The Ansar (), also spelled Ansaar or Ansari, were the local inhabitants of

Medina Medina, officially al-Madinah al-Munawwarah (, ), also known as Taybah () and known in pre-Islamic times as Yathrib (), is the capital of Medina Province (Saudi Arabia), Medina Province in the Hejaz region of western Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, ...

(mostly

Muslims Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

) who supported the

Islamic prophet Prophets in Islam () are individuals in Islam who are believed to spread God's message on Earth and serve as models of ideal human behaviour. Some prophets are categorized as messengers (; sing. , ), those who transmit divine revelation, mos ...

Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...

, and his followers (the ''

Muhajirun The ''Muhajirun'' (, singular , ) were the converts to Islam and the Islamic prophet Muhammad's advisors and relatives, who emigrated from Mecca to Medina; the event is known in Islam as the '' Hijra''. The early Muslims from Medina are called the ...

''), when they fled from

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

to Medina during the ''

hijrah The Hijrah, () also Hegira (from Medieval Latin), was the journey the prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad and his followers took from Mecca to Medina. The year in which the Hijrah took place is also identified as the e ...

''. The Ansar belonged to the Arabian tribes of

Banu Khazraj The Banu Khazraj () is a large Arab tribe based in Medina. They were also in Medina during Muhammad's era. The Banu Khazraj are a South Arabian Qahtanite tribe that were pressured out of South Arabia as a result of the destruction of the Marib ...

and

Banu Aws The Banū Aws ( , "Sons of Aws") or simply Aws (, also romanised as Aus) was one of the main Arab tribes of Medina. The other was Khazraj, and the two, constituted the Ansar ("Helpers of Muhammad”) after the Hijra.. The Aws tribe desc ...

Background

The Medinese, which consisted of

and

, along with their Arabian Jewish allies ( Banu Nadir, Banu Qurayza, and Banu Qaynuqa), were involved in degenerating years of warfare such as battle of Sumair, battle of Banu Jahjaha of Aus-Banu Mazin of Khazraj, battle of Sararah day, battle of Banu Wa'il ibn Zayd, battle of Zhufr-Malik, battle of Fari', battle of Hathib, battle of Rabi' day, first battle of Fijar in Yathrib (not Fijar war between Qays with Kinana in Mecca), battle of Ma'is, battle of Mudharras, and second battle of Fijar in Yathrib. The Medinese also even contacted against foreign invaders came from outside

Hejaz Hejaz is a Historical region, historical region of the Arabian Peninsula that includes the majority of the western region of Saudi Arabia, covering the cities of Mecca, Medina, Jeddah, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, Tabuk, Yanbu, Taif and Al Bahah, Al-B ...

, including such as

Shapur II Shapur II ( , 309–379), also known as Shapur the Great, was the tenth King of Kings (List of monarchs of the Sasanian Empire, Shahanshah) of Sasanian Iran. He took the title at birth and held it until his death at age 70, making him the List ...

Sasanian Empire The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranian peoples, Iranians"), was an List of monarchs of Iran, Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, th ...

in relatively vague result, and also in successful defense against

Himyarite Kingdom Himyar was a polity in the southern highlands of Yemen, as well as the name of the region which it claimed. Until 110 BCE, it was integrated into the Qataban, Qatabanian kingdom, afterwards being recognized as an independent kingdom. According ...

under their sovereign, Tabban

Abu Karib Abū Karib As’ad al-Kāmil (), called "Abū Karīb", sometimes rendered as As'ad Abū Karīb, full name: Abu Karib As'ad ibn Hassān Maliki Karib Yuha'min, was king ( Tubba', ) of the Himyarite Kingdom (modern day Yemen). He ruled Yemen from 39 ...

, who also known as ''Dhu al-Adh'ar''. However, the most terrible conflict for both Aws and Khazraj was a civil war called the Battle of Bu'ath, which left a bitter taste for both clans, and caused them to grow weary of war, due to the exceptionally high level of violence, even by their standards, and the needless massacres that occurred during that battle. Thus, in search of enlightenments and seeking arbitration from third party, the Yathribese then pledged their allegiance to Muhammad, a Qurayshi Meccan who preached a new faith,

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

, during the Medinese pilgrimage to

Kaaba The Kaaba (), also spelled Kaba, Kabah or Kabah, sometimes referred to as al-Kaba al-Musharrafa (), is a stone building at the center of Islam's most important mosque and Holiest sites in Islam, holiest site, the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, Sa ...

. As Muhammad managed to convince many notables of both Aws and Khazraj, which also included Abbad ibn Bishr who personally convinced by a

named

Mus'ab ibn Umayr Muṣʿab ibn ʿUmayr () also known as Muṣʿab al-Khayr ("the Good") was a '' sahabi'' (companion) of Muhammad. From the Banū ʿAbd al-Dār branch of the Quraysh, he embraced Islam in 614 CE and was the first ambassador of Islam. He died in ...

of his cause on his new faith, the chieftains of both Aus and Khazraj tribe, particularly Sa'd ibn Mu'adh, Usaid Bin Hudair, Saʽd ibn ʽUbadah, and As'ad ibn Zurara agreed to embrace Islam and appoint Muhammad as arbitrator and de facto leader of Medina. In no time, Abbad and other Yathribese agreed to provide shelter for Meccan Muslims who had been persecuted by

Quraysh The Quraysh () are an Tribes of Arabia, Arab tribe who controlled Mecca before the rise of Islam. Their members were divided into ten main clans, most notably including the Banu Hashim, into which Islam's founding prophet Muhammad was born. By ...

polytheists, while also agreeing to change their city name from Yathrib to Medina, as Yathrib has bad connotation in Arabic.

Battles where the Ansari helped Muhammad

The Ansari helped Muhammad in several battles, one of the earliest the Patrol of Buwat. A month after the raid at al-Abwa that Muhammad ordered, he personally led two hundred men including Muhajirs and Ansars to Bawat, a place on the caravan route of the Quraysh merchants. A herd of fifteen hundred camels was proceeding, accompanied by one hundred riders under the leadership of Umayyah ibn Khalaf, a Quraysh. The purpose of the raid was to plunder this rich Quraysh caravan. No battle took place and the raid resulted in no booty. This was due to the caravan taking an untrodden unknown route. Muhammad then went up to Dhat al-Saq, in the desert of al-Khabar. He prayed there and a mosque was built at the spot. This was the first raid where a few Ansars took part.

After the death of Muhammad

During the tenure of Caliphates after Muhammad, the Ansar mainly became important military elements in many conquests, (as indicated with the appointing of Thabit, bin Qays bin Shammas, an orator of Ansar), to lead Ansaris in support of

Khalid ibn al-Walid Khalid ibn al-Walid ibn al-Mughira al-Makhzumi (; died 642) was a 7th-century Arabs, Arab military commander. He initially led campaigns against Muhammad on behalf of the Quraysh. He later became a Muslim and spent the remainder of his career ...

in the

Battle of Buzakha The Battle of Buzakha took place between Khalid ibn al-Walid and Tulayha, in September 632. Strength Khalid had 6,000 men under his disposal while Tulayha had 35,000 men. General engagement Tuhlaya himself took up a position somewhere ...

at the time of Caliph Abu Bakr. Later they also played a prominent role in the

Battle of Yamama The Battle of Yamama was fought in December 632 as part of the Ridda Wars against a rebellion within the Rashidun Caliphate in the region of al-Yamama (in present-day Saudi Arabia, South of Riyadh City) between the forces of Abu Bakr and Musay ...

where Ansars under Al Bara bin Malik Al Ansari charged at a perilous moment of the battle marking its turning point. The battle of Yamama is also where the Ansar's most prominent warrior, Abu Dujana, fell. During the caliphate of Umar, prominent Ansaris contributed greatly during campaigns against Byzantium. The Ansari chief 'Ubadah ibn al-Samit particularly played many significant roles during

Muslim conquest of Egypt The Arab conquest of Egypt, led by the army of Amr ibn al-As, took place between 639 and 642 AD and was overseen by the Rashidun Caliphate. It ended the seven-century-long Roman Egypt, Roman period in Egypt that had begun in 30 BC and, more broa ...

and Muslim conquest of Levant under the likes of Abu Ubaydah,

Khalid ibn Walid Khalid ibn al-Walid ibn al-Mughira al-Makhzumi (; died 642) was a 7th-century Arab military commander. He initially led campaigns against Muhammad on behalf of the Quraysh. He later became a Muslim and spent the remainder of his career servi ...

, Amr ibn al-Aas, and Muawiyah In the year 24/645, during the

caliphate A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...

Uthman Ibn Affan Uthman ibn Affan (17 June 656) was the third caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate, ruling from 644 until Assassination of Uthman, his assassination in 656. Uthman, a second cousin, son-in-law, and notable Companions of the Prophet, companion of ...

, prominent Ansaris also held major positions like Al-Bara' ibn `Azib who was made governor of al-Ray (in Persia). He eventually retired to Kūfā and there he died in the year 71/690. During the Umayyad era the Ansar became somewhat of an opposing political faction of the regime. They are described as closely affiliated with the Hashim Clan Contingent rather than with the incumbent Umayyad. Such Ansar-Hashim connections are described as forming a new elite local political hegemony in

List of Ansaris

Banu Khazraj

Men

* Mahas *

Sa'd ibn Ubadah Saad () is a common male Arabic given name. The name stems from the Arabic verb ( 'to be happy, fortunate or lucky'). ''Saad'' is the stem of variant given names Suad and Sa‘id. It may be a shortened version of Sa'd al-Din, and is not to ...

, chief * As'ad ibn Zurarah * 'Abd Allah ibn Rawahah *

Abu Ayyub al-Ansari Abu Ayyub al-Ansari (, , died c. 674) — born Khalid ibn Zayd ibn Kulayb ibn Tha'laba () in Yathrib — was from the tribe of Banu Najjar, and a close companion (Arabic: الصحابه, ''sahaba'') and the standard-bearer of the Prophets and mes ...

Ubay ibn Ka'b Ubayy ibn Ka'b (, ') (died 649), also known as Abu Mundhir, was a Sahabah, companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a person of high esteem in the early Muslim community. He was short, skinny, and gray haired. He is notable for the Codex of ...

* Zayd ibn Thabit * Hassan ibn Thabit * Jabir ibn Abd-Allah *

Amr ibn al-Jamuh ʿAmr ibn al-Jamūḥ (Arabic: عمرو بن الجموح) was an Ansari (nisbat), ansari Sahaba, companion of Muhammad, and a chief of Banu Salamah (Tribe), Banu Salama. He died in the Battle of Uhud. Amr ibn al-Jamuh was the chief of Bani Sal ...

* Sa`ad ibn ar-Rabi` * Al-Bara' ibn `Azib * Ubayda ibn as-Samit * Zayd ibn Arqam * Abu Dujana * Abu Darda * Habab ibn Mundhir * Anas ibn Nadhar *

Anas ibn Malik Anas ibn Mālik ibn Naḍr al-Khazrajī al-Anṣārī (; 612 712) was a companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Finding the Truth in Judging the Companions, 1. 84-5; EI2, 1. 482 A. J. Wensinck J. Robson He was nicknamed Khadim al-Nabi for ...

* Al-Bara' ibn Malik * Sahl ibn Sa'd * Farwah ibn `Amr ibn Wadqah al-Ansari * Habib ibn Zayd al-Ansari * Tamim al-Ansari * Ubada ibn as-Samit

Women

* Nusaybah bint Ka'ab, mother of Habib ibn Zayd * Rufaida Al-Aslamia

Banu Aus

Sa'd ibn Mua'dh Saad () is a common male Arabic given name. The name stems from the Arabic verb ( 'to be happy, fortunate or lucky'). ''Saad'' is the stem of variant given names Souad, Suad and Sa‘id. It may be a shortened version of Sa'd al-Din (disambigua ...

, chief * Bashir ibn Sa'ad * Abbad ibn Bishr *

Muadh ibn Jabal Muʿādh ibn Jabal (; 603 – 639) was a (companion) of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Muadh was an of the Banu Khazraj tribe and compiled the Quran with five companions while Muhammad was still alive. He acquired a reputation for knowledge. Mu ...

* Muhammad ibn Maslamah *

Khuzaima ibn Thabit Khuzayma ibn Thabit Dhu al-Shahadatayn al-Ansari (; d. July 657) was one of the companions of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad. Biography 610–632: Muhammad's era He was an Ansar''A Restatement of the History of Islam and Muslims'' oAl-islam.org ...

* Khubayb ibn Adiy * Sahl ibn Hunaif * Uthman ibn Hunaif * Abu'l-Hathama ibn Tihan * Hanzala Ibn Abi Amir

Uncategorized

* Abu Mas'ud Al-Ansari * Asim ibn Thabit * Amr ibn Maymun'' History of the Caliphs'' by

al-Suyuti Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti (; 1445–1505), or al-Suyuti, was an Egyptians, Egyptian Sunni Muslims, Muslim polymath of Persians, Persian descent. Considered the mujtahid and mujaddid of the Islamic 10th century, he was a leading Hadith studies, muh ...

* Hudhaifa ibn Yaman Tarikh al-Yaqubi, as quoted in Peshawar Nights. Also, a list composed of sources such as

Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī (; 18 February 1372 – 2 February 1449), or simply ibn Ḥajar, was a classic Islamic scholar "whose life work constitutes the final summation of the science of hadith." He authored some 150 works on hadith, history, ...

and

Al-Baladhuri ʾAḥmad ibn Yaḥyā ibn Jābir al-Balādhurī () was a 9th-century West Asian historian. One of the eminent Middle Eastern historians of his age, he spent most of his life in Baghdad and enjoyed great influence at the court of the caliph al ...

, each in his ''

Tarikh Tarikh () is an Arabic word meaning "date, chronology, era", whence by extension "annals, history, historiography". It is also used in Persian, Urdu, Bengali and the Turkic languages. It is found in the title of many historical works. Prior to t ...

''. Muhammad ibn Khwand in his '' Rawdatu 's-safa'' and,

Ibn 'Abd al-Barr Yūsuf ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Barr, Abū ʿUmar al-Namarī al-Andalusī al-Qurṭubī al-Mālikī, commonly known as Ibn ʿAbd al-Barr ()

in his ''The Comprehensive Compilation of the Names of the Prophet's Companions'' * Umayr ibn Sad al-Ansari

References

Sources

* * * * * {{Characters and names in the Quran Muhammad in Medina Islamic terminology People from Medina