Mother of the Believers

A wife of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him), daughter of Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, and the most prolific woman transmitter of hadith in Islam. The Prophet died in her apartment. She taught and issued legal rulings in Medina for more than four decades after him.

Hafsa bint Umar, daughter of Umar ibn al-Khattab and a wife of Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him), held the written compilation of the Qur'an made under Abu Bakr. Uthman borrowed it from her for the standardisation of the text. She was literate, transmitted hadith, and died in 45 AH.

Juwayriyya bint al-Harith (c. 608-670 CE) was a wife of Prophet Muhammad whose marriage led to the liberation of her entire tribe, the Banu Mustaliq. Known for her beauty and profound devotion to dhikr, she is remembered as a great blessing to her people.

Khadijah bint Khuwaylid (d. 620 CE) was the first wife of Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) and the first person to accept his prophethood. A merchant of Mecca in her own right, she sent him to Syria with her goods, proposed the marriage herself, and bore all his children but one.

Maymuna bint al-Harith was the last woman Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) married, during the compensatory pilgrimage of 7 AH. Sister of the wife of al-Abbas and maternal aunt of Abdullah ibn Abbas, she transmitted hadith on ritual purification and died at Sarif.

Safiyya bint Huyayy was a wife of Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) and one of the Mothers of the Believers. Born into the Banu Nadir, one of the Jewish tribes of Medina, she entered the Prophet's household after the reduction of Khaybar in 7 AH.

Sawda bint Zam'a was a wife of Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) and one of the Mothers of the Believers. An early Muslim who emigrated to Abyssinia, she married the Prophet after Khadijah's death. Sahih al-Bukhari records her giving her allotted day and night to Aisha.

Umm Habiba, born Ramla bint Abi Sufyan, was a wife of Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) and daughter of the Quraysh leader Abu Sufyan. She accepted Islam early, emigrated to Abyssinia, and her marriage to the Prophet was contracted there by proxy through the Negus.

Umm Salama, born Hind bint Abi Umayyah of the Makhzum clan, was a wife of Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him). At Hudaybiyyah her counsel resolved the impasse when the Companions hesitated to comply with the treaty. She was the last of the Prophet's wives to die.

Zaynab bint Jahsh (d. 20 AH) was a cousin and wife of Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him), and the only wife whose marriage is addressed directly in the Qur'an. Surah al-Ahzab treats the marriage together with the ruling that adoption does not create lineage.

Zaynab bint Khuzayma, known as Umm al-Masakin, the Mother of the Poor, was a wife of Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) from the Banu Hilal. Married in Ramadan 3 AH, she died within months, and was the first of his wives buried at al-Baqi.