الرحلةThe Journey

أبو بكر الصديق

Abu Bakr (RA)

Abu Bakr al-Siddiq

Also known as: Abdullah ibn Abi Quhafa, al-Siddiq

c. 50 BH – 13 AH · c. 573–634 CE

Companions

The first caliph, the Prophet's closest friend, and the first adult man to accept Islam.

Abu Bakr was a respected merchant of Quraysh and the first free adult man to accept Islam. He earned the title al-Siddiq, 'the one who affirms the truth', for believing the Prophet ﷺ immediately about the Night Journey. He spent his wealth freeing enslaved believers, including Bilal, and accompanied the Prophet ﷺ in the Cave of Thawr during the Hijrah.

After the Prophet ﷺ passed away, Abu Bakr was chosen as the first caliph (11–13 AH). In just over two years he held the community together through the Ridda wars and began the compilation of the Quran into a single collection.

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Life journey

  1. c. 573 CE Makkah مكة
  2. 622 CE Madinah المدينة
    Died 634 CE · 13 AH
    Companion of the Prophet ﷺ in the cave during the Hijrah. Buried beside him.

Places in their life

The Ka'bah in al-Masjid al-Haram, Makkah
The Ka'bah in al-Masjid al-Haram, Makkah
Photo: Adli Wahid (minor modifications by Basile Morin), CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
al-Masjid al-Nabawi, the Prophet's Mosque, Madinah
al-Masjid al-Nabawi, the Prophet's Mosque, Madinah
Photo: TheHadiRahim, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Sources

  • Ibn Sa'd, al-Tabaqat al-Kubra
  • Ibn Hajar al-'Asqalani, al-Isaba fi Tamyiz al-Sahaba
  • al-Suyuti, Tarikh al-Khulafa'
Draft, awaiting scholarly review.
Birth year is approximate (about two years after the Year of the Elephant).