Umm Said bint Urwa

PER-000039 Family member Probable Burial place unknown Imami source baseline
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Umm Saʿid bint Urwa ibn Masud al-Thaqafiyya was an early Islamic woman whom classical biographical and genealogical sources list among the wives of Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib. The surviving record does not preserve a detailed independent biography, but it consistently identifies her as the mother of two of Ali’s daughters, Umm al-Hasan and Ramla al-Kubra.
Birth

Her date and place of birth are not established in reliable early sources.

Death

Reliable sources do not establish the date, place, or circumstances of her death.

Burial or attributed place

Her burial place is unknown, and no specific grave or shrine attribution is established by reliable historical evidence.

Biography and historical profile

Classical sources give her fuller lineage as Umm Saʿid bint Urwa ibn Masud ibn Muattib ibn Malik al-Thaqafi. Her father, Urwa ibn Masud al-Thaqafi, was a prominent member of the tribe of Thaqif. Reliable details about her birth, childhood, education, and early life have not survived.

Ibn Saʿd, in al-Tabaqat al-Kubra, names Umm Saʿid while listing the children of Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib and their mothers, thereby recording her as one of his wives. The same basic relationship is preserved in al-Baladhuri’s Ansab al-Ashraf and repeated in later genealogical and historical works, giving the marriage attribution support from more than one early source.

According to these early lists, Umm Saʿid bore Imam Ali two daughters: Umm al-Hasan and Ramla al-Kubra. Later works repeat these names with minor variations in vocalization or presentation, but the central genealogical identification remains stable.

No well-supported account survives of Umm Saʿid’s personal scholarly activity, recorded sayings, political role, date of death, or burial place. A responsible profile should therefore remain limited to the securely attested family information and should not supplement the gaps with devotional legend or conjecture.

Historical importance and legacy

Umm Saʿid’s historical importance lies chiefly in the genealogical record of Imam Ali’s household and in the links between prominent early Muslim families. Her entry shows that early historians attempted to preserve the identities of the mothers of Ali’s children rather than treating them as an undifferentiated group.

The scarcity of information about her is itself historically significant. Like many early Muslim women, she is known primarily through family and lineage notices. Claims beyond that limited record should be treated as unverified unless supported by a clear early or authoritative source.

Family relationships

Sources

al-Tabaqat al-Kubra | Muhammad ibn Saʿd | vol. 3, p. 20 in the Dar Sadir online edition; vol. 3, p. 14 in another common edition | https://lib.eshia.ir/40238/3/20 | Lists Umm Saʿid bint Urwa ibn Masud al-Thaqafi as mother of Umm al-Hasan and Ramla al-Kubra, daughters of Ali
Ansab al-Ashraf | Ahmad ibn Yahya al-Baladhuri | biographical/genealogical entry; pagination varies by edition | https://download.almohsinlibrary.com/OBooks/OB1639.pdf | Confirms Umm Saʿid in the family record of Ali and his children
Muruj al-Dhahab wa Maadin al-Jawhar | Ali al-Masudi | vol. 3, family list; pagination varies by edition | https://ketabonline.com/ar/books/16498/read?index=4727588%2F4727631%2F4727639&page=937&part=3 | Later early historical witness to the names of Ali’s daughters and their mother
Official Imam Ali Network | Imam Ali Holy Shrine | online profile of the wives of Imam Ali | https://en.imamali.net/1353/noble-wives/ | Institutional confirmation of the conventional identification Umm Saʿid bint Urwa ibn Masud al-Thaqafiyya

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