Nusaybah bint Kaʿb

نسيبة بنت كعب

Umm ʿUmāra

Nusaybah bint Kaʿb, known as Umm ʿUmāra, was an Ansari Companion from Banu Najjar. She was one of the two women at the Second Pledge of al-ʿAqaba and became renowned in classical sources for defending Prophet Muhammad ﷺ at Uhud and for later participation at Hunayn and Yamama. Her son Habib was killed by Musaylimah, and biographical sources report that she later fought at Yamama, suffered numerous wounds and lost a hand. Her direct hadith corpus includes reports on the Prophet’s economical use of water for ablution and on the fasting person when others eat nearby. Her death is commonly placed around 13 AH / 634 CE, but the chronology remains uncertain.

Names and variants

Nusaybah bint Kaʿb· canonicalNusaybah bint Kaʿb· canonicalنسيبة بنت كعب· canonicalUmm Umara· kunyaأم عمارة· kunyaNusaybah bint Kab ibn Amr· variantنسيبة بنت كعب بن عمرو· variantal-Maziniyya· nisbaal-Khazrajiyya· nisbaالمازنية الخزرجية· nisbaNesîbe bint Kâʿb· transliterationNusaiba bint Kaʿb· variantUmm Ammarah· variantUmm Umarah· variant

Nusaybah bint Kaʿb (Umm ʿUmāra)

Nusaybah bint Kaʿb, better known as Umm ʿUmāra, was an Ansari Companion remembered especially for the Second Pledge of al-ʿAqaba and for her participation in Uhud, Hunayn and Yamama. Her biography combines well-attested hadith transmission with detailed military narratives preserved mainly in classical sira and biographical works.

Sources: [1] Biographical treatment, [2] Biographical treatment, [3] Biographical treatment, [4] Biographical treatment, [5] Biographical treatment, [6] Biographical treatment, [7] Biographical treatment, [8] Biographical treatment

Names and identity

Her personal name was Nusaybah bint Kaʿb ibn ʿAmr, and her best-known kunya was Umm ʿUmāra.

Ansari lineage

She belonged to the Khazraj, specifically the Banu Najjar branch according to the TDV specialist entry.

Her mother Rabab

Her mother is identified as Rabab bint ʿAbd Allah in specialist biography.

First marriage

Before Islam she was married to Zayd ibn ʿAsim, with whom she had sons including ʿAbd Allah and Habib.

Second marriage

After Zayd’s death, biographical sources report that she married Ghaziyya ibn ʿAmr and had a daughter named Khawla.

Among the early Muslims of Medina

Nusaybah belonged to the early Muslim community of Yathrib before the Hijra.

The Second Pledge of al-ʿAqaba

She attended the Second Pledge of al-ʿAqaba, the foundational pre-Hijra pledge between Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and the Medinan supporters.

One of two women at al-ʿAqaba

Classical sources remember Nusaybah as one of the two women present at the Second Pledge of al-ʿAqaba.

Participation at Uhud

Nusaybah was present at Uhud and became famous in the biographical tradition for taking an active defensive role when the Muslim formation broke down.

Defending Prophet Muhammad ﷺ

Classical battle narratives place her among the small number who remained close to Prophet Muhammad ﷺ during the most dangerous phase of Uhud.

Wounds at Uhud

Specialist biography reports that she sustained numerous wounds at Uhud and required a long period of treatment afterward.

Reports of Prophetic praise

Classical maghazi sources preserve reports praising Nusaybah’s defense at Uhud. These are important biographical reports but are kept distinct from the smaller canonical hadith corpus transmitted directly from her.

Her family at Uhud

Biographical sources place her husband and sons alongside her in the fighting at Uhud, though individual identifications differ across reports.

Banu Qurayza expedition

Specialist biography includes Nusaybah among those who took part in the Banu Qurayza campaign.

Hudaybiyya

She was present at Hudaybiyya and is counted among the women associated with the Pledge of Ridwan.

Prepared for danger at Hudaybiyya

Classical maghazi reports say she tied a knife at her waist during the tense period surrounding the pledge in case of an attack.

Khaybar

Specialist biography also places Nusaybah at the conquest of Khaybar.

ʿUmrat al-Qaḍāʾ

She is reported to have participated in the compensatory ʿumra that followed Hudaybiyya.

Conquest of Mecca

The TDV biography lists her among those present at the conquest of Mecca.

Hunayn

At Hunayn, classical sources again portray Nusaybah as remaining active after part of the Muslim force initially scattered.

Her son Habib

Her son Habib ibn Zayd is remembered in biographical sources as an emissary connected with Musaylimah.

The killing of Habib

Classical sources report that Musaylimah tortured and killed Habib after he refused to affirm Musaylimah’s prophetic claim.

Yamama after Habib’s death

Biographical tradition connects Nusaybah’s determination to fight at Yamama with the killing of her son Habib.

Battle of Yamama

Nusaybah fought at Yamama during the Ridda wars against Musaylimah’s forces.

Wounds at Yamama

Specialist biography reports that she received eleven wounds during the battle.

Loss of a hand

The same tradition reports that one of her hands was severed at Yamama.

Musaylimah’s death

Classical reports state that her son ʿAbd Allah participated in killing Musaylimah together with Wahshi ibn Harb, after which Nusaybah gave thanks to Allah.

A report on ablution water

Sunan Abi Dawud preserves Nusaybah reporting that Prophet Muhammad ﷺ performed ablution with a vessel containing about two-thirds of a mudd of water.

The fasting guest report

Jamiʿ al-Tirmidhi preserves a report from Umm ʿUmāra in which she was fasting while food was served to Prophet Muhammad ﷺ in her home.

Angels pray for the fasting person

In that report, Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said that angels invoke blessings for a fasting person while others eat in that person’s presence.

Hadith transmission

Her transmitted reports entered the four Sunan collections through family-linked and later transmitters.

Transmission through ʿAbbad ibn Tamim

Sunan Abi Dawud’s ablution report is transmitted through ʿAbbad ibn Tamim from his grandmother Umm ʿUmāra.

A report concerning women in revelation

Classical and hadith sources preserve an attribution that Nusaybah asked why women were less explicitly mentioned, and later tradition links this to Qurʾān 33:35.

Caution on Qurʾān 33:35

The link between her question and Qurʾān 33:35 is presented as a transmitted occasion-of-revelation attribution, not as the only uncontested explanation of the verse.

Not Nusaybah al-Ansariyya known as Umm ʿAtiyya

The hadith corpus also contains a Nusaybah al-Ansariyya identified with Umm ʿAtiyya. She is a different Companion and her charity reports must not be attributed to Umm ʿUmāra.

Military legacy

Nusaybah became one of the most prominent female figures in the classical memory of early Muslim warfare.

Legacy of al-ʿAqaba

Her presence at al-ʿAqaba gives her a place in the political and religious formation of the Medinan Muslim community before the Hijra.

Women in public religious commitments

Her participation at al-ʿAqaba and later campaigns shows women taking part in public commitments and communal defense in the earliest Islamic period.

Reported death in 13 AH

The TDV specialist heading gives 13 AH / 634 CE with uncertainty, placing her death in the early years of ʿUmar’s caliphate.

Approximate death in 634

Because the specialist source marks the chronology as uncertain, 634 CE is retained as probable rather than exact.

Unknown birth year

No reliable exact birth year is preserved for Nusaybah.

Different evidentiary layers

Her direct hadith corpus is small but identifiable, while the famous battle narratives depend mainly on maghazi and biographical sources. The biography keeps those evidentiary layers separate.

Companion status

Nusaybah is firmly counted among the Ansari Companions who pledged allegiance to Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and lived through the Medinan period.

A life of pledge, service and endurance

Nusaybah bint Kaʿb is remembered for early commitment at al-ʿAqaba, repeated service in moments of danger, family sacrifice and a small but clear body of transmitted Prophetic practice.

Source-sensitive points

established

Classical biographical sources place Nusaybah bint Kaʿb at the Second Pledge of al-ʿAqaba, one of the two women present.

established

Nusaybah belonged to the Khazraj and the Banu Najjar branch of the Ansar.

established

Classical sources consistently place Nusaybah at Uhud.

reported

Maghazi and biographical sources report that Nusaybah fought close to Prophet Muhammad ﷺ during the critical phase of Uhud.

reported

Specialist biography reports that Nusaybah suffered numerous wounds at Uhud and required prolonged treatment.

established

Biographical sources place Nusaybah at Hudaybiyya and among the women associated with the Pledge of Ridwan.

reported

Specialist biography reports her participation in Banu Qurayza, Khaybar, ʿUmrat al-Qaḍāʾ, the conquest of Mecca and Hunayn.

reported

Classical sources report that Musaylimah killed Nusaybah’s son Habib ibn Zayd after torturing him over his refusal to recognize Musaylimah’s claim.

established

Classical biographical sources place Nusaybah at the Battle of Yamama against Musaylimah’s forces.

reported

Specialist biography reports that she received eleven wounds at Yamama.

reported

Classical sources report that Nusaybah lost a hand during the Battle of Yamama.

reported

Classical reports state that her son ʿAbd Allah and Wahshi ibn Harb participated in killing Musaylimah.

established

Sunan Abi Dawud preserves Umm ʿUmāra reporting that Prophet Muhammad ﷺ performed ablution with about two-thirds of a mudd of water.

established

Jamiʿ al-Tirmidhi preserves a report in which Umm ʿUmāra remained fasting while food was served to Prophet Muhammad ﷺ in her home.

established

The same Tirmidhi report states that angels invoke blessings for the fasting person while others eat in that person’s presence.

reported

A transmitted exegetical report links a question attributed to Nusaybah about women’s mention in revelation with Qurʾān 33:35; the link is kept as an attribution, not an exclusive cause of revelation.

established

Nusaybah transmitted a small identifiable hadith corpus preserved in the Sunan collections.

established

Nusaybah bint Kaʿb, Umm ʿUmāra, is distinct from Nusaybah al-Ansariyya known as Umm ʿAtiyya.

probable

The TDV specialist entry gives 13 AH / 634 CE for her death with uncertainty, so the chronology is retained as probable.

established

No reliable exact birth year is preserved for Nusaybah.

Relationships

Muhammad ﷺ

companion · established

Musaylimah al-Kazzab

opponent · established

Contributions

Participation in the Second Pledge of al-ʿAqaba

Nusaybah was one of the two women remembered at the foundational Second Pledge of al-ʿAqaba, linking her directly to the pre-Hijra formation of the Medinan Muslim community.

political · established

Defense at Uhud

Classical maghazi and biographical sources remember Nusaybah as one of the people who remained close to Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and fought during the crisis at Uhud.

military · reported

Service at Yamama

Classical sources report that she fought at Yamama, suffered severe wounds and lost a hand during the campaign against Musaylimah.

military · reported

Direct transmission of practical Prophetic practice

Her identifiable direct reports preserve practical teachings on the small amount of water used for ablution and on the fasting person when food is eaten nearby.

religious · established

A prominent female model of public commitment

From al-ʿAqaba to battlefield service, Nusaybah became one of the strongest classical examples of women taking visible roles in public religious commitment and communal defense.

social · reported

Sources

[1]
Siyar aʿlām al-nubalāʾ
al-Dhahabī · Classical biographical source
[2]
Al-Iṣāba fī tamyīz al-ṣaḥāba
Ibn Hajar al-ʿAsqalānī · Classical companion biographical source
[3]
Usd al-ghāba fī maʿrifat al-ṣaḥāba
Ibn al-Athir · Classical companion biographical source
[4]
al-Istīʿāb fī maʿrifat al-aṣḥāb
Ibn ʿAbd al-Barr · Classical biographical source
[5]
al-Ṭabaqāt al-kubrā
Ibn Saʿd · Classical biographical source
[6]
al-Maghāzī
al-Wāqidī · Classical campaign narrative
[7]
Tuḥfat al-ashrāf
al-Mizzī · Classical hadith-reference source
[8]
ÜMMÜ UMÂRE
Halit Özkan · TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi · 2012
[9]
Jamiʿ al-Tirmidhi 785
Islam Academy Hadith Corpus
[10]
Sunan Abi Dawud 94
Islam Academy Hadith Corpus

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