Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Muhammad |
MuhammadNoun1. Leader of Black Muslims who campaigned for independence for Black Americans (1897-1975). 2. The Arab prophet who founded Islam (570-632). Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
"Muhammad" is a name that signifies or is derived from: "worthy of praise", "praise". |
Date "Muhammad" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1258. (references) |
Synonyms: MuhammadSynonyms: Elijah Muhammad (n), Mahomet (n), Mahound (n), Mohammed (n). (additional references) |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
Muhammad (Also: Mohammad, Mohammed; the spelling Mahomet is no longer used) was born circa 570 in Makkah and died June 8, 632 in Medina. His full name was Abu al-Qasim Muhammad Ibn Abd Allah Ibn Abd al-Muttalib Ibn Hashim. He was the prophet of the religion of Islam and a unifier of some Arabian tribes.
Religious Muslims always say "peace be upon him" (alternatively translated as "May God Bless him and grant him peace") or "sallalahu aleyhi wasallam" (ﷺ - abbreviated as PBUH or SAW) after mentioning or writing his name.
|
Important dates and locations around Muhammad's life
|
Muhammad was born after his father Abd Allah had died. April 20, 570 is sometimes given as his birthdate. He was first placed under the care of his paternal grandfather Abd al-Muttalib who was a former leader of the prestigious Hashim clan (which was part of the tribe to Quraysh). Because the climate of Makkah was considered unhealthy Muhammad was given as an infant to a wet nurse from a nomadic tribe and spent some time in the desert. (This was a common practice among the Makkan middle and upper class.) When he was 6 Muhammad's mother Amina died and when he was 8 his grandfather Abd al-Muttalib also died. Muhammad now came under care of his uncle Abu Talib the new leader of the Hashim clan, of the Quraysh tribe - the most powerful in Makkah.
Makkah was a desert city-state whose main distinction was the Kaaba, reputedly built by Abraham, the traditional patriarch of the Jews. Most of Makka's inhabitants were idol worshippers. It was a commercial centre with no natural resources of its own, visited by many foreign traders.
As a teenager Muhammad began accompanying his uncle on trading journeys to Syria. He was thus well travelled and familiar with many foreign ways.
By all accounts Muhammad played a very active role in the civic life of his city. His uncle Zubair founded the order of chivalry known as the Hilf al-fudul, which assisted the oppressed of the city, local inhabitants and foreign visitors. Muhammad was an enthusiastic member. He assisted in some dispute resolution, most notably when the Ka'aba caught fire and burned to the ground, and the Makkan leaders all wanted the honour of fixing the sacred Black Stone in place when it was rebuilt. Muhammad was the judge chosen to solve the problem; His solution was to spread a white sheet on the ground, place the Black Stone in the middle, and ask the tribal leaders to carry it to its site by holding the corners of the sheet. Muhammad himself then fixed the stone in its place.
About 595 on a trading journey he meet Khadijah a rich widow then 40 years old. Khadijah was so impressed by the young Muhammad (then 25) that she offered him marriage. The marriage was an important turning point in Muhammad's life. By Arab custom minors did not inherit so Muhammad had received no inheritance from either father or grandfather but by his marriage he obtained a large fortune.
From last third of Muhammad's life, he began to regard himself as a prophet. He gathered sympathetic friends who accepted his claim to be a prophet and joined him in common worship and prayers.
Muhammad was of a reflective turn of mind and routinely spent nights in a cave near Makkah in mediation and thought. About 610, while meditating. Muhammad reportedly had a vision of the angel Gabriel and heard a voice saying to him "You are the Messenger of God." (From this time until his death Muhammad frequently received revelations. Sometimes while receiving these messages Muhammad would sweat and enter a trance state.) Muhammad was disturbed by this vision of Gabriel but was reassured by his wife Khadijah. Around 613 CE Muhammad began preaching publicly. By proclaiming this message publicly Muhammad gained followers that included the sons and brothers of the richest men in Makkah.
Tradition holds that some Makkans launched vigorous and brutal attempts to persecute the new Muslims: forcing them to lie on burning sand, placing huge boulders on their chests, pour red-hot iron over them. Many died but none renounced their new faith. Muhammad himself was not the target of this oppression since his family was simply too powerful. However the environment became intolerable, and Muhammad advised his followers to go to Abyssinia.
The Makkans tried to tempt Muhammad to give up his mission by offering him political power. As Muhammad's following grew attempts were made to get him to disband or modify his religion. He was offered a large share in trade and marriage with some of wealthiest families but he rejected all such offers. Makkans ultimately demanded that Abu Talib hand over his nephew to be killed. When he refused, commercial pressure was brought against Muhammad's tribe and his supporters. After the death of his uncle and of Khadija, Muhammad's own clan withdrew their protection of him. He was abused, stoned, thorns and rubbish were thrown on him. However, no serious attempt was made on his life.
In 622 Muhammad and his Makkan followers left Makkah for Medina where he had gained many converts. The Medinans apparently hoped that Muhammad would united them and prevent instances such as the 618 Medinan Civil War in which many lives had been lost. A document known as the Constitution of Medina (circa 622-623) established a confederation between Muhammad's Makkan follower and the 8 Arab clans of Makkah. Muhammad was referred to as "the Prophet" but was not given any political authority.
In Medina a few emigrant Muslim Makkans with the approval of Muhammad set out in normal Arab fashion on razzias ("raids") hoping to loot Makkahon their way to Syria. About the same time Muhammad changed the direction of Qibla from Jerusalem to Makkah. In March 624 Muhammad lead about 300 men on a razzia to attack a Makkan caravan led by Abu Sufyan the head of the Umayyah clan. The caravan managed to escape but Abu Jahl (the head of the Makhzum clan), who had previously opposed Muhammad and organized a boycott against Muhammad's Hashim clan, was leading a supporting force of around 800 men and wanted to teach Muhammad a lesson.
On March 15, 624 near a place called Badr, the two forces clashed. Despite being outnumbered 800 to 300 in the battle the Muslims were successful: at least 45 Makkans including Abu Jahl were killed and 70 were taken prisoner whereas only 14 Muslims died. To the Muslims this appeared to be a divine vindication of his Muhammad's prophethood and he and all the Muslims were greatly elated. Following this victory Medinans who had satirized Muhammad were assassinated and a hostile Jewish clan was expelled. Virtually all the remaining Medinans were converted and Muhammad became de facto ruler.
Several important marriage alliances were also made. Of Muhammad's daughters Fatima was married to Ali (later fourth caliph) and Umm Kulthum to Uthman (the third caliph). Muhammad already married to Aisha daughter of Abu Bakr (first caliph) and was now married also to Hafsah daughter of Umar (second caliph). On March 21, 625 Abu Sufyan hoping for revenge entered the Medina with 3,000 men. On the morning of March 23 battle began. The battle produced no obvious winner or looser, though the Makkans claim victory. For two years after Battle of Uhud both sides prepared for a decisive encounter. In April 627 Abu Sufyan led a great confederacy of 10,000 men against Medina. For a fortnight the confederates besieged Medina but attempts to cross the trench, which Muhammad had ordered built, failed and the army retreated. Following the victory Muhammad confronted the so-called hypocrites (munafiquin) nominal Muslims who opposed Muhammad. The munafiquin quickly crumbled and their leader Abd Allah ibn Ubayy pledged allegiance to Muhammad. Muhammad also attacked the remaining Jewish clan of Qurayzah which had been intriguing against him. When they surrendered the men were executed and the women and children sold as slaves.
Muhammad put economic pressure on Makkah; but his main aim was to gain their willing adherence to Islam. In March 628 he set out to perform a pilgrimage in Makkah with 1,600 men accompanying him. The Makkans however halted Muhammad at al-Hudaybiyah on the edge of their territory. After some days the Makkans made a treaty with Muhammad. Hostilities were to cease and the Muslims were allowed to make a pilgrimage to Makkah in the following year. The treaty was further cemented by Muhammad's marriage to Habiba daughter of Abu Sufyan (Muhammad's former enemy). In November 629 however allies of the Makkans attacked an ally of Muhammad leading Muhammad to denounced of the treaty of al-Hudaybiyah. After secret planning Muhammad marched on Makkah in January 630 with 10,000 men. Abu Sufyan and other leading Makkans formally submitted. Muhammad promised a general amnesty with some people specifically excluded. When he entered Makkah there was virtually no resistance. Though he did not insist on their becoming Muslims most Makkans converted. In Makkah Muhammad destroyed the idols in the Kaaba and various small shrines.
Ever since the hijrah Muhammad began alliances with nomadic tribes. At first these were probably nonaggression pacts but as his strength grew he made a condition that the allied tribe should become Muslim. While Muhammad was in Makkah he received word of a large concentration of hostile tribes and he set out to confront them. A battle took place at Hunayn in which the enemy was defeated. Muhammad was now the strongest man in Arabia and most tribes sent delegations to Medina seeking alliance. Before his death rebellions occurred in one or two parts of Arabia but the Islamic state was strong enough to deal with this.
Although he was ill for some time Muhammad had made no arrangement for his succession. His death in June 632 at Medina, at 63, provoked a major crisis among his followers. Indeed this dispute eventually lead into the division of the Islam into Shia and Sunni sects.
Although Muhammad is and has been one of the most studied figures in history (see sonah, hadith and isnad). Certain commonly made statements about him have been questioned, notably according to Islamic sources Muhammad was illiterate. In his early orphanage, Muhammad was raised as a member of the Makkan middle class and may therefore have had access to some form of education. Furthermore his successful career as a merchant would have required atleast sociability skills in the chaotic societies he traveled between. However, Islamic scholars unanimously agree on his illiteracy, and some point to Muhammad's exact words, "I am not of those who read".
Another problematic but commonly stated claim involves Muhammad's marriages. According to Islamic sources Khadijah was 40 at the time of her marriage to Muhammad but bore him 6 children. Adding to the puzzle none of Muhammad's other wives never became pregnant. One possible explanation is that Muhammad himself was infertile and that Khadijah's children were in fact from previous marriages (as she had been married before). It is also possible that Khadijah was in fact younger than 40 and that Muhammad's other marriages (some of which were to widows or young children) were of a nonsexual nature. A few scholars have claimed that Muhammad never intended for his religion to spread beyond the Arabs. This however is contradicted by Muhammad's designation of Jerusalem as the fist Qibla.
Historically Muhammad's greatest contribution was as the first unifier of the Arab peoples. Following directly in his tradition of seeking knowledge with disciplined methods, Muslims revived and also challenged Greek philosophy (see early Muslim philosophy).
As a direct result, they also instituted what we now call the scientific method and formal citation (see ijtihad, isnad, sonah) and a science of history. All of this was reasonably a direct outcome of Muhammad's focus on truth, literacy, knowledge and documentation - and ethics as basis of education. This led ultimately to the legal practice of fiqh.
Muslims also introduced a vast array of innovations, of which the most notable may be anatomy, algebra, the decimal number system and papermaking, to Europe and the Middle East.
Despite some military and marital behaviour troubling to modern minds, any negative influences may be largely due to Muslims copying behaviors that Muhammad himself disavowed, often due to hadiths that are discredited by at least some sources. These impacts are certainly more difficult to assess. To what extent the current state of the Islamic World can be attributed to Muhammad as a person or leader is highly debatable, and probably even more absurd then blaming Napoleon for the current state of the European Union. One might say that Muhammad's influence was like that of Napoleon, Marx and Confucius in combination, and not be too far wrong.
Although his political and historical influence is and remains profound, the most lasting legacy of Muhammad is of course as the prophet of Islam. He was careful to separate his role as prophet from that as political leader - the Quran is not in any way to be confused with his own sayings (Ahadith) or actions (sira). His failings, as he himself said, were his own, and his achievements, he credited to God. He consistently discouraged anyone from seeing him as divine. In the words of Abu Bakr, his life-long companion, who addressed the crowd outside the mosque in Medina immediately after his death:
Early years
Middle years
Later years
Founding of Islam
Rejection
Hijrah
Medina
Makkah
Unification of Arabia
Death and afterwards
Incongruities
Assessment
And in a hadith (like all such) attributed to Muhammad himself:
By his own standards, the continuing traditions of social justice in the Islamic World, methods and knowledge of science, history and medicine as they evolved in the modern world (thanks to his profound influence driving Muslims to literacy and inquiry), and the prayers of over one billion Muslims, many of whom pray for him five times a day (or attach "peace be upon him" after each mention of his name), render Muhammad arguably the most influential man in all history. Even among historians who deplored his influence and considered it to have retarded the growth of its chief rival faith, Christianity, there is grudging admiration for the man.See also
External links
References
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Muhammad."
Crosswords: Muhammad |
| English words defined with "Muhammad": calif, caliph ♦ kalif, kaliph, khalif ♦ matchless, Mohammedan, Muhammadan ♦ nonpareil ♦ one, one and only ♦ peerless ♦ unmatchable, unmatched, unrivaled, unrivalled. (references) |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | I don't care if he's Muhammad I'm hard Bruce Lee! (Snatch.; writing credit: Guy Ritchie) Muhammad Ali, he was like a sleeping elephant. (When We Were Kings; writing credit: Leslie Danon; Austin Reid) | |
Lyrics | You see, I got more clothes than Muhammad Ali ("Rapper's Delight"; performing artist: Sugarhill Gang) Muhammad 2 G (Whatchulookinat; performing artist: Whitney Houston) | |
Movie/TV Titles | Sharia Muhammad Ali (1945) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title |
Books | |
Theater & Movies | |
High Tech |
|
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
 | The shoreline at Ras Muhammad National Park. Credit: Small World. |  | "Religious fervor is mirrored on the face of a Black Muslim woman, one of some 10,000 listening to Elijah Muhammad deliver his annual Savior's Day message in Chicago. The city is headquarters for the Black Muslims. Their $75 million empire includes a mosque, newspaper, university, restaurants, real estate, bank, and variety of retail stores. Muhammad died February 25, 1975." By John H. White, Chicago, Illinois, March 1974. Credit: National Archives and Records Administration, Records of the Environmental Protection Agency. |
 | [Abu Bakr Muhammad Ibn Zakariy Razi]. Credit: National Library of Medicine. |  | The mountain comes to Muhammad. Credit: Library of Congress. |
 | Muhammad Ali, formerly Cassius Clay, sparring with Ollie Wilson in Miami Beach, Florida. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Supporters of Muhammad Ali, formerly Cassius Clay, observe man burning draft card in Houston, Texas. Credit: Library of Congress. |
 | Mme. Huda Sha rawi, Egyptian feminist leader, during a visit to the Egyptian Legation in Washington D.C.; posed with her daughter, Mme. Bothiana Samy; her son, M. Muhammad Sha rawi; Mlle. Ceza Nabarawi, a feminist leader; and M. Samy Pasha, the Egyptian M. Credit: Library of Congress. | ||
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
| Author | Quotation |
Muhammad Ali | The man who has no imagination has no wings. |
| Grass grows, birds fly, waves pound the sand. I beat people up. | |
| Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth. | |
| The man who views the world at 50 the same as he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life. | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Civil Liberties | Pakistan | In February 2000, Muhammad Younis was sentenced to 13 months in jail in Multan for uttering derogatory remarks about the companions of the Prophet Mohammad. (references) |
Economic History | Oman | Oman adopted Islam in the seventh century A.D., during the lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad. (references) |
Pakistan | Subsequently, Zia nominated Muhammad Khan Junejo, a Muslim League member, as Prime Minister. (references) | |
Human Rights | India | Another NGO reported that in March 2000, security forces killed Gulab Muhammad Chechi in an encounter in Beerwah. (references) |
Somalia | In 1999 an Islamic court in Buulo village, Lower Shabelle, sentenced Nuurto Muhammad Ali to death by stoning after she was discovered to have three husbands; the execution was suspended until after Ali, who was pregnant, gave birth. (references) | |
Iraq | According to press reports, prominent Kurd writer Muhammad Jamil Bandi Rozhbayani was killed in March after a visit to his home by intelligence service personnel investigating his writings regarding the Government's Arabization and ethnic cleansing programs. (references) | |
Political Economy | Saudi Arabia | Saudi Arabia's legal system is based on Shari'a law, which is derived from the Qur'an and the traditional sayings (Hadith) of the Prophet Muhammad, and interpreted by the Ulema a body of religious experts. (references) |
Saudi Arabia | Crown Prince Abdullah has played an increasing role in governance since King Fahd suffered a stroke in 1995. The Government has declared the Islamic holy book the Koran and the Sunna (tradition) of the Prophet Muhammad to be the country's Constitution. (references) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| Speaker | Phrase(s) |
King Constantine of Greece | It's interesting that you mentioned Cassius Clay or Muhammad Ali, because I remember watching him win his gold medal the day after I had won mine. |
Rush Limbaugh | John Muhammad, who police arrested along with another man in the sniper case, served as a security guard at the Million Man March. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| "Muhammad" is generally used as a noun (proper) -- approximately 96.64% of the time. "Muhammad" is used about 298 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (proper) | 96.64% | 288 | 17,155 |
| Noun (singular) | 3.02% | 9 | 117,287 |
| Noun (common) | 0.34% | 1 | 339,140 |
| Total | 100.00% | 298 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
| The following table summarizes the usage of "Muhammad" based on a population census conducted in the United States. Ranks and frequencies are based on all names reported and classified. |
| Name | Usage/Gender | Usage per 100 million Persons | Rank in USA |
| Muhammad | Last name | 3,000 | 4,194 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits. | |||
| "Muhammad" is a name that signifies or is derived from: "worthy of praise", "praise". | |||
| The following table summarizes names related to "Muhammad." | |||
| Name | Gender | Language | Related Name |
| Mahmud | Male | Arabic | Muhammad |
| Mahomet | Male | Arabic | Muhammad |
| Mihammad | Male | Arabic | Muhammad |
| Mohamed | Male | Arabic | Muhammad |
| Mohammad | Male | Arabic | Muhammad |
| Mohammed | Male | Arabic | Muhammad |
| Muhammad | Male | Arabic | N/A |
| Muhammed | Male | Arabic | Muhammad |
| Tamid | Male | Arabic | Muhammad |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
Expressions using "Muhammad": Elijah Muhammad ♦ Muhammad Ali. Additional references. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Language | Translations for "Muhammad"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Dutch | Mohammed (Mohammed). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Esperanto | Mahometo (Mohammed). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Faeroese | Muhamed (Mohammed). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
French | Mahomet. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Greek | όωάμεθ (Mohammed). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Italian | Maometto (Mohammed). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pig Latin | uhammadmay Mahoma (mahomet, Mohammed). (various references) พระมูฮัมหมั"ในศาสนาอิสลาม, ผู้ก่อตั้งศาสนาอิสลาม (Mohammed, Mohammedan). (various references) Muhammet (Mohammed). (various references) Мухаммед (Mohammed), Магомет (Mohammed). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Misspellings | |
"Muhammad" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: Kuhammad, Mahamadou, Mahamar, mahommed, mohammad, Mohammud, Muchemwa, Mufamadi, Muhamad, Muhamed, Muhammads, Muhammadu, mukhammed, Mulhammer, Musandam. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "a-a-d-h-m-m-m-u" | |
-3 letters: madam, mamma. | |
-4 letters: amah, duma, mama, maud, mumm. | |
-5 letters: aah, aha, ama, amu, dah, dam, duh, had, ham, hmm, hum, mad, mud, mum, umm. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
Hexadecimal (or equivalents, 770AD-1900s) (references)4D 75 68 61 6D 6D 61 64 |
| Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519; backwards) (references)
|
| American Sign Language (origins from 1620-1817 in Italy and, especially, France) (references)
|
| Semaphore (1791, in France) (references)
|
| Braille (1829, in France) (references)
|
Morse Code (1836) (references)-- ..- .... .- -- -- .- -.. |
| Dancing Men (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, 1903) (references)
|
Binary Code (1918-1938, probably earlier) (references)01001101 01110101 01101000 01100001 01101101 01101101 01100001 01100100 |
HTML Code (1990) (references)M u h a m m a d |
ISO 10646 (1991-1993) (references)004D 0075 0068 0061 006D 006D 0061 0064 |
| British Sign Language (Fingerspelling, BSL; 1992, British Deaf Association Dictionary of British Sign Language) (references)
|
Encryption (beginner's substitution cypher): (references)4787746779796770 |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Images: Slideshow 7. Images: Photo Album 8. Quotations: Familiar | 9. Quotations: Non-fiction 10. Quotations: Spoken 11. Usage Frequency 12. Names: Frequency | 13. Names: Derived from 14. Expressions 15. Expressions: Internet 16. Translations: Modern | 17. Derivations 18. Anagrams 19. Orthography 20. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
