Najashi
| Najashi | |
|---|---|
| Negus | |
 | |
| King of Aksum | |
| Reign | 614–630 |
| Predecessor | unknown |
| Successor | unknown |
| Born | Armah Around 560 C.E. Kingdom of Axum |
| Died | 631 (aged 70–71) Negash, Kingdom of Axum (present-day Eritrea & Ethiopia) |
| Religion | Orthodox Christianity, Islam |
Armah (Template:Lang-gez) or Aṣ-ḥamah (Template:Lang-ar),[1] commonly known as Najashi (Template:Lang-ar), was the ruler of the Kingdom of Aksum who reigned from 614–631 C.E. It is agreed by Muslim scholars that Najashi gave shelter to Muslim emigrants from Mecca, around 615–616 at Axum.[2][3]
Reign
Najashi reigned for 18 years from 614–631 C.E. During his reign, Muslims migrated to Abyssinia and met Najashi. According to Islamic sources, Muhammad's cousin, Ja'far ibn Abi Talib, told Najashi about the persecution they had faced at the hands of the tribe of Quraysh. Najashi asked if they had with them anything which had come from God. Jaʿfar then recited a passage from Surat Maryam in the Quran, regarding Isa (Jesus) and Maryam (Mary). When Najashi heard it, he wept and exclaimed:
Verily, this (Quran) and what Isa brought (Gospel) has come from the same source of light.
— Najashi
Najashi then affirmed that he would never give up the Muslims.[3]
Personal life
Najashi was raised as a Christian, he embraced Islam after accepting Muslim refugees from Arabia into his kingdom. [4]
The Futuh al-Habasha records Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi visited the tomb of Najashi in Negash during his invasion of the province of Tigray.[5]
See also
- Saifu
- List of mosques in Africa
- Masjid An-Najashi in Negash, Ethiopia
- Masjid As-Sahabah in Massawa, Eritrea
References
- ^ al-Bukhari, Imam (2013). Sahih al-Bukhari: The Early Years of Islam》Chapter:THE BEGINNINGS OF ISLAM; Section:XIV THE DEATH OF THE NEGUS. Translated by Muhammad Asad. The Other Press. p. 179. ISBN 978-967-506-298-8. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
- ^ M. Elfasi; Ivan Hrbek (1988). Africa from the Seventh to the Eleventh Century. UNESCO. p. 560. ISBN 978-9-2310-1709-4.
- ^ a b Ibn Ishāq (2004). Sīratu Rasūlillāh. Oxford University Press. pp. 150–153.
- ^ "Najashi: The king who supported Muslim emigrants". Arab News. 2014-03-28. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
- ^ Sihab ad-Din Ahmad bin 'Abd al-Qader, Futuh al-Habasa: The conquest of Ethiopia, translated by Paul Lester Stenhouse with annotations by Richard Pankhurst (Hollywood: Tsehai, 2003), pp. 350f
- Atkins, Brian; Juel-Jensen, Bent (1988). "The Gold Coinage of Aksum: Further Analyses of Specific Gravity, A Contribution to Chronology". Numismatic Chronicle (148).
Further reading
- Hussein Ahmed, "Aksum In Muslim Historical Traditions", Journal of Ethiopian Studies, 29 (1996), pp. 47-66