Al-Hakam ibn Abi al-As

Al-Ḥakam ibn Abī al-ʿĀs ibn Umayya (Arabic: الحكم بن أبي العاص‎; died 655/56) was the father of the founder of the Marwanid line of the Umayyad dynasty, Marwan I (r. 684–685), and a paternal uncle of Caliph Uthman (r. 644–656). He was known as a staunch opponent of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and was consequently exiled when the latter captured their hometown of Mecca in 630. He was later pardoned, either by Muhammad or by Uthman.

Al-Hakam ibn Abi al-As
Personal details
BornMecca
Died655/56
Spouse(s)Amina bint Alqama ibn Safwan al-Kinaniyya
Relations
Children
  • Marwan
  • al-Harith
  • Yahya
  • Abd al-Rahman
  • Aban
  • Habib
  • Umm al-Banin (daughter)
ParentsAbu al-As ibn Umayya (father)

Biography

Al-Hakam was the son of Abu al-As ibn Umayya. His paternal grandfather was the progenitor of the Umayyad clan and dynasty. Al-Hakam married Amina bint Alqama ibn Safwan al-Kinaniyya after she was divorced by his brother Affan.[1] She gave birth to al-Hakam's son, Marwan, who became the Umayyad caliph in 684-685 and the progenitor of all successive Umayyad caliphs.[1] He had other sons, including al-Harith, Yahya, Abd al-Rahman, Aban and Habib and a daughter Umm al-Banin.

Al-Hakam was known to have staunchly opposed the Islamic prophet Muhammad and was thus exiled by the latter from Mecca to the nearby town of Taif.[2] According to the history of 9th-century historian al-Tabari, Muhammad later pardoned al-Hakam and he was allowed to return to his hometown.[3] However, in the history of 9th-century historian al-Yaqubi, al-Hakam was allowed to return to Mecca by his nephew, Caliph Uthman ibn Affan (r. 644–656), after his petitions to return were rejected by the previous two caliphs, Abu Bakr (r. 632–634) and Umar (r. 634–644).[4] Uthman showed special favor to his kinsmen and he symbolically honored al-Hakam, along with his Umayyad relatives Abu Sufyan and al-Walid ibn Uqba and Banu Hashim member al-Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib, by allowing them to sit on his throne in Medina.[5] Al-Hakam died in 655/56.[6]

References
  1. Donner 2014, p. 106.
  2. Humphreys 1990, p. 227, n. 48.
  3. Humphreys 1990, p. 227.
  4. Gordon 2018, p. 799.
  5. Madelung 1997, p. 109.
  6. Sears 2003, p. 10.

Bibliography
  • Donner, Fred (2014). "Was Marwan ibn al-Hakam the First "Real" Muslim". In Savant, Sarah Bowen; de Felipe, Helena (eds.). Genealogy and Knowledge in Muslim Societies: Understanding the Past. Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-0-7486-4497-1.
  • Humphreys, R. Stephen, ed. (1990). The History of al-Ṭabarī, Volume XV: The Crisis of the Early Caliphate: The Reign of ʿUthmān, A.D. 644–656/A.H. 24–35. SUNY Series in Near Eastern Studies. Albany, New York: State University of New York Press. ISBN 978-0-7914-0154-5.
  • Madelung, Wilferd (1997). The Succession to Muhammad: A Study of the Early Caliphate. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-56181-7.
  • Sears, Stuart D. (March 2003). "The Legitimation of al-Hakam b. al-'As: Umayyad Government in Seventh-Century Kirman". Iranian Studies. Taylor & Francis. 36 (1): 5–25. doi:10.1080/021086032000062587. JSTOR 4311489.
  • Gordon, Michael (2018). The Works of Ibn Wāḍiḥ al-Yaʿqūbī (Volume 3): An English Translation. Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-35619-1.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.