Umar ibn Abdul-Aziz

Umar ibn Abdul-Aziz (63-101 AH / 682-720 CE), whose full name is Umar ibn Abdul-Aziz ibn Marwan ibn al-Hakam al-Umawi, was the eighth Umayyad caliph and is universally acclaimed by Sunni Muslim scholars as the fifth Rightly-Guided Caliph (al-Khulafa ar-Rashidun). He was descended from the Umayyad dynasty through his father and, crucially, from Umar ibn al-Khattab through his mother Layla bint Asim, a direct granddaughter of the second caliph. This dual lineage — Umayyad by descent but Umarean by maternal heritage — shaped his character profoundly.

He received his scholarly formation in Medina under the great scholars of the city, including Said ibn al-Musayyib, Urwah ibn az-Zubair, and others among the Seven Fuqaha. This Medinan education gave him a deep grounding in the Sunnah and in the tradition of prophetic governance that was later reflected in his caliphate's policies. Before becoming caliph, he served as governor of Medina under the caliph al-Walid ibn Abd al-Malik, where he earned the deep affection and respect of the city's scholarly community through his justice and accessibility.

Upon becoming caliph in 99 AH (717 CE), he initiated a comprehensive program of reform. He reversed the oppressive policies of his Umayyad predecessors: he stopped the public cursing of Ali ibn Abi Talib from mosque pulpits, which had been instituted by Muawiyah and continued by subsequent Umayyad caliphs; he returned properties that had been unjustly confiscated by the Umayyads; he reduced the bloated state expenditure and distributed excess wealth to the poor; and he lived in such personal austerity that his wife reportedly observed that he owned only one garment. During his caliphate, the governors of his vast domains reported that they could not find enough poor people to distribute zakah money to, suggesting that poverty had been substantially addressed.

Umar ibn Abdul-Aziz also commissioned the formal compilation of hadith, issuing instructions to az-Zuhri and other scholars to record the prophetic traditions before they were lost with the passing of their bearers. He died in 101 AH (720 CE), possibly through poisoning arranged by Umayyad figures who feared his reforms, at only about thirty-nine years of age. His brief but transformative reign of approximately two and a half years is remembered as the most just period of Umayyad rule.