Umm Sulaym bint Milhan

Umm Sulaym bint Milhan (died ca. 30 AH) was one of the most celebrated women among the Ansar of Medina. She was the mother of Anas ibn Malik, the beloved servant of the Prophet ﷺ, and her household became closely connected to the Prophet's daily life. When the Prophet ﷺ asked for a servant, she sent her young son Anas, saying her dowry when she accepted Islam was Islam itself — she refused any material marriage gift from Abu Talha al-Ansari until he embraced the faith.

Umm Sulaym was renowned for her extraordinary composure and wisdom. When her son Umayr died, she did not tell her husband until she had bathed the body and prepared it for burial, then gently informed him by asking: "If someone loans you something then asks for it back, do you return it?" Her patience in that moment of grief became a model discussed by scholars of every generation.

She accompanied the Prophet's expeditions as a nurse and water-carrier. At the Battle of Hunayn, when many fighters fled, she stood firm with a dagger, declaring she would strike with it any Muslim who ran. The Prophet ﷺ smiled at her courage. She is recorded in the hadith collections as a narrator of sound traditions and a figure the Prophet visited at home, eating her dates and allowing her to serve him.

Her son Anas narrated that the Prophet ﷺ said she was among the people of Paradise. She lived to a great age and left behind a legacy of deep faith, patient endurance, and devoted service to the early Muslim community.