Abu Talib

leader of Banu Hashim, a clan of the Qurayshi tribe of Mecca (c.535-c.619)

Abū Ṭālib ibn ‘Abd al-Muṭṭalib (Arabic: ابو طالب بن عبد المطلب; c. 539c. 619), ‘Imran Arabic: عِـمـران) or ‘Abd Manaf (Arabic: عَـبـد مَـنـاف), was the leader of Banu Hashim, a clan of the Qurayshi tribe of Mecca in the Hejaz, Arabian Peninsula. After the death of his father ‘Abd al-Muttalib, he got this position and the offices of Siqaya and Rifada.[1] He was well respected in Mecca even though he was not very rich.[2]

Abu Talib was an uncle of the Islamic Nabi (Arabic: نَـبِي, Prophet) Muhammad, and father of the Rashid CaliphAli, who is also thought as the first Shi'ite Imam. There is a great debate among Muslim scholars on whether Abū Ṭālib died a Muslim or a non-Muslim.

Abū Ṭālib died around 619, at more than 80 years of age, about 10 years after the start of Muhammad's mission.[1] This year is known as the Year of Sorrow for Muhammad, because not only did his uncle Abu Talib die, but also his wife Khadijah bint Khuwaylid, within a month of Abu Talib.

References

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  1. 1.0 1.1 Rubin, Uri (2013). Gudrun Kramer; Denis Matringe; John Nawas; Everett Rowson (eds.). Encyclopaedia of Islam, Three. Brill Online.
  2. Armstrong, Karen (1992). Muhammad: A Biography of the Prophet. San Francisco: Harper Collins. p. 77. ISBN 9780062508867.