Huyayy ibn Akhtab (; ) was a chief of the

Banu Nadir The Banu Nadir (, ) were a Jewish Arab tribe that lived in northern Arabia at the oasis of Medina until the 7th century. They were probably a part of the Constitution of Medina, which was formed after Muhammad's Hijrah. Tensions rose between th ...

, a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

tribe of

Medina Medina, officially al-Madinah al-Munawwarah (, ), also known as Taybah () and known in pre-Islamic times as Yathrib (), is the capital of Medina Province (Saudi Arabia), Medina Province in the Hejaz region of western Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, ...

in pre-

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

Arabia The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world. Geographically, the ...

Biography

Family

His ancestry was Huyayy ibn Akhtab ibn Sa‘yah ibn Tha‘labah ibn ‘Ubayd ibn Ka‘b ibn al-Khazraj ibn Abi Habib ibn al-Nadir. He married Barra bint Samawal of the neighbouring Qurayza tribe and had at least one son and two daughters with her. Barra bint Samawal was from a distinguished Arabian Jewish family. Her father was the poet al Samaw'al ibn Adiya.

Personality

Huyayy is said to have been a "courageous warrior" and a "learned man".Gottheil, Richard and M. Seligsohn. "Huyayy ibn Akhtab."
''

Jewish Encyclopedia ''The Jewish Encyclopedia: A Descriptive Record of the History, Religion, Literature, and Customs of the Jewish People from the Earliest Times to the Present Day'' is an English-language encyclopedia containing over 15,000 articles on the ...

.'' Funk and Wagnalls, 1901-1906; which cites the following bibliography: :*

Ibn Hisham Abu Muhammad Abd al-Malik ibn Hisham ibn Ayyub al-Himyari (; died 7 May 833), known simply as Ibn Hisham, was a 9th-century Abbasid historian and scholar. He grew up in Basra, in modern-day Iraq and later moved to Egypt. Life Ibn Hisham has ...

, '' Kitab Sirat Rasul Allah'', ed. Wüstenfeld, p. 351, passim; :*Caussin de Perceval, ''Essai sur V Histoire des Arabes'', iii. 83, passim; :* Grätz, ''Gesch.'' 3d ed., v. 100-102, 105.

After the hijrah — 622 CE

According to his daughter, Huyayy opposed

Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...

from the day he arrived in Medina. She recalled: :I was my father's and my uncle Abu Yasir's favorite child. They could never see me with one of their children without picking me up. When the Messenger of Allah came to Medina, my father and my uncle went to see him. It was very early in the morning and between dawn and sunrise. They did not return until the sun was setting. They came back worn out and depressed, walking with slow, heavy steps. I smiled to them as I always did, but neither of them took any notice of me because they were so miserable. I heard Abu Yasir ask my father, “Is it him?” He replied: “Yes, it is.” Abu Yasir asked: “Do you recognize him? Can you confirm it?” He answered: “Yes, I recognize him only too well.” Abu Yasir asked: “What do you feel towards him?” He replied: “Enmity, enmity as long as I live.”Guillaume, A. The Life of Muhammad: Translation of Ibn Ishaq's Sirat Rasul Allah. At first Huyayy's opposition simply took the form of public debates. On one occasion, he had a discussion with Muhammad upon the mystical letters beginning some of the Surahs in the

Quran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...

. When a prominent rabbi,

Abdullah ibn Salam Abdallah ibn Salam (), born Al-Husayn ibn Salam, was a companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, and a Jew who converted to Islam. He participated in the conquest of Syria, but died in Medina. Biography Early years According to Islamic narrat ...

, became a Muslim, Huyayy was one of those who said to him: "There are no prophets among the Arabs, but your master is an ordinary human king." When

Abu Sufyan Sakhr ibn Harb ibn Umayya (; ), commonly known by his ' Abu Sufiyan (), was a prominent opponent-turned companion and father-in-law of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. He was the father of the first Umayyad caliph Mu'awiya I () and namesake of the S ...

, the

Quraysh The Quraysh () are an Tribes of Arabia, Arab tribe who controlled Mecca before the rise of Islam. Their members were divided into ten main clans, most notably including the Banu Hashim, into which Islam's founding prophet Muhammad was born. By ...

leader and an enemy of Muhammad, presented himself before Huyayy's house, he, fearing to compromise himself, refused to admit him. But Huyayy was to become the most inveterate enemy of

, to the point where

ibn Hisham Abu Muhammad Abd al-Malik ibn Hisham ibn Ayyub al-Himyari (; died 7 May 833), known simply as Ibn Hisham, was a 9th-century Abbasid historian and scholar. He grew up in Basra, in modern-day Iraq and later moved to Egypt. Life Ibn Hisham has ...

, Muhammad's biographer, calls him the enemy of Allah. In summer 625, Muhammad went to the Nadir quarter to ask them to contribute towards the army, secondary to Umayya's killing of two men from Banu Kilab. Huyayy agreed to give it to him, but as Muhammad was waiting by the wall of one of their houses their plan to assassinate him became apparent, he hurried away along with his companions and returned to Medina. When his followers asked him why he had left in such a hurry, he replied that the Angel Gabriel had warned him that Huyayy ibn Akhtab was urging the Jews to kill him and that 'Amr ibn Jahsh had volunteered to drop a rock onto his head. Because of this action, Muhammad ended alliance with the Nadir tribe and that act of treachery from the Jews meant that they were at war with one another. He then sent one of his companions (Muhammad bin Muslimah) to issue an ultimatum to the Jews. They were to leave Medina within a specified amount of time. When the Jews refused to leave at the behest of fake Muslims (The Hypocrites) Muhammad decided to take military action and besieged the Jews in their fortresses. After six nights of this, the Jews agreed to lay down arms and they were given safe passage out of Medina; they were also allowed to take all of their belongings with them except their military arms. From there the Jews settled in Khaybar and some in Syria.When The Moon Split / A Biography of the Prophet Muhhammad

Expulsion of Banu Nadir to Khaybar — 625 CE

Huyayy and his family settled at

Khaybar KhaybarOther Arabic transliteration, standardized Arabic transliterations: / . Anglicized pronunciation: , . (, ) is an oasis in Medina Province (Saudi Arabia), Medina Province, Saudi Arabia, situated some north of the city of Medina. Prior to ...

, where the Jewish farming community not only welcomed them, but deferred to them as leaders. Huyayy incited the Khaibarites, with the Arab tribes of Quraish and

Ghatafan The Ghaṭafān () were an Arab tribal confederation originally based northeast of Medina. The main branches of the Ghatafan were the tribes of Banu Abs, Banu Dhubyan and Ashja'. They were one of the Arab tribes that interacted with Muhammad. Th ...

, into active revolt against Muhammad, resulting in the Battle of the Trench in 627.

Battle of the Trench — 627 CE

Huyayy came to Ka'b ibn As'ad, the chief of the

Banu Quraiza The Banu Qurayza (; alternate spellings include Quraiza, Qurayzah, Quraytha, and the archaic Koreiza) were a Jewish tribe which lived in northern Arabia, at the oasis of Yathrib (now known as Medina). They were one of the three major Jewish ...

in Medina, but failed to incite him to war against Muhammad. The day after the Confederates lifted the siege against Medina, Muhammad besieged the fortress of the Qurayza, and they surrendered in May 627. According to Ibn Ishaq: :Then the apostle went out to the market of Medina (which is still its market today) and dug trenches in it. Then he sent for them and struck off their heads in those trenches as they were brought out to him in batches. Among them was the enemy of Allah Huyayy ibn Akhtab and Kaab ibn Asad their chief. There were 600 or 700 in all, though some put the figure as high as 800 or 900. ... Huyayy was brought out wearing a flowered robe in which he had made holes about the size of the finger-tips in every part so that it should not be taken from him as spoil, with his hands bound to his neck by a rope. When he saw the apostle he said, ‘By God, I do not repent of having opposed you, but he who forsakes God will be forsaken.’ Then he went to the men and said, ‘God’s command is right. A book and a decree, and massacre have been written against the Sons of Israel.’ Then he sat down and his head was struck off. Huyayy had a daughter with Barra bint Samawal:

Safiyya bint Huyayy Safiyya bint Huyayy ( ) was a Jewish convert to Islam from the Banu Nadir tribe. After the Battle of Khaybar in 628, she was widowed and taken captive by the early Muslims and subsequently became Muhammad's tenth wife. Like all other wome ...

. Safiyyah later became a wife of Muhammad.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Huyayy Ibn Akhtab Banu Nadir 7th-century Arabian Jews Opponents of Muhammad