❖ Marriage of Umm Kulthum bint Ali (رضي الله عنها) to Umar ibn al-Khattab (رضي الله عنه)
(Source: Fatāwā ʿIlmiyyah – Tawḍīḥ al-Aḥkām, vol. 2, p. 545)
Question:
Is it true that ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (رضي الله عنه) married Umm Kulthūm, the daughter of ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib (رضي الله عنه)? Can this be proven from both Sunni and Shia sources?
Answer:
Alḥamdulillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu wa-s-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, ʾAmma baʿd!
Yes — this marriage is historically established and is recorded in the reliable works of both Ahl al-Sunnah and Shia scholarship. Below is a detailed presentation of the evidence:
Sunni Sources of Evidence
1. Evidence from Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī
Narration: Thaʿlabah ibn Abī Mālik al-Qurazī (رحمه الله) reports:
ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (رضي الله عنه) distributed cloaks among the women of Madinah. One new cloak remained, and people suggested: “O Amīr al-Muʾminīn! Give it to the granddaughter of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ who is in your house.” They meant Umm Kulthūm bint ʿAlī (رضي الله عنها). But ʿUmar said: “Umm Sulayṭ (رضي الله عنها) is more deserving.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 2881; Maktabah Islāmiyyah, 4/212)
2. Funeral of Umm Kulthūm and Zayd ibn ʿUmar
Narrated by Nāfiʿ (مولى ابن عمر):
“The funeral of Umm Kulthūm bint ʿAlī, the wife of ʿUmar, and her son Zayd (ibn ʿUmar) was brought.”
(Sunan al-Nasāʾī 4/71–72, ḥadīth 1980; Ibn al-Jārūd 545; al-Nawawī in al-Majmūʿ 5/224; Ibn Ḥajar in al-Talkhīṣ al-Ḥabīr 2/146, ḥadīth 807)
3. Report from Imām al-Shaʿbī
“Ibn ʿUmar (رضي الله عنه) led the funeral prayer over his brother Zayd ibn ʿUmar and his mother Umm Kulthūm bint ʿAlī (رحمهما الله).”
(Musnad ʿAlī ibn al-Jaʿd 593; Muṣannaf Ibn Abī Shaybah 3/315, ḥadīth 1157)
4. Testimony of ʿAbdullah al-Bahī
“I saw Ibn ʿUmar (رضي الله عنه) lead the funeral prayer over Umm Kulthūm and Zayd ibn ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb.”
(Ṭabaqāt Ibn Saʿd 8/464)
And ʿAmmār ibn Abī ʿAmmār said:
“I was also present at this funeral.”
(Ṭabaqāt Ibn Saʿd 8/465)
Statements of Ahl al-Bayt
5. Imām Zayn al-ʿĀbidīn (رحمه الله):
ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (رضي الله عنه) sought Umm Kulthūm’s hand from ʿAlī (رضي الله عنه). ʿAlī said: “I had reserved her for my nephew ʿAbdullāh ibn Jaʿfar.” ʿUmar replied: “By Allah, none will desire her as I do.” The marriage then took place, and ʿUmar sought congratulations from the Muhājirīn.
(al-Mustadrak lil-Ḥākim 3/142, ḥadīth 4684; Sīrah Ibn Isḥāq p. 275–276)
6. Imām Muḥammad al-Bāqir (رحمه الله):
“ʿUmar asked for Umm Kulthūm’s hand, ʿAlī initially refused, then married her to him.”
(Sunan Saʿīd ibn Manṣūr 1/146, ḥadīth 520; Ṭabaqāt Ibn Saʿd 8/463)
7–10. Other Early Reports:
- ʿĀṣim ibn ʿUmar ibn Qatādah: “ʿUmar married Umm Kulthūm bint ʿAlī, the granddaughter of the Messenger ﷺ.” (Sīrah Ibn Isḥāq p. 275)
- Ibn Isḥāq: “She bore Zayd and a daughter to ʿUmar.” (Sīrah Ibn Isḥāq p. 275)
- ʿAṭāʾ al-Khurasānī: “ʿUmar gave her forty thousand dirhams as mahr.” (Ṭabaqāt Ibn Saʿd 8/463, 466)
- al-Zuhrī: “Umm Kulthūm bore Zayd to ʿUmar.” (Tārīkh Dimashq 21/342)
Also recorded in: al-Tārīkh al-Awsaṭ (al-Bukhārī), Kitāb al-Jarḥ wa-l-Taʿdīl (Ibn Abī Ḥātim), Kitāb al-Thiqāt (Ibn Ḥibbān) and others.
Ahl al-Sunnah Consensus:
There is consensus among Sunni scholars on the occurrence of this marriage.
Shia Sources of Evidence
1. al-Kāfī (al-Kulaynī):
“When ʿUmar passed away, ʿAlī took Umm Kulthūm back to his home.”
(al-Furūʿ min al-Kāfī 6/115)
2. Report from Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq (رحمه الله):
“This marriage was taken from us.” (al-Furūʿ min al-Kāfī 5/346) — Note: Sunni scholars classify this narration as fabricated.
3. Another Report from Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq:
“After ʿUmar’s death, ʿAlī took Umm Kulthūm by the hand and returned home.” (al-Furūʿ min al-Kāfī 6/115–116)
4. al-Istibṣār (Shaykh al-Ṭūsī):
Similar report confirming her return to ʿAlī’s household. (al-Istibṣār 3/472, ḥadīth 1258)
5–10. Additional References:
Tahdhīb al-Aḥkām (8/161, 9/262), al-Shāfī (al-Murtaḍā), Manāqib Āl Abī Ṭālib (Ibn Shahr Āshūb), Kashf al-Ghummah (al-Arbilī), Majālis al-Muʾminīn (al-Shūshtarī), Ḥadīqat al-Shīʿah (al-Arbilī).
Conclusion
- This marriage is confirmed through multiple chains and historical reports in both Sunni and Shia primary sources.
- ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (رضي الله عنه) married Umm Kulthūm bint ʿAlī (رضي الله عنها).
- She bore him Zayd ibn ʿUmar (رضي الله عنه).
- Many Companions, Tābiʿīn, and Imams of Ahl al-Bayt acknowledged it.
Notable Incident:
When the Rāfiḍī vizier Aḥmad ibn Būyah learned of this marriage, he repented, gave charity, freed slaves, and fainted from remorse. (al-Muntaẓim, Ibn al-Jawzī 14/183)
Important Note:
For ʿAlī, Fāṭimah, Ḥasan, Ḥusayn, and all Companions, the correct honorific is raḍiya Allāhu ʿanhu/ʿanhā/ʿanhum — not ʿalayhi/ʿalayhā/ʿalayhim al-salām.
ھذا ما عندي والله أعلم بالصواب
