❖ Source: Fatāwā Muḥammadiyyah, Volume 1, Page 694
What is the ruling, according to the scholars of Islam, regarding the marriage of a Sayyidah (descendant of the Prophet ﷺ) woman with a non-Sayyid man?
Please explain in the light of Qur’an and Sunnah.
الحمد لله، والصلاة والسلام علىٰ رسول الله، أما بعد!
✔ A Sayyidah woman marrying a non-Sayyid man is completely permissible in Islam.
✔ There is no prohibition or invalidity in such a marriage.
Proof:
Sayyidah Zaynab رضي الله عنها, the daughter of the Prophet Muḥammad ﷺ, was married to Abū al-ʿĀṣ ibn Rabīʿ رضي الله عنه.
✔ Two of the Prophet’s ﷺ daughters, Sayyidah Ruqayyah and Sayyidah Umm Kulthūm رضي الله عنهما, were married (one after the other) to ʿUthmān ibn ʿAffān رضي الله عنه.
✔ Sayyidah Umm Kulthūm, daughter of ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib and Fāṭimah al-Zahrā’ رضي الله عنهما,
was married to ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb رضي الله عنه.
✔ Even Shi’ah sources record this incident, including:
✔ Nowhere in the Qur’an or authentic Sunnah is there any verse or ḥadīth prohibiting a Sayyidah from marrying a non-Sayyid.
✔ Islam does not regard lineage or family status as a measure of superiority.
❖ Instead, the only true standard of virtue is taqwā (piety).
From the above detailed evidences and examples:
✔ It is completely permissible for a Sayyidah woman to marry a non-Sayyid man.
✔ There is no restriction, condition, or Sharʿī objection to such a marriage.
✔ Lineage does not override the principles of Sharīʿah and equality in Islam.
❖ Question:
What is the ruling, according to the scholars of Islam, regarding the marriage of a Sayyidah (descendant of the Prophet ﷺ) woman with a non-Sayyid man?
Please explain in the light of Qur’an and Sunnah.
❖ Answer:
الحمد لله، والصلاة والسلام علىٰ رسول الله، أما بعد!
➊ Permissibility of Sayyidah Marrying a Non-Sayyid
✔ A Sayyidah woman marrying a non-Sayyid man is completely permissible in Islam.
✔ There is no prohibition or invalidity in such a marriage.
Proof:Sayyidah Zaynab رضي الله عنها, the daughter of the Prophet Muḥammad ﷺ, was married to Abū al-ʿĀṣ ibn Rabīʿ رضي الله عنه.
- Abū al-ʿĀṣ was not considered a Sayyid according to contemporary lineage definitions.
- He was likely not even from Banū Hāshim, the clan of the Prophet ﷺ.
- This fact is explicitly mentioned in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī.
(Ibn Kathīr, Vol. 1, p. 232)
➋ Other Examples from the Marriages of the Prophet’s Daughters
✔ Two of the Prophet’s ﷺ daughters, Sayyidah Ruqayyah and Sayyidah Umm Kulthūm رضي الله عنهما, were married (one after the other) to ʿUthmān ibn ʿAffān رضي الله عنه.
- He was from the Umayyad clan of Quraysh and not from Banū Hāshim, and thus not a Sayyid by the common standard.
- These historical facts are well-established and universally known.
- They are recorded in authentic aḥādīth and reliable Islamic historical sources.
(Tārīkh Ibn Kathīr, Vol. 1, p. 232)
➌ Marriage of Sayyidah Umm Kulthūm bint ʿAlī رضي الله عنها
✔ Sayyidah Umm Kulthūm, daughter of ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib and Fāṭimah al-Zahrā’ رضي الله عنهما,
was married to ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb رضي الله عنه.
- From this union, Zayd ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنه was born.
- Zayd remained alive even after the martyrdom of ʿUmar رضي الله عنه.
- This is clearly mentioned in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī:
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: Ḥaml al-Nisā’..., Vol. 1, p. 413; Dhikr Umm Sulayṭ, Vol. 2, p. 582)
✔ Even Shi’ah sources record this incident, including:
- Iḥtijāj Ṭabarsī
- Tawḍīḥ al-Aḥkām (by Shaykh Ṭūsī)
- al-Istibṣār (by Shaykh Ṭūsī)
- Majālis al-Mu’minīn
➍ Foundational Principle from the Qur’an & Sunnah
✔ Nowhere in the Qur’an or authentic Sunnah is there any verse or ḥadīth prohibiting a Sayyidah from marrying a non-Sayyid.
✔ Islam does not regard lineage or family status as a measure of superiority.
❖ Instead, the only true standard of virtue is taqwā (piety).
Conclusion:
From the above detailed evidences and examples:
✔ It is completely permissible for a Sayyidah woman to marry a non-Sayyid man.
✔ There is no restriction, condition, or Sharʿī objection to such a marriage.
✔ Lineage does not override the principles of Sharīʿah and equality in Islam.
