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Ages of Muhammads Wives at Marriage: Difference between revisions
Ages of Muhammads Wives at Marriage (view source)
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{{Underconstruction}} | {{Underconstruction}} | ||
This article [[Refutations|refutes]] the widely held belief that all of Prophet [[Muhammad]]'s wives, except for [[Aisha]], were elderly women. | |||
==Introduction== | ==Introduction== | ||
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{{Quote|Guillaume/Ishaq 69.|The apostle was born on Monday 12 Rabi-Awwal in the Year of the Elephant.}} | {{Quote|Guillaume/Ishaq 69.|The apostle was born on Monday 12 Rabi-Awwal in the Year of the Elephant.}} | ||
This [http://www.fourmilab.ch/documents/calendar/ calendar tool] advises us that the date ''12 Rabi-Awwal 1 AH'' is equivalent to the Gregorian date ''27 September 622 AD''. But this does not give the 53-year-old Muhammad a birthdate of 27 September 569. Because the lunar year is shorter, Muhammad’s age at the time of the ''Hijra'' was only about 51½ solar years. According to the calculator, his birthdate of 12 Rabi-Awwal 53 BH is equivalent to the Gregorian date 26 April 571. | This [http://www.fourmilab.ch/documents/calendar/ calendar tool] advises us that the date ''12 Rabi-Awwal 1 AH'' is equivalent to the Gregorian date ''27 September 622 AD''.<ref>If you would like to use the [http://www.fourmilab.ch/documents/calendar/ calendar converter], bear in mind that it is programmed to assume that year-numbers are integers, i.e., that each date-system includes a year 0. Of course, none of them does. The year before 1 AH is 1 BH and the year before 1 AD is 1 BC. So if, for example, you want to calculate the year ''53 BH'', you need to call it ''-52'' on this calculator.</ref> But this does not give the 53-year-old Muhammad a birthdate of 27 September 569. Because the lunar year is shorter, Muhammad’s age at the time of the ''Hijra'' was only about 51½ solar years. According to the calculator, his birthdate of 12 Rabi-Awwal 53 BH is equivalent to the Gregorian date 26 April 571. | ||
Of course, the Gregorian calendar did not exist in Muhammad’s day, so reporting dates in Gregorian style is an anachronism. However, it will be convenient to compare Muhammad’s calendar with the Gregorian calendar, which is internationally the most widely accepted and used civil calendar.<ref>[http://www.usno.navy.mil/USNO/astronomical-applications/astronomical-information-center/calendars Introduction to Calendars]. United States Naval Observatory. Retrieved 15 January 2009.</ref><ref>[http://astro.nmsu.edu/~lhuber/leaphist.html Calendars] by L. E. Doggett. Section 2.</ref><ref>The international standard for the representation of dates and times, ISO 8601, uses the Gregorian calendar. Section 3.2.1.</ref> | Of course, the Gregorian calendar did not exist in Muhammad’s day, so reporting dates in Gregorian style is an anachronism. However, it will be convenient to compare Muhammad’s calendar with the Gregorian calendar, which is internationally the most widely accepted and used civil calendar.<ref>[http://www.usno.navy.mil/USNO/astronomical-applications/astronomical-information-center/calendars Introduction to Calendars]. United States Naval Observatory. Retrieved 15 January 2009.</ref><ref>[http://astro.nmsu.edu/~lhuber/leaphist.html Calendars] by L. E. Doggett. Section 2.</ref><ref>The international standard for the representation of dates and times, ISO 8601, uses the Gregorian calendar. Section 3.2.1.</ref> | ||
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Therefore our calculation that Muhammad’s average wife was 29 years younger than himself and that she became his bride when she was 24½ has to be taken as conservative. | Therefore our calculation that Muhammad’s average wife was 29 years younger than himself and that she became his bride when she was 24½ has to be taken as conservative. | ||
==Conclusion== | ==Conclusion== | ||