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Maria bint Shamʿūn, better known as Maria al-Qibtiyya (Arabic: مارية القبطية‎), Maria Qubtiyya, or Maria the Copt (died 637), was an Egyptian who, along with her sister Sirin, were sent to the Islamic Prophet Muhammad in 628. She was sent as a gift by Muqawqis, a Christian governor of Alexandria, Egypt during the territory's Persian occupation. She spent the rest of her life in Medina where she embraced Islam and lived with the Prophet Muhammad when she bore a son, Ibrahim. The son would die as an infant and then she died almost five years later. She and her sister were slaves.

Biography

In the Islamic year 6 AH (627 – 628 CE), Muhammad is said to have had letters written to the great rulers of the Middle East, proclaiming the continuation of the monotheistic faith with its final messages and inviting the rulers to join. The purported texts of some of the letters are found in Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari's History of the Prophets and Kings. Tabari writes that a deputation was sent to an Egyptian governor named as al-Muqawqis.

Tabari recounts the story of Maria's arrival from Egypt:

In this year Hātib b. Abi Balta'ah came back from al-Muqawqis bringing Māriyah and her sister Sīrīn, his female mule Duldul, his donkey Ya'fūr, and sets of garments. With the two women al-Muqawqis had sent a eunuch, and the latter stayed with them. Hātib had invited them to become Muslims before he arrived with them, and Māriyah and her sister did so. The Messenger of God, peace and blessings of Allah be upon Him, lodged them with Umm Sulaym bt. Milhān. Māriyah was beautiful. The prophet sent her sister Sīrīn to Hassān b. Thābit and she bore him 'Abd al-Rahmān b. Hassān.

— Tabari, History of the Prophets and Kings.

The death of Ibrahim caused Muhammad to weep.

Status as Concubine or Wife

There is some debate between historians and scholars as to whether she officially became Muhammad's wife, or was just a concubine.Though generally well-known in the Islamic tradition as a concubine of the Prophet, she has recently been raised to the status of a wife of the Prophet by certain modern-day scholars (reference ICRAA.org). A fact proving she was a concubine however, is that when she bore her son to the Prophet, she was sent free (reference). Had she been a wife, it would have been out of place. There is also strong evidence that there was no living quarter for her in the proximity of the Prophet's Mosque (reference). Only the wives of the Prophet had their quarters adjacent to one another in the proximity of his mosque at Medina. On the opposed, Maria was made to reside permanently in an orchard, some three kilometers from the mosque (reference).

The most direct evidence suggests she was a concubine as a narrated report shows by ‘Umar [b. al-Khattab]:

The Prophet said to Hafsa: ‘Do not to mention it to anyone, the mother of Ibrahim (i.e. Maria) is forbidden unto me.’ She said, ‘Do you forbid yourself what Allah has made lawful to you?’ He replied, ‘By Allah I will not be intimate with her.’ ‘Umar said, ‘He did not have intimacy with Maria whereas Hafsa mentioned it to ‘Aisha upon which Allah revealed, ‘Allah has already sanctioned (a way) for you (believers) to absolve yourselves from your oaths’’ (Qur’an 66:2) (Reference)

In another report from Ibn ‘Abbas and ‘Urwah b. al-Zubair in the same context, the Messenger of Allah said to Hafsa:

I make you witness that I my concubine (surriyyati) is now forbidden unto me. (Reference)

Status as a Slave

Slavery already existed long before Islam. It was a system whereby a human captured in wars or kidnapped could be sold as a “possession.” That term applied to both sexes, not only to women. In some cultures slaves were considered subhuman and treated brutally. Islam recognized the human rights of slaves and encouraged Muslims to set slaves free. Islam prohibited adultery and homosexuality, and prevented forcing female slaves into sexual acts against their will. It also encouraged educating them, setting them free, then legally marrying them and giving them their moral and financial rights. The reward for this, as mentioned in Hadith, is eternal residence in Paradise.

Maria the Copt was a slave owned by Egypt’s Christian governor, who offered her and her sister Sirin, among other presents, as a gift of good will to the Prophet in reply to his envoys inviting him to Islam.