Umm Habibah (wife of the Prophet)

Umm Habibah (her name was Ramlah) was the daughter of Abu Sufyan ibn Harb, the leader of Quraysh. This made her one of the most remarkable examples of the divisions Islam created within families: she became a devoted Muslim and wife of the Prophet while her father remained the leading opponent of Islam for years. She was among the early Muslims who emigrated to Abyssinia with her first husband, Ubaydullah ibn Jahsh. In Abyssinia, her husband converted to Christianity and died there. She was left a widow and a single mother in exile, her father still opposing Islam, with no apparent protector. The Prophet ﷺ, hearing of her situation, sent a proposal of marriage through the Negus (Najashi), the Christian king of Abyssinia. The Negus conducted the marriage ceremony on behalf of the Prophet, with a mahr (dowry) of 400 dinars paid by the Negus himself. She returned to Madinah. When the Conquest of Makkah was being planned, Abu Sufyan came to Madinah to try to extend the truce. He visited his daughter Umm Habibah. When he went to sit on the Prophet's mat, she folded it up, saying a man who was a mushrik should not sit on the Prophet's prayer mat. This incident illustrates both her commitment to Islam and the family tensions of the era. After the Prophet's death, she narrated over 60 hadiths. She died in 44 AH during the reign of her brother Muawiyah.