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Sa'd ibn Khaythama

سعد بن خيثمة

An Ansari of the Aws, one of the twelve naqibs on the night of al-Aqaba and the naqib of Banu Amr ibn Awf; the Prophet used to sit with people in his house at Quba, called 'the house of the crow'; he was killed at Badr after his lot was drawn over his father's, and Ibn Hajar rejects Abu Nu'aym's claim that he was the Abu Khaythama who stayed behind from Tabuk.

Depth

At a glance

Roles
Companion
Tradition
Sunni
Era
The Prophetic Era
Region
Arabia
Review
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Battles

Place in the story

  • CompanionTradition

Sunni (transmitted)

Roles are dated and sourced; the museum describes the act and attributes the judgement.

Summary

Sa'd ibn Khaythama ibn al-Harith al-Ansari al-Awsi, kunya Abu Khaythama; one of the deputies at Aqaba 1. Ibn Ishaq relates with his chain from Ka'b ibn Malik that the Prophet said on the night of Aqaba: "bring me out twelve deputies from among you" — and in it: "the deputy of Banu Amr ibn Awf was Sa'd ibn Khaythama" 1.

The House of the Raven

Ibn Ishaq said: the Prophet lodged at Quba with Kulthum ibn al-Hidm, and when he went out he would sit for the people in the house of Sa'd ibn Khaythama, called "the House of the Raven" 1.

His martyrdom at Badr

Bukhari relates in his Tarikh that Abdullah ibn Sa'd ibn Khaythama said he witnessed Badr and Aqaba, and was his father's rear-rider, and he was a deputy 1. Ibn Ishaq said Sa'd ibn Khaythama was martyred on the day of Badr; Musa ibn Uqba related from Ibn Shihab: at Badr Sa'd ibn Khaythama and his son Sa'd cast lots — the son's lot came out, and his father said to him: "my son, prefer me today". Sa'd said: "father, were it other than Paradise I would have". So Sa'd went out to Badr and was killed there, and his father Khaythama was killed on the day of Uhud 1. His killer is disputed: said to be Tu'ayma ibn Adi, and said to be Amr ibn Abd Wudd 1.

Not Abu Khaythama

Abu Nu'aym claimed Sa'd ibn Khaythama was the Abu Khaythama who stayed behind on the Tabuk day then caught up; Ibn Hajar answers that the truth is he was another man, since the sira scholars unanimously hold the subject of this entry was martyred at Badr, and counts the other hadith cited by Ibn Manda and Abu Nu'aym in his entry an error — for the distinction see Abu Khaythama 1.

Connections

Member of
The AnsarBanu Amr ibn Awf
Participated in
The Pledges of AqabaThe Battle of Badr

People and things also explored

Abu Lubaba ibn Abd al-MundhirMu'adh ibn JabalUbayy ibn Ka'bAbdullah ibn Amr ibn Haramal-Hubab ibn al-MundhirMu'adh ibn Amr ibn al-JamuhMu'awwidh ibn AfraMus'ab ibn Umayr

Sources

  1. al-Isaba fi tamyiz al-sahaba — Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, p. 554
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Sa'd ibn Khaythama”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/person/sad-ibn-khaythama/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Accessed 2026-10-12.

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Wing

People

Prophets, companions, scholars, rulers, scientists, poets, travelers: women and men who shaped the story.
Related

Abu Lubaba ibn Abd al-Mundhir

An Ansari of the Aws, of Banu Amr ibn Awf; his name is disputed (Bashir, Rifa'a or Marwan); the Prophet sent him back on the road to Badr, left him in charge of Medina and gave him a share and the reward of the Badr fighters; it is said he was one of the naqibs on the night of al-Aqaba and he carried the banner of Banu Amr ibn Awf at the conquest.