Hafsa bint Umar

Hafsa bint Umar (605-665 CE) was the daughter of Umar ibn al-Khattab and one of the Mothers of the Believers. She was first married to Khunais ibn Hudhafah, who died from wounds sustained at the Battle of Badr. After his death, Umar offered her in marriage to both Uthman and Abu Bakr, but both declined. The Prophet then proposed to her, and they married in 3 AH (625 CE).

Hafsa was known for her literacy, piety, and devotion to worship. She was one of the few women of her time who could read and write, and she frequently fasted and spent her nights in prayer. She was also known for her strong and forthright personality, traits she inherited from her father Umar. The Prophet valued her as a trusted confidante, and she narrated approximately sixty hadith preserved in the major collections.

Hafsa's most significant historical role was as the guardian of the first compiled manuscript of the Quran. After Abu Bakr ordered the compilation of the Quran into a single codex (mushaf) following the Battle of Yamama, the manuscript was entrusted to Hafsa for safekeeping. When Uthman later ordered the standardization of the Quranic text, he borrowed the manuscript from Hafsa and used it as the master copy. She kept it until her death in 45 AH (665 CE) in Medina. This role made her one of the most important figures in the preservation of the Quran.