Ḥafṣa bint ʿUmar ( ar, حفصة بنت عمر; 605–665), was a

wife A wife (plural, : wives) is a female in a marital relationship. A woman who has separated from her partner continues to be a wife until the marriage is legally Dissolution (law), dissolved with a divorce judgement. On the death of her partner, ...

of 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's message on Earth and to serve as models of ideal human behaviour. Some prophets ar ...

Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the mon ...

and daughter of

ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb 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 ...

, the second

caliph A caliphate or khilāfah ( ar, خِلَافَة, ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with the title of caliph (; ar, خَلِيفَة , ), a person considered a political-religious successor to th ...

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...

. In Islamic writings, her name is thus often prefixed by the title "Mother of the Believers" (Arabic: أمّ المؤمنين, romanized: ''ʾumm al- muʾminīn'').

Early life

Hafsa was the daughter and eldest child of 'Umar ibn al-Khattab and Zaynab bint Maz'un. She was born "when Quraysh were building the House '' Kaʿbah'', five years before the Prophet was sent," i.e., in 605.

Marriage

She was married to

Khunays ibn Hudhafa Khunays ibn Ḥudhāfa (Arabic: خنيس بن حذافة) (d. 2 AH/624) was a companion of Muhammad. He died at the beginning of twenty-five months after Muhammad emigrated to Medina. Biography Khunays was the son of Hudhafa ibn Qays from the ...

but became a widow in August 624. As soon as Hafsa had completed her waiting period, her father Umar offered her hand to Uthman ibn 'Affan, and thereafter to

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 ...

; but they both refused her. When Umar went to Muhammad to complain about this, Muhammad replied, "Hafsa will marry one better than Uthman and Uthman will marry one better than Hafsa." Muhammad married Hafsa in Sha'ban AH 3 (late January or early February 625). This marriage "gave the Prophet the chance of allying himself with this faithful follower," i.e., Umar, who now became his father-in-law.

Notable work

Uthman, when he became Caliph, used Hafsa's copy when he standardized the text of

Qur'an The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , si ...

. She is also said to have narrated sixty ''

hadith Ḥadīth ( or ; ar, حديث, , , , , , , literally "talk" or "discourse") or Athar ( ar, أثر, , literally "remnant"/"effect") refers to what the majority of Muslims believe to be a record of the words, actions, and the silent approva ...

s'' from Muhammad.

Death

She died in Sha'ban AH 45, i.e., in October or November 665. She is buried in Al-Baqi Cemetery next to the other Mothers of the Faithful.

Contrasting Views

Sunni View

Hafsa is seen as scholarly and inquisitive by the

Sunni Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a dis ...

s. She is also respected as a Mother of The Believers.

Shi'a View

The Shi'a view is rather different from the Sunni. Most

Twelver Shi'a Twelver Shīʿīsm ( ar, ٱثْنَا عَشَرِيَّة; '), also known as Imāmīyyah ( ar, إِمَامِيَّة), is the largest branch of Shīʿa Islam, comprising about 85 percent of all Shīʿa Muslims. The term ''Twelver'' refers t ...

accuse Hafsa and

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- muʾminīn), referr ...

for poisoning Muhammad and bringing about his death.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hafsa Bint Umar Umar 605 births 660s deaths 7th-century Arabs Family of Muhammad Wives of Muhammad Banu Adi Muslim female saints Arab Muslims 7th-century Muslims Children of Rashidun caliphs Burials at Jannat al-Baqī