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Yazīd ibn Thābit رضي الله عنه
ʿAbd Allah ibn Suwayd
ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir رضي الله عنه
ʿAṭāʾ ibn Qays and ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنهما
Huwayṭib ibn ʿAbd al ʿUzzāرضي الله عنه
Brief Summary
What Is Epigraphic Evidence
Epigraphic evidence refers to historical proof derived from inscriptions written, carved, engraved, or painted on durable materials such as stone, rock, walls, metal, pottery, coins, or monuments. These inscriptions preserve contemporary names, dates, titles, supplications, treaties, and genealogies. Because they are physically fixed and often datable, they function as direct material confirmation of individuals and events known from historical works.
The following cases demonstrate epigraphic confirmation of specific nieche Companions and their lineages.
Yazīd ibn Thābit رضي الله عنه
Yazīd ibn Thābit, the brother of Zayd ibn Thābit رضي الله عنه, is recorded in Kitāb al Ṭabaqāt al Kubrā 4/318–319 as Yazīd ibn Thābit ibn al Ḍaḥḥāk. He witnessed Uḥud and was killed as a martyr at al Yamāmah in 12 AH during the caliphate of Abū Bakr al Ṣiddīq رضي الله عنه. His lineage traces through al Ḍaḥḥāk ibn Zayd ibn Lūdhān ibn ʿAmr ibn ʿAbd ʿAwf ibn Mālik ibn al Najjār. His mother, al Nawār bint Mālik ibn Ṣirmah, was also the mother of Zayd.
An inscription discovered in the desert of Ḥismā and published by Muḥammad Shafīq in 2014 reads:
أنا ثابت ابن يزيد
ابن ثابت ابن الضحاك
الأنصـ[ـا]ريّ ثمّ أحد بني عبد
الأشهل أسـ[ـأ]ل الله الجنّة“I am Thābit ibn Yazīd ibn Thābit ibn al Ḍaḥḥāk, the Anṣārī, then one of Banū ʿAbd al Ashhal. I ask Allah for Paradise.”
The inscription preserves the genealogy accurately three generations back. The writer is Thābit, grandson of Yazīd, confirming his lineage precisely as preserved in historical works. The letter د in أحد appears shaped closer to ر or ن, showing orthographic variation in early script.
Beneath it appears:
صلى الله على محمد النبيّ
“May Allah send blessings upon Muhammad the Prophet.”
A second similar line follows, written less carefully. A fragmentary inscription reads:
اللهم إذا جمعتَ الأوَّلِينَ والآخِرِين فاجْعَلْ
“O Allah, when You gather the first and the last, then make…”
The inscription stands in the mid seventh century, close to the lifetime of the events, confirming both lineage and existence through material record.
ʿAbd Allah ibn Suwayd رضي الله عنه
ʿAbd Allah ibn Suwayd al Ḥārithī al Anṣārī is recorded in al Istīʿāb fī Maʿrifat al Aṣḥāb 4/487 as a Companion with transmitted narration. He is described as having companionship and narrating through Ibn Shihāb.
An inscription north of Tabūk, dated to the mid seventh century and discovered on 3 September 2019 by ʿAbd Allah Muṣliḥ, reads:
اللهم اغفر لموسى بن عبد الله بن سويد الأنصاري ثم الخَطْمي وأصحابه
“O Allah, forgive Mūsā son of ʿAbd Allah son of Suwayd, the Anṣārī, then the Khaṭmī, and his companions.”
This inscription is written by his son Mūsā ibn ʿAbd Allah ibn Suwayd, preserving two generations of lineage. The genealogy aligns precisely with recorded biographical sources. The material inscription independently confirms the existence of this Companion through his immediate descendants.
ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir رضي الله عنه
Mūsā ibn ʿUqbah in Kitāb al Maghāzī includes ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir among those who witnessed Badr. Al Istīʿāb 5/112 says he was from those who witnessed Badr was ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir, an ally of Banū Makhzūm.”
An inscription from Wādī al Bāṭin in the Ḥismā desert, published in 2017, reads:
للهم اغفر لسلمة بن محمد بن عمار بن ياسر
“O Allah, forgive Salamah ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir.”
The inscription identifies Salamah as the grandson of ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir. The lineage precisely matches transmitted historical genealogy. This record comes from within the family line itself and stands close to the first generation after the Ṣaḥābah. It confirms that ʿAmmār’s name and lineage remained preserved among his immediate descendants.
Classical sources also record Salamah ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAmmār narrating from his grandfather in al Musnad of al Shāshī. Later biographical works such as Tahdhīb al Tahdhīb discuss the reliability of his transmissions, preserving the same genealogy.
ʿAṭāʾ ibn Qays and ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنهما
An inscription from Madinah, published on 14 September 2019 by Muḥammad al Maghdāwī, reads:
اللهم اغفر لعطاء بن قيس ولعائشة زوج النبي ﷺ
“O Allah, forgive ʿAṭāʾ ibn Qays and ʿĀʾishah, the wife of the Prophet ﷺ.”
This inscription names both ʿAṭāʾ ibn Qays and ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها explicitly. The supplication reflects reverence and confirms her known status as “زوج النبي ﷺ”.
Genealogical references to ʿAṭāʾ ibn Qays appear in Nasab Quraysh by al Muṣʿab al Zubayrī. The inscription provides material attestation of his existence and his association with the Mother of the Believers.
Ḥuwayṭib ibn ʿAbd al ʿUzzā رضي الله عنه
Ḥuwayṭib ibn ʿAbd al ʿUzzā died around 54 AH. Nasab Quraysh records that he accepted Islam at the conquest of Makkah and attended the burial of ʿUthmān ibn ʿAffān رضي الله عنه. He sold a house in Madinah to Muʿāwiyah for forty thousand dīnars and died at one hundred and twenty years of age.
An inscription in the Ḥismā desert reads:
آمَنَ سعيد بن علقمة
ابن عبد الرحمن
ابن أبو سفيان
ابن حُويطب
بالله العظيم“Saʿīd ibn ʿAlqamah ibn ʿAbd al Raḥmān ibn Abū Sufyān ibn Ḥuwayṭib believed in Allah, the Mighty.”
This inscription preserves four generations of lineage tracing directly back to Ḥuwayṭib.
The genealogical structure aligns exactly with recorded family lines in historical sources. The spelling of “Abū Sufyān” reflects early orthographic style.
The continuity of names across generations confirms the preservation of Quraysh lineage as recorded in classical genealogical works.
Conclusion
Across multiple inscriptions dated to the mid and late seventh century, direct genealogical statements appear carved into stone by immediate descendants of specific Ṣaḥābah. Each inscription preserves names and lineages that align precisely with classical biographical and genealogical works.
These inscriptions function as independent material confirmation of:
- Yazīd ibn Thābit رضي الله عنه
- ʿAbd Allah ibn Suwayd رضي الله عنه
- ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir رضي الله عنه
- ʿAṭāʾ ibn Qays
- Ḥuwayṭib ibn ʿAbd al ʿUzzā رضي الله عنه
The genealogies preserved in stone correspond name by name with historical sources. The inscriptions stand close in time to the individuals mentioned, forming layered confirmation between textual transmission and physical epigraphic record. End of Summary
Complete Article
What Is Epigraphic evidence
Epigraphic evidence means historical evidence taken from inscriptions written, carved, painted, or engraved on durable objects, such as rocks, stones, walls, coins, metal, pottery, or monuments.
A lot of the Ṣaḥābah in the previouse lesson, were extremely niche, and very unknown, and the first scholars to classify them as Ṣaḥābah were very late, usually hundreds of years later.
Sometimes the denial of their existence does not stop there. It goes as far as denying their children or denying the genealogy, and through that they try to discredit the Muslim tradition and its sources. So we are going to look at indirect evidence that attests to these Ṣaḥābah.
Yazīd ibn Thābit رضي الله عنه
Yazīd ibn Thābit is the brother of Zayd ibn Thābit.
One of the earliest mentions we have of him is from Ibn Saʿd in his book “al Ṭabaqāt al Kubrā”.
Ibn Saʿd is a famous historian.
His full name here is Yazīd ibn Thābit ibn al Ḍaḥḥāk.
He witnessed the battle of Uḥud and was killed in the battle of al Yamāmah as a martyr. If he went to the battle of Uḥud and he was a Muslim, that means he was a Ṣaḥābī.
Yazīd ibn Thābit.
He was the son of al Ḍaḥḥāk ibn Zayd ibn Lūdhān ibn ʿAmr ibn ʿAbd ʿAwf ibn Mālik ibn al Najjār. He was the brother of Zayd ibn Thābit. His mother, who was also the mother of Zayd, was al Nawār bint Mālik ibn Ṣirmah ibn Mālik ibn ʿAdī ibn ʿĀmir, from Banū ʿAdī ibn al Najjār.
Yazīd ibn Thābit had a son named ʿUmārah. The mother of ʿUmārah was Dubyah bint Thābit ibn Khālid ibn al Nuʿmān ibn Khansāʾ ibn ʿAsīrah ibn ʿAbd ibn ʿAwf, from Banū Mālik ibn al Najjār.
Yazīd ibn Thābit witnessed Uḥud, and he was killed on the Day of al Yamāmah as a martyr in the year 12 AH, during the caliphate of Abū Bakr al Ṣiddīq, may Allah be pleased with him.
Kitāb al Ṭabaqāt al Kubrā by Ibn Saʿd 4/318–319
We have an inscription located in the desert of Ḥismā, dated to the mid seventh century. It was discovered by Muḥammad Shafīq, who published an article about it in 2014.
Here is the text:
أنا ثابت ابن يزيد
ابن ثابت ابن الضحاك
الأنصـ[ـا]ريّ ثمّ أحد بني عبد
الأشهل أسـ[ـأ]ل الله الجنّة
“I am Thābit ibn Yazīd ibn Thābit ibn al Ḍaḥḥāk, the Anṣārī, then one of Banū ʿAbd al Ashhal. I ask Allah for Paradise.”
It is noticeable that the letter “د” in the word “aḥad” looks more like a “ر” or a “ن”.
The owner of the inscription was from the children of the Sahabah. His grandfather, his father, his uncle Zayd, his uncle Abū Jubayrah, his aunt Buthaynah, also said to be Nubayshah, and others from his family were from the Sahabah.
Ibn al Athīr said in Usd al Ghābah, in the biography of his father: “Yazīd ibn Thābit ibn al Ḍaḥḥāk ibn Khalīfah ibn Thaʿlabah ibn ʿAdī ibn Kaʿb ibn ʿAbd al Ashhal, the Anṣārī. His lineage has already come under the biography of his brother Zayd ibn Thābit. He was older than Zayd. It is said that Yazīd ibn Thābit witnessed Badr, and it is also said that he witnessed Uḥud.
He was killed on the Day of al Yamāmah as a martyr. It is also said that he was struck by an arrow on the Day of al Yamāmah and died on the road while returning. This was said by al Zuhrī and Ibn Isḥāq.
ʿUbayd Allāh ibn Aḥmad informed us, with his chain, from Yūnus, from Ibn Isḥāq, while naming those who were killed on the Day of al Yamāmah from Banū al Najjār, then from Banū Mālik: Yazīd ibn Thābit ibn al Ḍaḥḥāk ibn Zayd was struck by an arrow, and he died on the road when they returned. Khārijah ibn Zayd narrated from him.” See also the biographies of the Sahabah from his family in Usd al Ghābah and other books of biographies of the Sahabah and related works.
Beneath it:
2 = صلى الله على محمد النّبيّ “May Allah send blessings upon Muhammad the Prophet.”
The handwriting is beautiful and carefully done. Its writer showed skill by bending the final yāʾ letters and the shortened alif letters, so they appear like a straight line beneath the inscription.
Beneath it:
3 = صلى الله على محمد النبيّ “May Allah send blessings upon Muhammad the Prophet.”
It seems that the writer of this inscription was copying the previous inscription, though this one is less beautiful than it. Beside this inscription is the phrase “O Lord” in old handwriting.
In the lower left corner of the image, there is an inscription that was not fully captured. The part that can be read says:
4 = اللهم إذا جمعتَ [ الأوَّلِينَ] والآخِرِين فاجْعَلْ “O Allah, when You gather the first and the last, then make…”
There are also two abstract drawings in the image. The first is of an animal with two straight horns, as though it is a wild cow. The second is of a camel, either male or female, since the word “baʿīr” in Arabic is used for both male and female camels. In front of the camel are four parallel lines.
I have noticed that these parallel lines are seven in most inscriptions, and this needs some explanation. In the lower left corner, there is a well made drawing of a dog standing ready with its tail raised. This is how it appeared to me, unless it is simply something caused by the erosion of the rock.
There are also two modern inscriptions in the image.
This inscription by Thābit, the grandson of Yazīd, is attesting to the existence of his own father.
It is his son who wrote it, and not only that, but look at how the inscription attests to the accurate genealogy three generations back. It matches the Muslim historical works name by name.
So now we have multi layer confirmation of how accurate the Muslim records are. This is mid seventh century, so this is around the time of the events.
ʿAbd Allah ibn Suwayd رضي الله عنه
ʿAbd Allah ibn Suwayd is a Ṣaḥābī. One of the earliest to identify him as a Ṣaḥābī is Ibn ʿAbd al Barr in “al Istīʿāb fī Maʿrifat al Aṣḥāb”.
He mentions ʿAbd Allah ibn Suwayd and says that he was a martyr. Now I am going to mention somebody who is important for what we are about to look at, Mūsā ibn ʿAbd Allah ibn Suwayd, his son.
1624– ʿAbd Allāh ibn Suwayd al Ḥārithī al Anṣārī, one of Banū Ḥārithah. He had companionship. His report is with Ibn Shihāb, from Thaʿlabah ibn Abī Mālik, from him, concerning the three times of privacy.
Al Istīʿāb fī Maʿrifat al Aṣḥāb by Ibn ʿAbd al Barr 4/487
We have evidence in the form of an inscription located north of Tabūk. Tabūk is very close to southern Jordan and southern Syria.
This inscription dates from the mid seventh century, and it was discovered by ʿAbd Allah Muṣliḥ on 3 September 2019. It is in Arabic. Put the inscription up on the screen. It is very short, just two lines. It says, “O Allah, forgive Mūsā son of ʿAbd Allah son of Suwayd, the Anṣārī, then the Khaṭmī, and his companions.”
So this is his own son attesting to the existence of this Ṣaḥābī. And look at how the inscription, again, picks out the genealogy accurately, Mūsā ibn ʿAbd Allah ibn Suwayd, two generations back.
ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir رضي الله عنه
Musa Ibn ʿUqbah in his “Kitāb al Maghāzī” mentions, “From those who witnessed the battle of Badr with the Apostle of Allah ﷺ was ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir.” So he classifies him as a Ṣaḥābī.
1831 — ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir ibn ʿĀmir ibn Mālik ibn Kinānah ibn Qays ibn Ḥuṣayn al ʿAnsī, then al Madhḥijī. His lineage has already been traced back to ʿAns ibn Mālik ibn Udad ibn Zayd in the entry on his father Yāsir in this book. He was known by the kunyah Abū al Yaqẓān. He was an ally of Banū Makhzūm, as Ibn Shihāb and others said.
Mūsā ibn ʿUqbah said, from Ibn Shihāb: “From those who witnessed Badr was ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir, an ally of Banū Makhzūm ibn Yaqẓah.”
Al Istīʿāb fī Maʿrifat al Aṣḥāb by Ibn ʿAbd al Barr 5/112
The inscription about this Sahabi who is not well known comes from Wādī al Bāṭin in the Ḥismā desert and dates to the late seventh century.
It was published in 2017 by ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbd al ʿAzīz.
The inscription reads, “O Allah, forgive Salamah ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir.”
His lineage is clear, and he is the grandson of the well known Companion ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir, may Allah be pleased with him.
Earlier historical sources record the same family line, and this inscription aligns with that record. So this is not a later report about ʿAmmār.
This is a direct trace from within his own family, where his grandson names him in a dua.
It stands very close to the first generation after the Ṣaḥābah, showing that the memory of ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir was preserved and known within his immediate descendants.
His lineage is clear, and he is the grandson of the well known Companion ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir, may Allah be pleased with him.
It says in al Musnad of al Shāshī: Salamah ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir, from his grandfather ʿAmmār. Isḥāq ibn Ibrāhīm narrated to us, Abū al Walīd narrated to us, Ḥammād ibn Salamah narrated to us, from ʿAlī ibn Zayd, from Salamah ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAmmār, from ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir, that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “From the Sunnah are rinsing the mouth, drawing water into the nose, using the tooth stick, trimming the moustache, cutting the nails, plucking the armpit hair, shaving the pubic hair, washing the finger joints, sprinkling water, and circumcision.”
I heard Abū al Walīd say: “I do not see it except as disconnected,” meaning the narration of ʿAmmār.
In Tahdhīb al Tahdhīb: Salamah ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir al ʿAnsī al Madanī narrated from his grandfather, and it is also said from his father from his grandfather. ʿAlī ibn Zayd ibn Judʿān narrated from him.
Al Bukhārī said: “I consider him to be the brother of Abū ʿUbaydah, meaning ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAmmār.”
He also said: “We do not know whether he heard from ʿAmmār or not.” A narration of his appears in the report of the traits of natural disposition, the rinsing of the mouth narration.
Ibn Maʿīn said: “His narration from his grandfather is mursal.” Ibn Ḥibbān said: “He is not used as proof.”
As for Ibn Ḥajar, he said in al Taqrīb 2/448: “Abū ʿUbaydah ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir, the brother of Salamah, and it is also said they are the same person, is ‘acceptable’, from the fourth generation.” See Tahdhīb al Tahdhīb 12/160–161.
ʿAbd Allāh ibn Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal said: “Abū ʿUbaydah, meaning ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir, is trustworthy, and his brother Salamah, no one narrated from him except ʿAlī ibn Zayd, and his condition is not known.”
ʿAṭāʾ ibn Qays and ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنهما
ʿĀʾishah is attested by Ibn Isḥāq in his Sīrah.
We also have ʿAṭāʾ ibn Qays being mentioned in “Nasab Quraysh” by Al Muṣʿab al Zubayrī 236 AH/851AH.
Al Muṣʿab al Zubayrī is an early third century scholar of Quraysh genealogy whose book Nasab Quraysh is a foundational source for tracing lineages of early Muslims and Quraysh families.
Al Muṣʿab al Zubayrī 236 AH/851AH said: Qays ibn ʿAbd al Qays had Abū al ʿĀṣī ibn Qays ibn ʿAbd al Qays. He was killed on the Day of Badr as a disbeliever. His mother was the daughter of al Ḥārith ibn ʿUbayd ibn ʿUmar ibn Makhzūm. The descendants of ʿAbd Qays ibn ʿAdī died out except for the descendants of Abū al ʿĀṣī ibn Qays ibn ʿAbd al Qays, and they are in Egypt.
al Muṣʿab al Zubayrī, Nasab Quraysh pg 403
The inscription located in Madinah is from the seventh century. It was discovered by Muḥammad al Maghdāwī and published on 14 September 2019.
This inscription was written by ʿAṭāʾ ibn Qays, may Allah be pleased with him. In it, he supplicates for forgiveness for himself and for the Mother of the Believers ʿĀʾishah, may Allah be pleased with her, the wife of the Prophet ﷺ. He says:
“O Allah, forgive ʿAṭāʾ ibn Qays and ʿĀʾishah, the wife of the Prophet ﷺ.”
From what we know, this ʿAṭāʾ was something like a servant of ʿĀʾishah. So as he was passing by, he wanted to make dua for himself and for her. So, “O Allah, forgive ʿAṭāʾ son of Qays and ʿĀʾishah, the wife of the Prophet.”
Huwayṭib ibn ʿAbd al ʿUzzāرضي الله عنه
He passed away around the 54 AH/674CE.
Al Muṣʿab al Zubayrī said: Ḥuwayṭib ibn ʿAbd al ʿUzzā is one whose oath his mother ransomed. He lived to see Islam, and he was among those who accepted Islam at the conquest of Makkah. He was also one of those who buried ʿUthmān ibn ʿAffān, may Allah have mercy on him and be pleased with him.
He sold a house in al Madinah to Muʿāwiyah for forty thousand dīnars, and the people were struck by that amount. He said, “What is forty thousand dīnars for a man who has four dependants?”
Ḥuwayṭib died towards the end of the time of Muʿāwiyah, and he was one hundred and twenty years old. His mother was Zaynab, the daughter of ʿAlqamah ibn Ghazwān ibn Yarbuʿ ibn al Ḥārith ibn Munqidh ibn ʿAmr ibn Muʿīṣ.
al Muṣʿab al Zubayrī, Nasab Quraysh pg 426
He is a very niche Ṣaḥābī. He converted only about two years before the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ passed away. Him being a niche Ṣaḥābī is very important.
This inscription in the desert of Ḥismā, is in Arabic and it is from the mid eighth century.
Then ʿAbd Allah Muṣliḥ again made a discovery about this.
Here it says:
آمَنَ سعيد بن علقمة
ابن عبد الرحمن
ابن أبو سفيان
ابن حُويطب
بالله العظيم
Saʿīd ibn ʿAlqamah
ibn ʿAbd al Raḥmān
ibn Abū Sufyān
ibn Ḥuwayṭib
believed in Allah, the Mighty.”
If we go and look at the children of Huwayṭib ibn ʿAbd al ʿUzzā, this is the great grandson of Huwayṭib attesting to his existence.
Four generations back in the lineage: Saʿīd,
- son of al Nuʿmān,
- son of ʿAbd al Raḥmān,
- son of Abī Sufyān,
- son of Ḥuwayṭib.
So we have somebody testifying with a perfect genealogy going all the way back to that Ṣaḥābī.
It is noticeable that the wāw in “Abū Sufyān” appears in this form as a preserved expression, which is considered acceptable usage. It also seems that something was added to it to adjust it into the more standard form “Abī Sufyān”.
This refers to Saʿīd ibn ʿAlqamah ibn ʿAbd al Raḥmān ibn Abī Sufyān ibn Ḥuwayṭib, who is from Banū ʿĀmir ibn Luʾayy of Quraysh.
Whoever searches for “ʿAbd al Raḥmān ibn Abī Sufyān ibn Ḥuwayṭib” will find mention of several members of this family in historical works, including individuals such as Rabāḥ, a narrator, and Abū Bakr, both sons of ʿAbd al Raḥmān. They are uncles of the person who made this inscription.
Ḥuwayṭib, may Allah be pleased with him, was married to Umm Ḥabībah Umaymah bint Abī Sufyān Ṣakhr ibn Ḥarb, who was the sister of Umm Ḥabībah bint Abī Sufyān, the Mother of the Believers, the wife of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
Ibn Saʿd said: Abū Sufyān ibn Ḥarb had a son, Ḥanẓalah, who was killed on the Day of Badr as a disbeliever, and he left no descendants.
Umm Ḥabībah married ʿUbayd Allāh ibn Jaḥsh ibn Riʾāb al Asadī, an ally of Banū ʿAbd Shams. She bore him a daughter named Ḥabībah. Then ʿUbayd Allāh died as an apostate in Abyssinia. After that, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ married Umm Ḥabībah while she was still in Abyssinia, and the Negus arranged the marriage for him.
Umaymah, who is Umm Ḥabīb bint Abī Sufyān, married Ḥuwayṭib ibn ʿAbd al ʿUzzā ibn Abī Qays from Banū ʿĀmir ibn Luʾayy. She bore him Abū Sufyān ibn Ḥuwayṭib.
Al Ṭabaqāt al Kubrā by Ibn Saʿd 6/6
From this, it is clear that Ḥuwayṭib named his son Abū Sufyān after the brother of his wife.
