Wives of the Prophet ﷺ: The Mothers of the Believers
11 wives44 sources
Two other women are sometimes mentioned: Mariyah al-Qibtiyyah, the mother of Ibrahim, and Rayhanah bint Zayd of the Banu Qurayzah. Scholars differ on whether they were wives of the Prophet ﷺ or women whom he held as ma malakat aymanuhum, 'those whom his right hand possessed' (Quran 33:50; 33:52). Because of this difference they are not counted among the eleven Mothers of the Believers, whom all agree on. The sirah books record that Mariyah was sent as a gift from the ruler of Egypt and bore the Prophet ﷺ his son Ibrahim.
- Quran 33:50 (Al-Ahzab)
- Quran 33:52 (Al-Ahzab)
- Sirah books (early history)
Why did the Prophet ﷺ marry more than once?
This question is often asked, and it helps to look at the whole of his life. According to the sirah books he married Khadijah when he was about twenty-five, and she remained his only wife for roughly twenty-five years, until her death when he was about fifty. His other marriages came later: Sawdah soon after Khadijah's death, a marriage contract with Aisha in Makkah, and the rest in Madinah, in the last decade of his life, in the years of migration, war and the building of a new community.
Scholars mention several reasons, and the stories of the individual wives bear them out. One was compassion for widows and the vulnerable: Sawdah, Hafsah, Zaynab bint Khuzaymah, Umm Salamah and Umm Habibah had all lost their husbands, in battle or in exile for their faith. Another was to build bonds of kinship and alliance: with the daughters of Abu Bakr and Umar, with Juwayriyyah, whose marriage led to the freeing of a hundred households of her people (Sunan Abi Dawud 3931), with Umm Habibah, the daughter of Abu Sufyan, and with Safiyyah, who was freed and honoured.
A third reason was legal: to abolish the custom of treating adopted sons as real sons. The Prophet's marriage to Zaynab bint Jahsh, after she had been divorced by his adopted son Zayd, was commanded by Allah so that there would be no blame on the believers regarding the wives of their adopted sons (Quran 33:37; see also Quran 33:4-5 and 33:40).
A fourth was teaching. The wives lived in the Prophet's homes and saw his private life, and they were told: 'Remember what is recited in your homes of the verses of Allah and the wisdom' (Quran 33:34). Through them, above all Aisha and Umm Salamah, the community learned matters of the religion, such as purification, family life and the night prayer, which were not as easy to learn from men.
Their position was distinctive and demanding. They are the Mothers of the Believers (Quran 33:6); they were told that they were not like any other women (Quran 33:32); and they were given the choice between worldly life and Allah, His Messenger and the Hereafter (Quran 33:28-29). Aisha reported that the Prophet ﷺ gave her the choice first, and that all his wives then did as she did (Sahih al-Bukhari 4786). The Quran also closed the door to further marriages (Quran 33:52), though scholars differ on the exact scope of that verse, and it forbade the believers to marry his wives after him (Quran 33:53).
Finally, his household shows his character as a husband. He said: 'The best of you is the best to his family, and I am the best of you to my family' (Jami at-Tirmidhi 3895). Asked what the Prophet ﷺ did at home, Aisha said that he used to help with the work of his family, and that when the time of prayer came he went out to pray (Sahih al-Bukhari 676). The Muslims have always taken his married life as a model.
- Quran 33:28-29 (Al-Ahzab)
- Quran 33:37 (Al-Ahzab)
- Jami at-Tirmidhi 3895
- Sahih al-Bukhari 676
- Sirah books (early history)
Keep learning
Common questions
How many wives did the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ have?
Most scholars count eleven women whom he married, all listed on this page. Khadijah and Zaynab bint Khuzaymah died during his lifetime, so nine were alive when he passed away. Anas ibn Malik, describing how the Prophet ﷺ would visit his wives in turn, mentions nine in one report and eleven in another (Sahih al-Bukhari 268). Mariyah and Rayhanah are not counted among them, as explained in the note above.
Who was the Prophet's first wife and who was the last?
His first wife was Khadijah bint Khuwaylid, and she remained his only wife until her death, for about twenty-five years. According to most scholars, the last woman he married was Maymunah bint al-Harith, in about 7 AH.
Which of his wives was a virgin when he married her?
Aisha was the only one who had not been married before, as she herself reported (Sahih al-Bukhari 5077). The others had been widowed or divorced: for example Hafsah and Umm Salamah were widows, and Zaynab bint Jahsh was divorced from Zayd ibn Harithah.
How old was Aisha when she married the Prophet ﷺ?
Aisha herself reported that the Prophet ﷺ married her when she was six years old, and that she was brought to his house when she was nine (Sahih al-Bukhari 3894; Sahih Muslim 1422b). In another report she says that she stayed with him for nine years (Sahih al-Bukhari 5133). She later became one of the foremost scholars of the community.
Which of the Prophet's wives died first after him, and which last?
The Prophet ﷺ told his wives that the first to join him would be the longest of them in hand, and Aisha explained that this was Zaynab bint Jahsh, because she worked with her hands and gave in charity (Sahih Muslim 2452). She died in 20 AH. Most scholars hold that Umm Salamah was the last of them to die, around 60 AH.
Did the Prophet ﷺ divorce any of his wives?
It is reported that he divorced Hafsah once and then took her back (Sunan Abi Dawud 2283). Sawdah feared that he would part from her and gave her day to Aisha, and he kept her (Sunan Abi Dawud 2135). When the Quran gave his wives the choice between worldly life and Allah and His Messenger, they all chose Allah, His Messenger and the Hereafter (Sahih al-Bukhari 4786).
Where are the Prophet's wives buried?
According to the sirah books, most of them, including Aisha, Hafsah, Umm Salamah and Zaynab bint Jahsh, are buried in al-Baqi' in Madinah. Khadijah was buried in al-Hajun in Makkah, and Maymunah was buried near Sarif, where she died (Sahih al-Bukhari 4258).
Why are the Prophet's wives called the Mothers of the Believers?
Because the Quran says: 'The Prophet is closer to the believers than their own selves, and his wives are their mothers' (Quran 33:6). They are mothers in respect and in the prohibition of marrying them after him (Quran 33:53), not in every ruling of motherhood, such as inheritance.