctant to marry Zaynab. The marriage would seem incestuous to their contemporaries because she was the former wife of his adopted son, and adopted sons were considered the same as biological sons. According to Watt, this "conception of incest was bound up with old practices belonging to a lower, communalistic level of familial institutions where a child's paternity was not definitely known; and this lower level was in process being eliminated by Islam."William Montgomery Watt (1974), p.233 The Qur'an, however, indicated that this marriage was a duty imposed upon him by God. It implied that treating adopted sons as real sons was objectionable and that there should now be a complete break with the past. Thus Muhammad, confident that he was strong enough to face public opinion, proceeded to reject these taboos. When Zaynab's waiting period was complete, Muhammad married her. An influential faction in Medina, called " Hypocrites", a term that refers to those who convert to Islam while secretly working against it in the Islamic tradition,Freyer Stowasser (1996), p. 89 did indeed criticize the marriage as incestuous. Attempting to divide the Muslim community, they spread rumors as part of a strategy of attacking Muhammad through his wives. According to Ibn Kathir, the relevant Qur'anic verses were a "divine rejection" of the Hypocrites' objections. According to Rodinson, doubters argued the verses were in exact conflict with social taboos and favored Muhammad too much. The delivery of these verses, thus, did not end the dissent.Rodinson, p. 207.


Reconciliation


Juwayriyya bint al-Harith

One of the captives from the skirmish with the
Banu Mustaliq The Banu Mustaliq ( ar, بنو المصطلق) is an Arab tribe. The tribe is a sub-clan of the Banu Khuza'a, descended from Azdi Qahtani. They occupied the territory of Qadid on the Red Sea shore between Jeddah and Rabigh. History The Banu a ...
was
Juwayriyya bint Al-Harith Juwayriya bint Harith ( ar, جويرية بنت الحارث, Juwayriyyah bint al-Ḥārith; ) was the eighth wife of Muhammad and so, considered to be a Mother of the Believers. Family background She was the daughter of Al-Hārith ibn Abi Dirar ...
, who was the daughter of the tribe's chieftain. Her husband, Mustafa bin Safwan, had been killed in the battle. She initially fell among the booty of Muhammad's companion Thabit ibn Qays ibn Al-Shammas. Upon being enslaved, Juwayriyya went to Muhammad requesting that she - as the daughter of the lord of the Mustaliq - be released, however, he refused. Meanwhile, her father approached Muhammad with
ransom Ransom is the practice of holding a prisoner or item to extort money or property to secure their release, or the sum of money involved in such a practice. When ransom means "payment", the word comes via Old French ''rançon'' from Latin ''red ...
to secure her release, but Muhammed still refused to release her. Muhammad then offered to marry her, and she accepted. When it became known that tribes persons of Mustaliq were
kinsmen A kinsman is a male relative (see kinship). The term kinsman (or plural kinsmen) may also refer to: Places in the United States *Kinsman, Illinois *Kinsman, Ohio *Kinsman Township, Trumbull County, Ohio *Kinsman Mountain, in the White Mountains ...
of the prophet of Islam through marriage, the Muslims began releasing their captives. Thus, Muhammad's marriage resulted in the freedom of nearly one hundred families whom he had recently enslaved.


Safiyya bint Huyayy Ibn Akhtab

Safiyya bint Huyayy Ṣafīyyah bint Ḥuyayy ( ar, صفية بنت حيي) was one of the wives of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad. She was, along with all other wives of Muhammad, titled Umm-ul-Mu'mineen or the "Mother of Believers".Stowasser, Barbara. ''The Mother ...
was a noblewoman,Al-Shati', 1971, 171 the daughter of
Huyayy ibn Akhtab Huyayy ibn Akhtab ( ar, حيي بن أخطب; he, חי בן אחיטוב) was a chief of the Banu Nadir, a Jewish tribe of Medina in pre-Islamic Arabia. Biography Family His ancestry was Huyayy ibn Akhtab ibn Sa‘yah ibn Tha‘labah ibn ‘Ubay ...
, chief of the Jewish tribe
Banu Nadir The Banu Nadir ( ar, بَنُو ٱلنَّضِير, he, בני נצ'יר) were a Jewish Arab tribe which lived in northern Arabia at the oasis of Medina until the 7th century. The tribe refused to convert to Islam as Muhammad had ordered it to d ...
, who was executed after surrendering at the
Battle of the Trench The Battle of the Trench ( ar, غزوة الخندق, Ghazwat al-Khandaq), also known as the Battle of Khandaq ( ar, معركة الخندق, Ma’rakah al-Khandaq) and the Battle of the Confederates ( ar, غزوة الاحزاب, Ghazwat al- ...
. She had been married first to the poet
Sallam ibn Mishkam Sallam ibn Mishkam (died 628) was a Jewish warrior, rabbi and poet who lived in Medina, Arabia, in the early seventh century. Family and early life Sallam ibn Mishkam ibn Al-Hakam ibn Haritha ibn Al-Khazraj ibn Kaab ibn Khazraj was a member of ...
, who had divorced her, and second to
Kenana ibn al-Rabi Kenana ibn al-Rabi' ( ar, كِنَانَة ٱبْن ٱلرَّبِيع) also known as Kenana ibn al-Rabi'a and Kenana ibn al-Rabi ibn Abu al-Huqayq, was a Jewish Arab tribal leader of seventh-century Arabia and an opponent of Muhammad. He was a son ...
, a commander. In 628, at the
Battle of Khaybar The Battle of Khaybar ( ar, غَزْوَة خَيْبَر, label=Classical Arabic, Arabic) was fought in 628 Common Era, CE between the early Muslims led by Muhammad and Jews living in Khaybar, an oasis located 150 km from Medina in the n ...
, Banu Nadir was defeated, her husband was executed and she was taken as a prisoner. Muhammad freed her from her captor Dihya and proposed marriage, which Safiyya accepted. According to Martin Lings, Muhammad had given Safiyyah the choice of returning to the defeated Banu Nadir, or becoming Muslim and marrying him, and Safiyyah opted for the latter choice. According to a hadith, Muhammad's contemporaries believed that due to Safiyya's high status, it was only befitting that she be
manumitted Manumission, or enfranchisement, is the act of freeing enslaved people by their enslavers. Different approaches to manumission were developed, each specific to the time and place of a particular society. Historian Verene Shepherd states that t ...
and married to Muhammad.
Volume 1, Book 8, Number 367: Narrated 'Abdul 'Aziz
Modern scholars believe that Muhammad married Safiyya as part of reconciliation with the Jewish tribe and as a gesture of goodwill. John L. Esposito states that the marriage may have been political or to cement alliances.Abu Ya'la al-Mawsili, Musnad, vol. 13, p. 168, Cited in Muhammad Fathi Mus'ad, The Wives of the Prophet Muhammad: Their Strives and Their Lives, p.172) Haykal opines that Muhammad's manumission of and marriage to Safiyaa was partly in order to alleviate her tragedy and partly to preserve their dignity, and compares these actions to previous conquerors who married the daughters and wives of the kings whom they had defeated. According to some, by marrying Safiyyah, Muhammad aimed at ending the enmity and hostility between Jews and Islam. Muhammad convinced Safiyya to convert to Islam.Rodinson (1971), p. 254. According to Al-Bayhaqi, Safiyyah was initially angry at Muhammad as both her father and husband had been killed. Muhammad explained, "Your father changed the Arabs against me and committed heinous acts." Eventually, Safiyyah got rid of her bitterness against Muhammad. According to Abu Ya'la al-Mawsili, Safiyya came to appreciate the love and honor Muhammad gave her, and said, "I have never seen a good-natured person as the Messenger of Allah". Safiyyah remained loyal to Muhammad until he died. According to Islamic tradition, Safiyya was beautiful, patient, intelligent, learned and gentle, and she respected Muhammad as "Allah's Messenger". Muslim scholars state she had many good moral qualities.Safiyah Bint Huyeiy Ibn Akhtab, www.islamonline.com She is described as a humble worshiper and a pious believer.
Ibn Kathir Abū al-Fiḍā’ ‘Imād ad-Dīn Ismā‘īl ibn ‘Umar ibn Kathīr al-Qurashī al-Damishqī (Arabic: إسماعيل بن عمر بن كثير القرشي الدمشقي أبو الفداء عماد; – 1373), known as Ibn Kathīr (, was ...
said, "she was one of the best women in her worship, piousness, ascetism, devoutness, and charity". According to Ibn Sa'd, Safiyyah was very charitable and generous. She used to give out and spend whatever she had; she gave away a house that she had when she was still alive. Upon entering Muhammad's household, Safiyya became friends with Aisha and Hafsa. Also, she offered gifts to Fatima. She gave some of Muhammad's other wives gifts from her jewels that she brought with her from Khaybar. However, some of Muhammad's other wives spoke ill of Safiyya's Jewish descent. Muhammad intervened, pointing out to everyone that Safiyya's "husband is Muhammad, father is Aaron#Islam, Aaron, and uncle is
Moses Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu (Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pro ...
", a reference to revered prophets.Al-Shati', 1971, 178-181 Muhammad once went to
hajj The Hajj (; ar, حَجّ '; sometimes also spelled Hadj, Hadji or Haj in English) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried ...
with all his wives. On the way, Safiyya's camel knelt down, as it was the weakest in the caravan, and she started to weep. Muhammad came to her and wiped her tears with his dress and hands, but the more he asked her not to cry, the more she went on weeping. When Muhammad was terminally ill, Safiyya was profoundly upset. She said to him "I wish it was I who was suffering instead of you."


Ramla bint Abi Sufyan (Umm Habiba)

In the same year, Muhammad signed a peace treaty with his Meccan enemies, the
Quraysh The Quraysh ( ar, قُرَيْشٌ) were a grouping of Arab clans that historically inhabited and controlled the city of Mecca and its Kaaba. The Islamic prophet Muhammad was born into the Hashim clan of the tribe. Despite this, many of the Qur ...
effectively ending the state of war between the two parties. He soon married the daughter of the Quraysh leader and military commander,
Abu Sufyan ibn Harb Sakhr ibn Harb ibn Umayya ibn Abd Shams ( ar, صخر بن حرب بن أمية بن عبد شمس, Ṣakhr ibn Ḥarb ibn Umayya ibn ʿAbd Shams; ), better known by his '' kunya'' Abu Sufyan ( ar, أبو سفيان, Abū Sufyān), was a prominent ...
, aimed at further reconciling his opponents. He sent a proposal for marriage to
Ramla bint Abi Sufyan Umm Ḥabība Ramla bint Abī Sufyān ( ar, أم حبيبة رملة بنت أبي سفيان; 589 or 594–665) was a wife of Muhammad and therefore a Mother of the Believers. Early life She was the daughter of Abu Sufyan ibn Harb and Safiyyah ...
, who was in Abyssinia at the time when she learned her husband had died. She had previously converted to Islam (in Mecca) against her father's will. After her migration to Abyssinia her husband had converted to
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
. Muhammad dispatched 'Amr bin Omaiyah Ad-Damri with a letter to the
Negus Negus (Negeuce, Negoose) ( gez, ንጉሥ, ' ; cf. ti, ነጋሲ ' ) is a title in the Ethiopian Semitic languages. It denotes a monarch,
(king), asking him for Umm Habiba's hand—that was in
Muharram Muḥarram ( ar, ٱلْمُحَرَّم) (fully known as Muharram ul Haram) is the first month of the Islamic calendar. It is one of the four sacred months of the year when warfare is forbidden. It is held to be the second holiest month after R ...
, in the seventh year of Al-Hijra.


Mariyah bint Shamoon al-Qibtiya

Maria al-Qibtiyya (), better known as or ( ar, مارية القبطية), or Mary the Copt, died 637, was an Egyptian woman who, along with her sister Sirin, was sent to the Islamic prophet Muhammad in 628 as a gift by Al-Muqawqis, a Christian governor of Alex ...
was one of several slaves whom the Governor of Egypt sent as a present to Muhammad. He kept her as a concubine despite the objections of his official wives. It is mentioned in all earliest biography of Prophet Muhammad that Mariyah is a slave girl or concubine. Mariyah bore Muhammad a son, Ibrahim who later died at 18 months.


Maymuna binti al-Harith

As part of the
treaty of Hudaybiyah The Treaty of Hudaybiyyah ( ar, صُلح ٱلْحُدَيْبِيَّة, Ṣulḥ Al-Ḥudaybiyyah) was an event that took place during the time of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was a pivotal treaty between Muhammad, representing the state of ...
, Muhammad visited Mecca for the pilgrimage. There Maymuna bint al-Harith proposed marriage to him.Al-Shati', 1971, 222-224 Muhammad accepted, and thus married Maymuna, the sister-in-law of Abbas, a longtime ally of his. By marrying her, Muhammad also established kinship ties with the banu Makhzum, his previous opponents. As the Meccans did not allow him to stay any longer, Muhammad left the city, taking Maymuna with him. Her original name was "Barra" but he called her "Maymuna", meaning the blessed, as his marriage to her had also marked the first time in seven years when he could enter his hometown Mecca.


Muhammad's widows

According to the Qur'an, God forbade anyone to marry the wives of Muhammad, because of their respect and honour, after he died.
Nor is it right for you that ye should annoy Allah's Messenger, or that ye should marry his wives after him at any time.
The extent of Muhammad's property at the time of his death is unclear. Although Qur'an .180clearly addresses issues of inheritance, Abu Bakr, the new leader of the Muslim
ummah ' (; ar, أمة ) is an Arabic word meaning "community". It is distinguished from ' ( ), which means a nation with common ancestry or geography. Thus, it can be said to be a supra-national community with a common history. It is a synonym for ' ...
, refused to divide Muhammad's property among his widows and heirs, saying that he had heard Muhammad say: Muhammad's widow Hafsa played a role in the collection of the first Qur'anic manuscript. After Abu Bakr had collected the copy, he gave it to Hafsa, who preserved it until Uthman took it, copied it and distributed it in Muslim lands.Al-Shati', 1971, p. 110 Some of Muhammad's widows were active politically in the Islamic state after Muhammad's death. Safiyya, for example, aided the Caliph Uthman during his siege. During the first fitna, some wives also took sides. Umm Salama, for example, sided with Ali, and sent her son Umar for help.Al-Shati', 1971, p. 135 The last of Muhammad's wives, Umm Salama lived to hear about the tragedy of
Karbala Karbala or Kerbala ( ar, كَرْبَلَاء, Karbalāʾ , , also ;) is a city in central Iraq, located about southwest of Baghdad, and a few miles east of Lake Milh, also known as Razzaza Lake. Karbala is the capital of Karbala Governorat ...
in 680, dying the same year. The grave of the wives of Muhammed is located at al-Baqīʿ Cemetery,
Medina Medina,, ', "the radiant city"; or , ', (), "the city" officially Al Madinah Al Munawwarah (, , Turkish: Medine-i Münevvere) and also commonly simplified as Madīnah or Madinah (, ), is the Holiest sites in Islam, second-holiest city in Islam, ...
.


Timeline of marriages

ImageSize = width:800 height:400 PlotArea = left:200 bottom:60 top:0 right:50 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = yyyy Period = from:0570 till:0632 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy ScaleMajor = increment:4 start:0571 ScaleMinor = increment:4 start:0573 LineData = at:0610 color:black layer:back at:0622 color:black layer:back at:0624 color:black layer:back BarData = bar:Khadija text:"Khadija bint Khuwaylid” bar:Sawda text:"Sawda bint Zamʿa" bar:Aisha text:"Aisha bint Abi Bakr" bar:ZaynabK text:"Zaynab bint Khuzayma" bar:Hind text:"Umm Salama Hind bint Abi Umayya " bar:Hafsa text:"Hafsa bint Umar" bar:ZaynabJ text:"Zaynab bint Jahsh" bar:Rayhana text:"Rayhana bint Zayd" bar:Juwayriyya text:"Juwayriyya bint al-Harith" bar:Ramla text:"Ramla bint Abi Sufyan" bar:Safiyya text:"Safiyya bint Huyayy" bar:Maymuna text:"Maymuna bint al-Harith" bar:Maria text:"Maria al-Qibtiyya" PlotData= width:10 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,-4) bar:Khadija from:0595 till:0619 color:red bar:Sawda from:0620 till:0632 color:red bar:Aisha from:0623 till:0632 color:red bar:ZaynabK from:0624 till:0626 color:red bar:Hind from:0625 till:0632 color:red bar:Hafsa from:0626 till:0632 color:red bar:ZaynabJ from:0627 till:0632 color:red bar:Rayhana from:0627 till:0631 color:red bar:Juwayriyya from:0628 till:0632 color:red bar:Ramla from:0629 till:0632 color:red bar:Safiyya from:0629 till:0632 color:red bar:Maymuna from:0629 till:0632 color:red bar:Maria from:0630 till:0632 color:red The vertical lines in the graph indicate, in chronological order, the start of prophethood, the
Hijra Hijra, Hijrah, Hegira, Hejira, Hijrat or Hijri may refer to: Islam * Hijrah (often written as ''Hejira'' in older texts), the migration of Muhammad from Mecca to Medina in 622 CE * Migration to Abyssinia or First Hegira, of Muhammad's followers ...
, and the
Battle of Badr The Battle of Badr ( ar, غَزْوَةُ بَدِرْ ), also referred to as The Day of the Criterion (, ) in the Quran, Qur'an and by Muslims, was fought on 13 March 624 CE (17 Ramadan (calendar month), Ramadan, 2 Anno Hegirae, AH), near the ...
.


Family tree


* * indicates that the marriage order is disputed * Note that direct lineage is marked in bold.


See also

*
Ahl al-Bayt Ahl al-Bayt ( ar, أَهْل ٱلْبَيْت, ) refers to the family of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, but the term has also been extended in Sunni Islam to apply to all descendants of the Banu Hashim (Muhammad's clan) and even to all Muslims. ...
*
Women in Islam The experiences of Muslim women ( ''Muslimāt'', singular مسلمة ''Muslimah'') vary widely between and within different societies. At the same time, their adherence to Islam is a shared factor that affects their lives to a varying degree ...
*
Children of Muhammad The children of Muhammad include the three sons and four daughters of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. The common view is that all were born to Muhammad's first wife Khadija bint Khuwaylid, except one son, named Ibrahim, who was born to Maria al-Q ...


References


Bibliography


Wives of Muhammad

*


Women in Islam

* * *


General

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Muhammads Wives Marriage in Islam * Lists of wives Polygyny