Refugees, migrants and diaspora
Family: Peoples, minorities and protected groups · 101 entries
Entries on this theme
Person
the Negus of Aksum
c. 580 CEThe Christian king of Aksum who gave the first Muslim exiles refuge and heard Ja'far's recitation — remembered in the tradition as a just ruler who, in some reports, himself became a Muslim.Ja'far ibn Abi Talib
c. 590 CEA brother of Ali who led the Muslim emigration to Abyssinia and answered the Negus for his people; killed at Mu'ta carrying the army's standard after Zayd ibn Haritha.Asma bint Abi Bakr
c. 595 CEAbu Bakr's elder daughter, who carried provisions to the two fugitives in the cave of Thawr and split her girdle in two to tie the food bag — hence her byname Dhat al-Nitaqayn, 'she of the two girdles'.Amir ibn Fuhayra
Abu Bakr's freedman who grazed a gift flock over the cave of Thawr each evening to feed the fugitives and erase Abdullah's tracks, then travelled with them to Medina and wrote Suraqa's letter of safe-conduct.Abu Qays ibn al-Harith
Of Banu Sahm; he emigrated to Abyssinia and was killed on the day of al-Yamama in Abu Bakr's caliphate.Amr ibn Sa'id ibn al-As
A Companion of Banu Abd Shams; he emigrated to Abyssinia with his wife Fatima bint Safwan, arrived in the two ships, and was killed at Ajnadayn in Abu Bakr's caliphate.Habbar ibn Sufyan
Of Banu Makhzum; he emigrated to Abyssinia and was killed at Ajnadayn in Abu Bakr's caliphate.Khalid ibn Sa'id ibn al-As
A Companion of Banu Abd Shams; he emigrated to Abyssinia with his wife and two children, arrived in the two ships, and was killed at Marj al-Suffar in Abu Bakr's caliphate.Sa'id ibn Amr al-Tamimi
Of Banu Tamim, maternal half-brother of Bishr ibn al-Harith al-Sahmi; he emigrated to Abyssinia and was killed at Ajnadayn in Abu Bakr's caliphate.Umayr ibn Ri'ab
Of Banu Sahm; he emigrated to Abyssinia and was killed at Ayn al-Tamr with Khalid ibn al-Walid in Abu Bakr's caliphate.Abdullah ibn Sufyan al-Makhzumi
Of Banu Makhzum, brother of Habbar ibn Sufyan; he emigrated to Abyssinia. Ibn Ishaq says he was killed in the year of the Yarmuk, while expressing doubt about it.Al-Sa'ib ibn al-Harith
Of Banu Sahm; he emigrated to Abyssinia, was wounded with the Prophet at al-Ta'if and was killed on the day of Fahl in Umar's caliphate; it is also said he was killed on the day of Khaybar, which is doubted.Jabir ibn Sufyan
Son of Sufyan ibn Ma'mar and Hasana; he emigrated with them to Abyssinia and died in Umar's caliphate.Junada ibn Sufyan
Son of Sufyan ibn Ma'mar and Hasana; he emigrated with them to Abyssinia and died in Umar's caliphate.Sa'id ibn al-Harith al-Sahmi
Of Banu Sahm; he emigrated to Abyssinia and was killed in the year of the Yarmuk in Umar's caliphate.Sufyan ibn Ma'mar
Of Banu Jumah; he emigrated to Abyssinia with his two sons Junada and Jabir and his wife Hasana, and died in Umar's caliphate.Abu Ayyub al-Ansari
The Najjari Ansari who took the Prophet's baggage into his house when the she-camel knelt among Banu al-Najjar — 'a man stays with his baggage' — becoming the Prophet's host in Medina until the mosque and rooms were built.Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr
Abu Bakr's son, 'a bright, quick-witted youth' in Aisha's description, who spent the three cave nights with the fugitives, left before dawn to mingle with Quraysh by day, and brought them the news each evening.Aban ibn Sa'id ibn al-As
Of Banu Abd Shams, brother of Khalid and Amr the sons of Sa'id; Ibn Ishaq attributes to him verses addressed to his brothers when they became Muslim, and Khalid answered him.Abdullah ibn al-Harith the Poet
Of Banu Sahm, whom Ibn Ishaq calls 'the poet'; he emigrated to Abyssinia and died there.Abdullah ibn al-Muttalib ibn Azhar
Born in the land of Abyssinia to his father al-Muttalib ibn Azhar and his mother Ramla bint Abi Awf.Abdullah ibn Hudhafa al-Sahmi
Of Banu Sahm; he emigrated to Abyssinia. Ibn Ishaq describes him as the Messenger of God's envoy to the Chosroes.Abdullah ibn Ja'far
Son of Ja'far ibn Abi Talib and Asma bint Umays, born in the land of Abyssinia.Abdullah ibn Urayqit
The Laythi tracker hired as guide for the Hijra — 'a skilled guide' still on Quraysh's religion, whom they nonetheless entrusted; he led the party by the little-used coastal road to Medina.Abu al-Rum ibn Umayr
Of Banu Abd al-Dar; Ibn Ishaq names him among the rest of the emigrants to Abyssinia.Abu Burayda al-Aslami
A tribal chief who rode out hunting the Quraysh bounty on the Prophet's head, but on meeting him embraced Islam on the spot with seventy of his people, and raised his turban on his spear as a banner of safe-conduct.Abu Hatib ibn Amr
A Companion of Banu Amir ibn Lu'ayy; he emigrated to Abyssinia and arrived in the two ships.Abu Musa al-Ashari
Companion from the Ashari tribe, a client of the family of Utba ibn Rabi'a; came to the Prophet on the two ships from Abyssinia. Known as a jurist, expert Qur'an reciter and governor of Basra and Kufa under Umar.Adi ibn Nadla
Of Banu Adi ibn Ka'b; he emigrated to Abyssinia with his son al-Nu'man and died there.A'isha bint al-Harith ibn Khalid
Daughter of al-Harith ibn Khalid and Rayta, born in the land of Abyssinia; she died on the road with her mother, her sister and her brother.Al-Aswad ibn Nawfal
A Companion of Banu Asad ibn Abd al-Uzza; he emigrated to Abyssinia and arrived in the two ships.Al-Harith ibn Abd Qays
A Companion of Banu al-Harith ibn Fihr; he emigrated to Abyssinia and arrived in the two ships.Al-Harith ibn al-Harith al-Sahmi
Of Banu Sahm; he emigrated to Abyssinia. Ibn Ishaq mentions him without recording his fate.Al-Harith ibn Hatib
Son of Hatib ibn al-Harith and Fatima bint al-Mujallal; he arrived with his mother and brother in one of the ships.Al-Harith ibn Khalid ibn Sakhr
A Companion of Banu Taym ibn Murra; he emigrated to Abyssinia with his wife Rayta and arrived in the two ships.Al-Muttalib ibn Azhar
Of Banu Zuhra; he emigrated to Abyssinia with his wife Ramla bint Abi Awf and died there, and his son Abdullah was born to him there.Al-Nu'man ibn Adi
Son of Adi ibn Nadla; he accompanied his father to Abyssinia and arrived from there. Umar later appointed him over Maysan and dismissed him after verses were attributed to him.Ama bint Khalid ibn Sa'id
Daughter of Khalid ibn Sa'id ibn al-As and Amina bint Khalf, born in the land of Abyssinia.Amir ibn al-Waqqas
A Companion of Banu Zuhra; he emigrated to Abyssinia and arrived in the two ships.Amina bint Khalf
Wife of Khalid ibn Sa'id ibn al-As; she emigrated with him to Abyssinia and bore him Sa'id and Ama there.Amr ibn Jahm
Son of Jahm ibn Qays; he accompanied his father to Abyssinia and arrived with him in the two ships.Amr ibn Umayya
An emigrant of Banu Asad ibn Abd al-Uzza who died in the land of Abyssinia; not to be confused with Amr ibn Umayya al-Damri, whom the Prophet sent to the Negus.Amr ibn Uthman
Of Banu Taym ibn Murra; he emigrated to Abyssinia and was killed at al-Qadisiyya with Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas.Umra bint al-Sa'di
Wife of Malik ibn Rabi'a, of Banu Amir ibn Lu'ayy; she emigrated with him to Abyssinia.Baraka bint Yasar
Freedwoman of Abu Sufyan ibn Harb, wife of Qays ibn Abdullah al-Asadi; she was a foster-nurse to Ubaydullah ibn Jahsh and Umm Habiba and emigrated with them to Abyssinia.Bishr ibn al-Harith al-Sahmi
Of Banu Sahm; he emigrated to Abyssinia. Ibn Ishaq mentions after him a maternal half-brother of his from Banu Tamim.Fatima bint al-Harith ibn Khalid
Daughter of al-Harith ibn Khalid and Rayta, born in the land of Abyssinia; she is the only one of Rayta's children who survived.Fatima bint al-Mujallal
Wife of Hatib ibn al-Harith al-Jumahi; she emigrated to Abyssinia and arrived with her two sons in one of the ships.Fatima bint Safwan
Wife of Amr ibn Sa'id ibn al-As, of Kinana; she emigrated with him to Abyssinia and died there.Firas ibn al-Nadr
Of Banu Abd al-Dar; Ibn Ishaq names him among the rest of the emigrants to Abyssinia.Fukayha bint Yasar
Wife of Hattab ibn al-Harith al-Jumahi; she emigrated to Abyssinia and arrived in one of the ships after her husband died there.Habiba bint Ubaydullah
Daughter of Ubaydullah ibn Jahsh and Umm Habiba; her mother was called Umm Habiba after her. Her mother took her out of Mecca and brought her back.Hasana, Umm Shurahbil
Wife of Sufyan ibn Ma'mar al-Jumahi and mother of Junada and Jabir, and mother of Shurahbil ibn Hasana; she emigrated to Abyssinia.Hatib ibn al-Harith
Of Banu Jumah; he emigrated to Abyssinia with his wife Fatima bint al-Mujallal and his two sons Muhammad and al-Harith, and died there a Muslim.Hattab ibn al-Harith
Of Banu Jumah, brother of Hatib ibn al-Harith; he emigrated to Abyssinia with his wife Fukayha bint Yasar and died there a Muslim.Hisham ibn Abi Hudhayfa
Of Banu Makhzum; Ibn Ishaq names him among the emigrants to Abyssinia. Ibn Abd al-Barr, cited in the editors' margin, reports that al-Waqidi says 'Hashim ibn Abi Hudhayfa'.Iyad ibn Zuhayr
Of Banu al-Harith ibn Fihr; he emigrated to Abyssinia — the third of the three men Ibn Ishaq names from Banu al-Harith among the rest of the emigrants.Jahm ibn Qays
A Companion of Banu Abd al-Dar; he emigrated to Abyssinia with his wife and two children and arrived in the two ships.Khuzayma ibn Jahm
Son of Jahm ibn Qays; he accompanied his father to Abyssinia and arrived with him in the two ships.Kulthum ibn al-Hidm
The Ansari of Banu Amr ibn Awf who hosted the Prophet at Quba — the better-attested report, though Sa'd ibn Khaythama is also named — and hosted Ali again when he caught up from Mecca.Layla bint Abi Hathma
Of Banu Adi ibn Ka'b; Ibn Ishaq names her among the women emigrants to Abyssinia.Mahmiyya ibn al-Jazu'
A Companion of Zubayd, ally of Banu Sahm; he emigrated to Abyssinia and arrived in the two ships, and the Prophet put him in charge of the Muslims' fifth.Malik ibn Rabi'a
A Companion of Banu Amir ibn Lu'ayy; he emigrated to Abyssinia with his wife Umra and arrived in the two ships.Ma'mar ibn Abdullah ibn Nadla
A Companion of Banu Adi ibn Ka'b; he emigrated to Abyssinia and arrived in the two ships.Ma'mar ibn al-Harith al-Sahmi
Of Banu Sahm; he emigrated to Abyssinia. Ibn Ishaq mentions him without recording his fate.Mu'ayqib ibn Abi Fatima
An emigrant to Abyssinia who arrived in the two ships; he was Umar ibn al-Khattab's keeper of the Muslims' treasury, and his tie was to the family of Sa'id ibn al-As.Muhammad ibn Abi Hudhayfa
Born in the land of Abyssinia to his father Abu Hudhayfa; Ibn Ishaq names him among 'their children in Abyssinia' of Banu Abd Shams.Muhammad ibn Hatib
Son of Hatib ibn al-Harith and Fatima bint al-Mujallal; he arrived with his mother and brother in one of the ships.Musa ibn al-Harith ibn Khalid
Son of al-Harith ibn Khalid and Rayta bint al-Harith, born in the land of Abyssinia; he died on the road.Qays ibn Abdullah al-Asadi
A man of Banu Asad ibn Khuzayma; he emigrated to Abyssinia with his wife Baraka bint Yasar. Ibn Ishaq describes him as a foster-nurse of Ubaydullah ibn Jahsh and Umm Habiba.Qays ibn Hudhafa
Of Banu Sahm; he emigrated to Abyssinia. Ibn Ishaq mentions him without describing his fate.Ramla bint Abi Awf
Of Banu Sahm, wife of al-Muttalib ibn Azhar al-Zuhri; she emigrated to Abyssinia and bore her son Abdullah there.Rayta bint al-Harith ibn Jubayla
Wife of al-Harith ibn Khalid; she emigrated to Abyssinia and died. The book's context differs on where she died — in the land of Abyssinia or on the road.Sahla bint Suhayl
Of Banu Amir ibn Lu'ayy; Ibn Ishaq names her among the women emigrants to Abyssinia.Sa'd ibn Abd Qays
Of Banu al-Harith ibn Fihr; he emigrated to Abyssinia — the second of the three men Ibn Ishaq names from Banu al-Harith among the rest of the emigrants.Sa'id ibn al-As Abu Uhayha
Father of Khalid, Amr and Aban; he died at al-Zurayba in the direction of al-Ta'if over property of his, and Ibn Ishaq transmits verses he addressed to his son Amr.Sa'id ibn Khalid ibn Sa'id
Son of Khalid ibn Sa'id ibn al-As and Amina bint Khalf, born in the land of Abyssinia.Salit ibn Amr
Of Banu Amir ibn Lu'ayy; he emigrated to Abyssinia. Ibn Ishaq describes him as the Messenger of God's envoy to Hawdha ibn Ali al-Hanafi in al-Yamama.Shurahbil ibn Hasana
Brother of Junada and Jabir through their mother Hasana; Ibn Ishaq names him with the family of Sufyan ibn Ma'mar al-Jumahi among the emigrants to Abyssinia.Suraqa ibn Malik
A Mudliji horseman who chased the bounty on the fugitives; when his mare sank beneath him twice he sought safe-conduct instead, and spent the rest of the day turning pursuers away — 'the day's beginning against them, its end guarding them'.Ubaydullah ibn Jahsh
Of Banu Asad ibn Khuzayma, ally of Banu Umayya; he emigrated to Abyssinia with his wife Umm Habiba. Ibn Ishaq records that he became Christian there, left Islam and died a Christian, and the Prophet married Umm Habiba after him.Umm Harmala bint Abd al-Aswad
Wife of Jahm ibn Qays; she emigrated with him to Abyssinia and died there.Umm Kulthum bint Suhayl
Of Banu Amir ibn Lu'ayy; Ibn Ishaq names her among the women emigrants to Abyssinia.Umm Ma'bad
A Khuza'ite woman whose wayside tent the Hijra party passed; in a lean year she let the Prophet milk her worn-out ewe, which yielded foaming milk for all — the context of her famous description of him.Urwa ibn Abd al-Uzza
Of Banu Adi ibn Ka'b; he emigrated to Abyssinia and died there.Utba ibn Mas'ud
A Companion of Hudhayl, ally of Banu Zuhra; he emigrated to Abyssinia and arrived in the two ships.Uthman ibn Abd Ghanm
Of Banu al-Harith ibn Fihr; he emigrated to Abyssinia — one of three men Ibn Ishaq names from that clan.Uthman ibn Rabi'a
A Companion of Banu Jumah; he emigrated to Abyssinia and arrived in the two ships.Zaynab bint Abi Salama
Born in the land of Abyssinia to her father Abu Salama and her mother Umm Salama; she arrived with her mother.Zaynab bint al-Harith ibn Khalid
Daughter of al-Harith ibn Khalid and Rayta, born in the land of Abyssinia; she died on the road with her mother, her sister and her brother.
Group
The early Muslim community
The first generation of believers gathered around the Prophet in Mecca and Medina — the persecuted handful of the first decade that became the founding community of Islam.The Muhajirun
'The Emigrants' — the Muslims who left Mecca for Abyssinia and then Medina, giving up home and property for the faith; the community's founding layer in the Prophet's city.
Event
The first migration to Abyssinia
c. 615 CEIn Rajab of the fifth year of prophethood, twelve men and four women — led by Uthman ibn Affan with the Prophet's daughter Ruqayya — slipped away by night to the port of Shu'ayba and sailed in two merchant ships to the kingdom of the Negus, 'a just king under whom no one is wronged'; most returned in Shawwal on the false report that Quraysh had converted.The second migration to Abyssinia
c. 616 CEWhen torture intensified after the first migrants' brief return, eighty-three men — Ammar's inclusion doubtful — and eighteen or nineteen women migrated again to Abyssinia; Quraysh sent Amr ibn al-As and Abdullah ibn Abi Rabi'a to win them back, but the Negus heard Ja'far ibn Abi Talib's account and sura Maryam, refused to surrender them, and returned the envoys' gifts.The brotherhood of the Muhajirun and Ansar
c. 622 CE · 1 AHThe Prophet paired emigrants from Mecca with helpers from Medina as brothers, sharing support in the first months after the Hijra.The Hijra
c. 12 September 622 CE · c. 29 Safar 1 AH†The migration of the Prophet Muhammad and his followers from Mecca to Medina in 622 CE, the event from which the Islamic calendar is counted.The departure night of the Hijra
c. 12 September 622 CE · c. 29 Safar 1 AH†The night of 27 Safar when eleven Quraysh chiefs surrounded the Prophet's house to kill him at dawn; Ali slept in his bed wrapped in his green Hadrami cloak while the Prophet walked through the cordon unscathed and reached Abu Bakr's house.The three nights in the cave of Thawr
c. 13 September 622 CE · c. 1 Rabi' I 1 AH†The Prophet and Abu Bakr hid in the cave of Thawr for the nights of Friday, Saturday and Sunday while Quraysh combed the country offering a hundred camels for each man; their pursuers reached the cave's mouth and turned back.The sojourn at Quba
23 September 622 CE · 8 Rabi' I 1 AHThe Prophet's stay at Quba from Monday 8 Rabi' I 1 AH: hosted by Kulthum ibn al-Hidm, he founded the mosque of Quba — the first mosque 'upon taqwa' — before riding to Medina on Friday; the length of the stay is debated (four days per Ibn Ishaq, up to 24 nights in Bukhari).Return of the Abyssinian emigrants with Ja'far ibn Abi Talib
c. 628 CE · c. 7 AHAfter Hudaybiyya, the Prophet sent Amr ibn Umayya al-Damri to the Negus, who transported the remaining Muslim emigrants in two ships to the Prophet at Khaybar after the conquest. The Prophet received Ja'far with a kiss between the eyes, saying 'I do not know which gives me greater joy — the opening of Khaybar or the arrival of Ja'far.' Sixteen men came on the two ships; thirty-four others came later or died in Abyssinia; sixteen women emigrated in all, counting those who came back and those who died there, apart from daughters born there.
Concept
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