The munafara between Hashim and Umayya

منافرة هاشم وأمية

c. 470 CE

The famous munafara: unable to match Hashim's rifada, a mocked Umayya staked fifty black-eyed camels and ten years' exile; the soothsayer of Usfan judged Hashim had 'outstripped Umayya in every glory', and Umayya went to Syria for a decade — the seed of the Hashimite–Umayyad rivalry 1.

Depth

At a glance

Era
Pre-Islamic Arabia
Region
Arabia
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In time

460470480 c.

Overview

A dispute between Umayya ibn Abd Shams and Hashim ibn Abd Manaf over fifty camels and over exile for ten years. In Al-Baladhuri's account it was the first enmity between them. 2

The account

Umayya tried to do what Hashim did in feeding Quraysh with the Rifada, and failed. Some people of Quraysh blamed him and mocked him. He became angry and challenged Hashim on fifty black-eyed camels to be slaughtered in Mecca, and on exile for ten years. 2

They made as their judge the Khuza'i soothsayer, who lived at Usfan, and he judged for Hashim. Hashim slaughtered the camels and fed their meat to those who were present. Umayya went out to Syria and stayed there ten years. 2

The date is approximate, about a generation before the grandfathers of the Prophet ﷺ and Mu'awiya, and no firm date is given.

Connections

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Had participant
Hashim ibn Abd Manaf· أمية بن عبد شمس· كاهن عسفان الخزاعي

People and things also explored

The partition of the Meccan offices between Abd Manaf and Abd al-Dar· Banu Hashim· Quraysh· Abd al-Muttalib ibn Hashim· Abd Manaf ibn Qusayy· al-Muṭṭalib ibn ʿAbd Manāf· Harb ibn Umayya· Salmā bint ʿAmr

Sources

  1. Ansab al-Ashraf of al-Baladhuri , p. 61-62
  2. Ansab al-Ashraf of al-Baladhuri , p.61-62
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “The munafara between Hashim and Umayya”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/munafarat-hashim-umayya/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-22.

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The partition of the Meccan offices between Abd Manaf and Abd al-Dar

After Abd Manaf's death his sons contested with their cousins of Abd al-Dar the offices Qusayy had bequeathed to Abd al-Dar; Quraysh split in two and nearly fought, then settled: the watering and feeding of pilgrims to Abd Manaf, Dar al-Nadwa, the banner and the custody of the Kaaba to Abd al-Dar; the Abd Manaf lot fell to Hashim, then al-Muttalib, then Abd al-Muttalib and his sons down to al-Abbas at the coming of Islam.