Qarib ibn al-Aswad
قارب بن الأسود الثقفي
A leader of the Ahlaf faction of Thaqif who commanded their contingent at the Battle of Hunayn; upon the confederation's collapse, he skillfully extricated his men toward Ta'if, preventing mass casualties among his clan.
At a glance
- Roles
- Tribal leader
- Era
- The Prophetic Era
- Region
- Arabia
- Review
- Draft Completeness 1/5 · Help complete it
Place in the story
- Military opponenttowardThe early Muslim communityTradition
Roles are dated and sourced; the museum describes the act and attributes the judgement.
Summary
Chief of the Ahlaf allies of Thaqif and commander of their banner in the Hunayn campaign; he stood firm in the battle until Hawazin were routed, then drew off with his people and his banner, falling back toward Ta'if with the least losses 1.
In the Hunayn campaign
Thaqif had two chiefs: Qarib ibn al-Aswad over the Ahlaf, and Subay' ibn al-Harith over Banu Malik 2. When the polytheists' ranks broke, Qarib planted his banner and fought around it until he was sure of his people's withdrawal, then leaned the banner on a tree and followed to Ta'if with his men — of the Ahlaf only two men were lost 3.
For young visitors
A commander of the tribe of Thaqif who led his men bravely in the battle of Hunayn; when he saw the rout he led them wisely and withdrew with them to Ta'if to keep them from being killed.
Connections
- Member of
- Thaqif
- Participated in
- The Battle of Hunayn
People and things also explored
Subay' Dhu al-KhimarThe Battle of HunaynThe siege of Ta'ifThaqifTa'ifThe Conquest of Mecca (Fath Makka)The expedition to AwtasBanu Jusham
Sources
- al-Sira al-Nabawiyya — Ibn Hisham, al-Saqqa edition (1355/1936), 4/80, 90-92
- al-Sira al-Nabawiyya — Ibn Hisham, al-Saqqa edition (1355/1936), 4/80
- al-Sira al-Nabawiyya — Ibn Hisham, al-Saqqa edition (1355/1936), 4/91-92
Cite this page
islam.museum contributors. “Qarib ibn al-Aswad”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/person/qarib-ibn-al-aswad/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Accessed 2026-10-12.