UMAR IBN KHATTAB

The Second Righteous Caliph, he was one of the Companions closest to the Prophet in his struggle for Unity in an attempt to spread Islam and make it reign in this world. Umar's sobriquet was "Faruq," which means the one who discriminates between right and wrong.

His birth

Umar was born in Mecca thirteen years after the Event of the Elephant. According to narration related by himself, he was born four years after the Great Fijar war.

His family

His father was Khattab b. Nufayl and his genealogy meets with the Prophet in Kab. A member of the Adiw branch of the Quraish tribe, his mother was Hanteme the sister or cousin of Abu Jahl.

His features

Umar was tall with a big frame, light-skinned, a broad forehead, a long mustache and free-falling hair. Being a shepherd to camels in his childhood, Umar was busy with such honorable works among Arabs as learning genealogy and how to use weapons. At the same time Umar was a very good speaker.

His pre-Islamic life

Sources do not give much information regarding Umar's life before he became Muslim. However, it is known that in his childhood he shepherded his father's animals and that later he became involved in trade. Umar accompanied trade caravans going towards Syria. Among the notables of Mecca during the Age of Ignorance, he handled the duty of envoy for the city of Mecca's government. When a war broke out, Umar would be sent as envoy to the other side and, upon his return, action would be taken according to the information and opinion he gave. In addition, he played an effective role in the resolution of conflict among tribes and the decisions he made were binding.

Entrance to Islam

Deciding to kill the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), Umar girthed his sword and set out to kill him. However, when he learned that his sister and her husband had entered the new religion, he went to them first and, affected by the Quranic verses they read, he accepted Islam in the 6^th year of the Prophet's apostleship.

After he became Muslim, Umar was constantly at the side of the Prophet, and he did everything possible to protect him.

Migration

When Muslims were ordered to migrate to Medina, they secretly began to immigrate to Medina from Mecca. Umar felt no need to be secretive and he set off for Medina with twenty companions.

Service to Islam

Umar participated in the battles of Badr, Uhud, the Ditch and Haybar and in many small detached military expeditions. He acted as commander in some of these.

Umar played a big role in eliminating the chaos that appeared immediately after the death of the Prophet in the election of Abu Bakr as caliph. He was the biggest assistant to Abu Bakr during his short term as caliph.

Caliphate

When Abu Bakr understood that he was going to die, he thought about appointing Umar as caliph to himself and, revealing this idea, he consulted some of the Companions. When everyone approved of Umar's being caliph, he became the second Islamic caliph.

While making an effort to complete the conquest of Syria, on the one hand, Umar sent armies to the Iranian front to get solid results, on the other hand. The Iranian army had been defeated in the Qadisiya War. Iran bowed to the sovereignty of Islam by means of war in some regions and by means of peace in other regions. Azerbaijan and Armenia all the way to Khorasan were among the conquered Persian lands. Egypt and Jerusalem were also taken during this period.

Umar was also trying to set up state organizations. He established the Council. He made income from non-Muslim revenues to be formed into categories. In order to put legal matters in order, he was the first person to appoint judges working independently from the governors. In 17 H. he printed money and put it in circulation. He established military headquarter towns in order for armies to be located close to enemy regions.

He was stabbed by a non-Muslim slave and he died three days after this event.