In short
- In Arabic
- أبو هريرة
- Name
- Abd al-Rahman ibn Sakhr al-Dawsi, the best-known of the reported names
- Kunyah
- Abu Hurairah, "father of the kitten"
- Tribe
- Daws, of Yemen
- Accepted Islam
- In Yemen, through al-Tufayl ibn Amr; came to Madinah in 7 AH, at the time of Khaybar
- With the Prophet ﷺ
- About three to four years
- Hadith narrated
- 5,374 is the count usually given
- Died
- In Madinah, 57 AH (677 CE) by the most common report; some say 58 or 59 AH
- Buried
- Al-Baqi, Madinah
In short: Abu Hurairah was from the tribe of Daws in Yemen. He accepted Islam there and came to Madinah in 7 AH. He had no family business or farm, so he stayed with the poor Companions of al-Suffah in the mosque and followed the Prophet ﷺ everywhere, often hungry, to hear what he said. The Prophet ﷺ prayed for his memory. After the Prophet's ﷺ death he taught hadith in Madinah for nearly fifty years. Scholars counted more narrations from him than from any other Companion.1
His name and kunyah
Many names are reported for him before and after Islam. The best known is Abd al-Rahman ibn Sakhr. His kunyah stuck: he said, "I used to look after my family's sheep, and I had a little cat. At night I would put it in a tree, and in the day I would take it with me and play with it, so they called me Abu Hurairah", the father of the kitten.2 See what bin, ibn and abu mean in names.
How he accepted Islam
He accepted Islam in Yemen through al-Tufayl ibn Amr, the chief of Daws, and came to Madinah with men of his tribe in 7 AH, when the Prophet ﷺ was at Khaybar.3 He said he spent three years with the Prophet ﷺ in which he was more eager to learn hadith than at any other time of his life.4 His mother was not yet Muslim. He came to the Prophet ﷺ weeping because she had said something hurtful about him, and asked him to pray for her. The Prophet ﷺ prayed, and when Abu Hurairah reached home he found her washing, and she bore witness to the shahada.5
His memory and his hadith
إِنِّي أَسْمَعُ مِنْكَ حَدِيثًا كَثِيرًا أَنْسَاهُ. قَالَ ابْسُطْ رِدَاءَكَ فَبَسَطْتُهُ. قَالَ فَغَرَفَ بِيَدَيْهِ ثُمَّ قَالَ ضُمُّهُ فَضَمَمْتُهُ فَمَا نَسِيتُ شَيْئًا بَعْدَهُ
Abu Hurairah said: "O Messenger of Allah, I hear many narrations from you and I forget them." He said: "Spread out your cloak." I spread it, and he scooped with his hands into it, then said: "Wrap it around you." I wrapped it, and I never forgot anything after that.
Sahih al-Bukhari 119 · narrated by Abu Hurairah · sahih
He explained why he narrated so much: the Muhajirun were busy in the markets and the Ansar with their farms, while he stayed with the Prophet ﷺ to fill his stomach and was present when they were absent. He also said that if it were not for two verses of the Quran, 2:159-160 on concealing knowledge, he would not have narrated a single hadith.6 He said only Abdullah ibn Amr narrated more than him, because Abdullah used to write and he did not.7 The count usually given for his narrations is 5,374, from the Musnad of Baqi ibn Makhlad, as al-Dhahabi reports; many of them are repeated through several chains.1
He knew hunger. He said he would lie on the ground with hunger, or tie a stone to his stomach, and he told of the day the Prophet ﷺ fed all the people of al-Suffah from one bowl of milk.8
His death
Under Umar he served for a time as governor of Bahrain, and later lived in Madinah, teaching. He died in 57 AH by the most common report (others say 58 or 59), aged about 78, and was buried in al-Baqi.1
Lessons from his life
- Knowledge needs time and sacrifice: he chose to stay close to the Prophet ﷺ over trade.
- Dua for parents: his mother's Islam came from the Prophet's ﷺ prayer.
- Passing knowledge on is a trust (2:159).
- Kindness to animals, even in a kunyah.
In the seerah
Abu Hurairah's life is woven into the life of the Prophet ﷺ. For the whole story in order, see the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ life timeline, and for the battles and turning points, the seerah events. More Companions are on the Sahaba page, and the meaning of the word is on Sahaba meaning.
Questions
Why is he called Abu Hurairah?
Abu Hurairah means father of the little cat. He said he used to play with a small cat while tending his family's sheep, so people called him by that name (Tirmidhi 3840, graded hasan).
What was Abu Hurairah's real name?
Many names are reported. The best known is Abd al-Rahman ibn Sakhr al-Dawsi.
How many hadith did Abu Hurairah narrate?
The count usually given is 5,374, from the Musnad of Baqi ibn Makhlad, as reported by al-Dhahabi. Many are the same hadith through different chains.
How long was Abu Hurairah with the Prophet ﷺ?
From 7 AH until the Prophet's ﷺ death in 11 AH, about four years. He himself spoke of three years of close company (Bukhari 3591).
When did Abu Hurairah die?
In Madinah in 57 AH (677 CE) according to most reports; some say 58 or 59 AH. He is buried in al-Baqi.
Sources
- al-Dhahabi, Siyar Alam al-Nubala, the life of Abu Hurairah; Ibn Hajar, al-Isabah.
- Jami at-Tirmidhi 3840, from Abdullah ibn Rafi, graded hasan.
- Ibn Sad, al-Tabaqat al-Kubra; Sahih al-Bukhari 4234.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 3591, from Abu Hurairah.
- Sahih Muslim 2491, from Abu Hurairah.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 118, from Abu Hurairah.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 113, from Abu Hurairah.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 6452, from Abu Hurairah.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 119, from Abu Hurairah.
- Quran: Arabic from the Tanzil Uthmani text, transliteration from Tanzil, English by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic is the standard wording of the collection named; gradings are given for every hadith outside al-Bukhari and Muslim.