Saudi Arabia
Martyr
Hijri Unknown-Present (AH); Common Era Unknown-Present (CE)
Umm Waraqa bint Abdallah, or Umm Waraqa, was the Prophet Muhammad’s companion. She was well versed in the Qur’an and the Prophet trained her and allowed her to lead mixed-gender prayers. Whether her hadith refers to leading prayers in a residence or a community is open to interpretation. Even so, she was the imam of her clan, which was significant and large enough to have its own muezzin. Umm Waraqa wished to be known as a martyr, so she asked Prophet Muhammad to allow her to participate in the Battle of Badr (624 A.D./ 2 A.H.) so that she could take care of the wounded; from that time on, Prophet Muhammad referred to her as "the female martyr." After the Prophet’s death, she was appointed by Caliph Umar to lead the market committees of Medina and Mecca. She was one of the few people who handed down the Qur’an before it was compiled into its final written form during Uthman’s caliphate.
