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Ages of Muhammads Wives at Marriage: Difference between revisions
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Ages of Muhammads Wives at Marriage (view source)
Revision as of 01:43, 6 February 2022
, 6 February 2022→Muhammad as Bridegroom
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===Muhammad as Bridegroom=== | ===Muhammad as Bridegroom=== | ||
Based on the above data, it is also possible to calculate Muhammad's age as a bridgegroom in each other cases mentioned above. Here is his age when he consummated each of these marriages. | |||
#Khadijah = 24 years and 3 months. | #Khadijah = 24 years and 3 months. | ||
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===Skewed Statistics=== | ===Skewed Statistics=== | ||
Muhammad’s first marriage to Khadijah skews the | Muhammad’s first marriage to Khadijah skews the the mean. According to the traditional sources, she was the ''only'' wife whom Muhammad married as a young man. She was the ''only'' wife who was close to his own age, as opposed to being significantly younger. Some statisticians would exclude her as an outlier before they began the calculation. | ||
A more serious skew of the statistics is caused by the fact that these 14 wives were not the only women whom Muhammad married. He also had four known concubines and at least one other full wife. While we do not know the ages of any of these women, we can infer a definite trend. They all seem to have been teenagers – significantly younger than the mean. If their ages could be added to the calculation, the mean age of Muhammad’s brides would be even lower, perhaps around 22 years. | A more serious skew of the statistics is caused by the fact that these 14 wives were not the only women whom Muhammad married. He also had four known concubines and at least one other full wife. While we do not know the ages of any of these women, we can infer a definite trend. They all seem to have been teenagers – significantly younger than the mean. If their ages could be added to the calculation, the mean age of Muhammad’s brides would be even lower, perhaps around 22 years. | ||
Muhammad acquired these five women in the last five years of his life, so his mean age as bridegroom has to be raised. While we don’t know all of his wedding dates, the new figure would probably come to about 55 years – making the age difference between Muhammad and his “average wife” a grand mean of 33 years. | Muhammad acquired these five women in the last five years of his life, so his mean age as bridegroom has to be raised. While we don’t know all of his wedding dates or the dates where he first sexually assaulted his slaves, the new figure would probably come to about 55 years – making the age difference between Muhammad and his “average wife” a grand mean of 33 years. | ||
It should thus be kept in mind that the calculation that Muhammad’s average wife was 29 years younger than himself and that she became his bride when she was 24½ should be seen as conservative, and under representing both the age gap and the youth of Muhammad's female lover in each case. | |||
==See Also== | ==See Also== | ||