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The second of the Rightly Guided Caliphs; he is known by the epithet al-Fârûq.
His full name was Abû Hafs al-Fârûq 'Umar b. al-Khattâb b. Nufayl b. 'Abd al-'Uzzâ al-Qurashî al-'Adawî.
He accepted Islam in the sixth year of the prophetic mission (616). There are two reports: in one he became a Muslim while his sister was reading Sûrat Tâ-Hâ; in the other he resolved to become a Muslim on hearing verses 41-46 of Sûrat al-Hâqqa.
The epithet Fârûq means the one who separates truth from falsehood; there are reports that it was given him by the Prophet, by the Muslims, or by the People of the Book.
At the emigration he left Mecca for Qubâ at the head of a party of twenty, together with his brother Zayd, his wife and his son Abdullah.
He was designated successor by Abû Bakr; on 22 Jumada II 13 (23 August 634) he received the oath of allegiance in the Prophet's Mosque and became the second of the Rightly Guided Caliphs (634-644).
The principal acts of his caliphate were: the conquests — the battle of Qâdisiyya (15/636), the battle of Yarmûk (15/636), the victory of Nihâwand (21/642) and the completion of the conquest of Egypt; the dîwân organisation — a systematic arrangement for distributing the fay' revenues among the Muslims; the Hijrî calendar — brought into use, at 'Alî's proposal, in Rabî' I of the year 16, with Muharram taken as the first month; and the conquest of Jerusalem — he received the keys of the city from the patriarch Sophronios and granted safe conduct in 17/638.
Abû Lu'lu'a Fîrûz al-Nihâwandî, the slave of Mughîra b. Shu'ba, wounded him with a dagger (23/644). On his deathbed he asked that the caliph be chosen by a council. He died on 26 Dhu al-Hijja 23 (3 November 644).
His Poetry and Sufi Line — He took nothing from the treasury beyond his need and lived like an ordinary Qurashî. At night he would walk the streets of Medina to check on public order, and when he saw the needy he himself carried help to them from the treasury. 'Â'isha's saying is conveyed in the source thus: "When 'Umar is mentioned, justice is mentioned."
His Tomb and Complex — He was buried at Medina in the Rawda-i Mutahhara, beside Abû Bakr.
Differing Scholarly Views
🔴 THE QUESTION OF THE CALIPHATE. Shî'î sources hold that 'Alî should have been caliph by divine command, and that 'Umar, together with Abû Bakr and Abû 'Ubayda, opposed that command. Against this the source also gives this record: 'Alî was among those who gave the oath of allegiance on the first day and supported him. The atlas writes both records and passes no judgement (rule #9, principles 3 and 5).
The affair of the writing material (Qirtâs). 'Umar's objection when the Prophet, before his death, wished to have something written down has been used against him in Shî'î sources. The atlas records this dispute.
The question of marriage with women of the People of the Book. 'Umar asked Hudhayfa, the governor of Madâ'in, to divorce his wife of Jewish origin. Some hadith books bring this stance to the fore; the source, for its part, explains that it was a temporary measure to prevent the spread of such marriages after the conquests. Both readings are recorded.
🔴 The so-called Shurût 'Umariyya is a FORGERY. The source speaks plainly: this text, transmitted by 'Abd al-Rahmân b. Ghanm and ascribed to the Christians of Syria, cannot rightly be attributed to 'Umar or to his governors. The atlas conveys this finding as it stands, because this document is often used in historical argument.
His legal reasoning stands at the centre of a debate on principle. Positions such as the share of zakat for those whose hearts are to be reconciled, the non-division of conquered lands, and the non-execution of the penalty for theft in a year of famine have become a reference point in the discussion of the principle that rulings change with the change of the times.
Sources
- TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi (DİA) · entry “Ömer”
- TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi (DİA) — Mustafa Fayda · Muhsin Koçak · vol. 34, pp. 44-53, entry “ÖMER”
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