Umar was born on January 3, 584, in Mecca to the Banu Adi clan, which was responsible for arbitration among the tribes. His father was Khattab ibn Nufayl and his mother was Hantama bint Hisham, from the tribe of Banu Makhzum. He is said to have belonged to a middle-class family.
Because Omar was one of the most adamant opponents of Mohammed's preaching in Mecca, his dramatically sudden conversion to Islam in 615 is often regarded as a turning point in the career of the Prophet. The fierce loyalty which he gave to Mohammed, both as a warrior in the battles against the Meccans and as an adviser, was reinforced by marriage when his daughter Hafsa married the Prophet.
Nevertheless, in spite of his vigorous support of the Prophet, Omar does not figure prominently in Islamic history until the death of Mohammed in 632, and even then it is as a supporter of Abu Bakr, the first caliph, whose selection Omar imposed on the divided Moslem community by the sheer force of his own personality. Although some modern historians have claimed that Omar was the real power behind the throne during Abu Bakr's short reign (632-634), Omar was careful—if this theory is sound—to stay in the background, perhaps realizing that more vigorous leadership might be resented by the Arab Moslems so soon after the death of their beloved Prophet.
At any rate, upon Abu Bakr's death in 634, Omar assumed the caliphate in his own right, apparently without opposition. The immediate task confronting him was to direct the two-pronged military campaign (which had been launched in 633 by Abu Bakr) against the Byzantines in Palestine and Syria and the Sassanians in Iraq. In both fields of battle, Omar gave new energy to his armies by sending new levies of tribal troops. Thus reinforced, the Syrian army, led by the famous general Khalid ibn al-Walid, captured Damascus in 635 and, in the following year, smashed the Byzantine army in Syria at the battle of Yarmuk. Further successful campaigns in Syria led to the conquest of Jerusalem in 638. Because Jerusalem was the third holiest city in Islam, after Mecca and Medina, Omar himself visited it as a conqueror. Typically, however, he insisted on presenting himself as a simple dessert warrior rather than a mighty potentate.
Simultaneously with the conquest of Syria and Palestine, another of Omar's armies was driving the Persian army from Iraq. Here the decisive battle was fought in 636 at Qadisiya, where a Moslem victory left the Sassanian capital of Ctesiphon virtually defenseless and open to plunder by the Arabs. Once the conquest of Syria had been achieved, the Syrian army was free to attack upper Mesopotamia from the west, and it came under the control of the caliphate in 640.
The conquest of such a vast area in such a relatively short time soon created formidable administrative problems for Omar. Since the Arabs had no experience as rulers of an empire, they were forced to rely to a great extent on the bureaucracies created by the Byzantine and Sassanian governments. Nevertheless, Omar is credited with introducing several new administrative practices and institutions which, in conjunction with the customary practice of the conquered lands, gave stability to the Arab occupation and allowed the conquests to maintain their momentum.
Tradition would have it that Omar announced his innovations in a speech made to the Arab military leaders during a lull in the fighting between the battle of Yarmuk and the occupation of Jerusalem. Though this tradition may well be a reconstruction of the gradual evolution of early Moslem policy, it is probable that Omar did lay down guidelines, at least for the solution of pressing problems. Almost all these were related to finances: how to pay the troops and support the Moslem community on a long-term basis without disrupting the economy of the conquered lands.
In general, Omar's solution was to leave the conquered peoples in possession of their lands and their own religion in exchange for the payment of tribute which was to be disbursed in turn by the Moslem government to its armies and citizens. To institutionalize this policy, a divan, or register, was drawn up which regularized the stipends which Moslems were to be paid according to religious and tribal principles. Relations between Moslems and non-Moslems were further stabilized by exempting the latter from military service and guaranteeing them protection in return for the taxes which they paid.
Undoubtedly of equal importance to these measures was Omar's decision to establish garrison cities, first in Iraq, and later in Egypt, to administer the newly conquered territory and to serve as bases for the invasion of Persia. In this way, Basra and Kufa were founded by Omar in 635, both of which were to become important centers of Islamic civilization. From these cities, Omar launched an invasion of Persia in 640 which was climaxed by the defeat of the Sassanian army at the battle of Nihawand in 642; the resultant collapse of Sassanian power opened Persia to relatively easy conquest.
At the same time as Omar's armies were achieving victory in Persia, still, another army was invading Egypt. Between 639 and 642, the Arabs succeeded in driving the Byzantines from Egypt and establishing a Moslem government there. Again Omar's policy of establishing new garrison cities was followed with the founding of al-Fustât, later to become Cairo.
With astonishing speed, Omar succeeded in spreading the Arab Moslem rule from Persia to Egypt under his political and religious leadership. He was also able to establish a remarkable degree of unity in the empire through the appointment of provincial officials loyal to him and his principles and by setting a stern example of piety and morality at the capital. He is celebrated in Arabic historiography for his unaffected, rough manner, coupled with devotion to his religion—the prototype of the unspoiled Arab ruler. A Persian slave, outraged by Omar's refusal to reduce a heavy tax, mortally wounded the Caliph in 644 while Omar was leading the prayers. Refusing to name his successor on his deathbed, he established still another precedent by appointing a council to choose the new caliph.
Umar converted to Islam in 616, one year after the Migration to Abyssinia. The story was recounted in Ibn Ishaq's Sīrah. On his way to murder Muhammad, Umar met his best friend Nua'im bin Abdullah who had secretly converted to Islam but had not told Umar. When Umar informed him that he had set out to kill Muhammad, Nua'im said, “By God, you have deceived yourself, O Umar! Do you think that Banu Abd Manaf would let you run around alive once you had killed their son Muhammad? Why don't you return to your own house and at least set it straight?”.
Nuaimal Hakim told him to inquire about his own house where his sister and her husband had converted to Islam. Upon arriving at her house, Umar found his sister and brother-in-law Saeed bin Zaid (Umar's cousin) reciting the verses of the Quran from sura Ta-Ha. He started quarreling with his brother-in-law. When his sister came to rescue her husband, he also started quarreling with her. Yet still they kept on saying "you may kill us but we will not give up Islam". Upon hearing these words, Umar slapped his sister so hard that she fell to the ground bleeding from her mouth. When he saw what he did to his sister, he calmed down out of guilt and asked his sister to give him what she was reciting. His sister replied in the negative and said "You are unclean, and no unclean person can touch the Scripture. " He insisted, but his sister was not prepared to allow him to touch the pages unless he washed his body. Umar at last gave in. He washed his body and then began to read the verses that were: Verily, I am Allah: there is no God but Me; so serve Me (only), and establish regular prayer for My remembrance (Quran 20:14). He wept and declared, "Surely this is the word of Allah. I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. " On hearing this, Hadhrat Khabbab came out from inside and said: "O, Umar! Glad tidings for you. Yesterday Muhammad prayed to Allah, 'O, Allah! Strengthen Islam with either Umar or Abu Jahl, whomsoever Thou likest. ' It seems that his prayer has been answered in your favour. "
Umar then went to Muhammad with the same sword he intended to kill him with and accepted Islam in front of him and his companions. Umar was 39 years old when he accepted Islam.
Following his conversion, Umar went to inform the chief of Quraish, Amr ibn Hishām, about his acceptance of Islam. According to one account, Umar thereafter openly prayed at the Kaaba as the Quraish chiefs, Amr ibn Hishām and Abu Sufyan ibn Harb, reportedly watched in anger. This further helped the Muslims to gain confidence in practicing Islam openly. At this stage Umar even challenged anyone who dared to stop the Muslims from praying, although no one dared to interfere with Umar when he was openly praying.
Umar's conversion to Islam granted power to the Muslims and to the Islamic faith in Mecca. It was after this event that Muslims offered prayers openly in Masjid al-Haram for the first time. Abdullah bin Masoud said,
Umar's embracing Islam was our victory, his migration to Medina was our success, and his reign a blessing from Allah. We didn't offer prayers in Al-Haram Mosque until Umar had accepted Islam. When he accepted Islam, the Quraysh were compelled to let us pray in the Mosque.
Quotations:
“He who keeps his own counsel keeps his affairs in his own hands. ”
“Fear him, whom you hate. ”
“The wisest man is he who can account for his actions. ”
“Do not put off today’s work for tomorrow. ”
“Money cannot help lifting its head. ”
“What regresses, never progresses. ”
“He who does now know evil will fall into it. ”
“When a man puts me a question, I judge of his intelligence. ”
“Don’t forget your own self while preaching to others. ”
“The less of the World, the freer you live. ”
“Avoidance of sin is lighter than the pain of remorse. ”
“On every dishonest man, there are two watchmen, his possessions, and his way of living. ”
“If patience and gratitude had been she camels, it would have mattered little on which I rode. ”
“May Allah have mercy on him who sends me my faults as a present. ”
“Preserve the sayings of those people who are indifferent to the world. They say only that what Allah wishes them to say. ”
“Fear Allah, for He alone lives; all other things are liable to perish. ”
“The wisest among you is he whose sustenance is the fear of Allah. ”
“Praise Allah, for by praise His blessings multiply. ”
“Fear Allah, for that is fortune; indifference to Allah is misfortune. ”
“Be patient; patience is a pillar of faith. ”
Umar was strong, fit, athletic. From first hand accounts of his physical appearance Umar is said to be vigorous, robust and a very tall man, in markets he would tower above the people. The front part of his head was bald, always A'sara Yusran (working with two hands), both his eyes were black, with yellow skin, however, ibn Sa'ad in his book stated that he never knew that 'Umar had yellow skin, except if the people took into criterion a certain part of his life where his color changed because he always ate oil at that part of his life. Others say he had reddish-white skin. His teeth were ashnabul asnan (very white shining). He would always color his beard and take care of his hair using a type of plant.
Early Muslim historians Ibn Saad and Al-Hakim mention that Abu Miriam Zir, a native of Kufa, described Umar as being "advanced in years, bald, of a tawny colour – a left handed man, tall and towering above the people". Umar's eldest son Abdullah described his father as "a man of fair complexion, a ruddy tint prevailing, tall, bald and grey". Historian Salima bin al-Akwa'a said that "Umar was ambidextrous, he could use both his hands equally well". On the authority of Abu Raja al-U'taridi, Ibn Asakir records that "Umar was a man tall, stout, very bald, very ruddy with scanty hair on the cheeks, his moustaches large, and the ends thereof reddish".
Umar married nine women in his lifetime and had fourteen children: ten sons and four daughters.
He was an Arab from the tribe of Quraish. He lived during the 6th century and was a contemporary of Muhammad.
She was a wife of Umar and a companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.
She was daughter of Harith al Makhzumi (ibn Hisham ibn Mughirah ibn Abdallah ibn Umar ibn Makhzum).
She was a poet who is notable for having married Muslim men who died as shahids.
She was from the Makhzum clan of the Quraysh tribe in Mecca. Her father, Abu Umayya ibn Al-Mughira,:184 was the chief of Mecca in the early seventh century.
She was a daughter of Abu Bakr and Habiba bint Kharija.
She was the daughter of Thabit ibn Abi al-Aflah and Al-Shamus bint Abi Amir, who were both from the 'Amr ibn Awf clan of the Aws tribe in Medina.
She was the first wife of Umar.
He was a wife of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and therefore a Mother of the Believers.
He was the second Sunni Caliph.
He was a prominent authority in hadith and law, and was known for his neutrality toward factions engaged in the first civil war within the Muslim community (656–661).
