At a glance
- Era
- The Prophetic Era
- Region
- Arabia · East Africa & Swahili coast
- Review
- Draft Completeness 2/5 · Help complete it
Walk this pathway
11steps · 25min · student
Why Did They Leave?
The context: the harm that preceded the emigration.
The First Emigration
Who left, when, and how.
The King Who Sheltered Them
Who the Negus is as the page presents him, and what is said about his Islam.
The Second Emigration
Who left a second time, and what Quraysh did.
Ja'far ibn Abi Talib
The one who spoke before the king on the emigrants' behalf.
The Emigrants to Abyssinia
How Ibn Ishaq classifies them by their return.
A Different Case
Not everyone who left remained Muslim, as Ibn Ishaq relates; note that the book does not date the event.
Umm Habiba
One who emigrated, returned, and became a Mother of the Believers.
Asma bint Umays
One of the women who emigrated with their husbands.
The Return
Its account on the page, according to Ibn Ishaq.
Return of the Abyssinian emigrants with Ja'far ibn Abi Talib
Another Account of Ja'far's Arrival
A report Ibn Hisham transmits from other than Ibn Ishaq; compare the two pages.
Tell it back
Tell what you learned in your own words. What you write stays on this device only, and no one else reads it.
- Where would you start if you told this to a friend?
- What surprised you or did you like most?
- Sum it up in two sentences of your own.
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Write at least two sentences, or tick that you told it, to earn the stamp in your passport.
The aim of this trail
To know the reason for the two migrations to Abyssinia and the names of the most prominent of those who took part in them, and to see how the accounts present their return.
What you will know at the end
- Distinguish the first migration from the second, and state what marks each.
- Name those who sheltered them and those who spoke for them before the king.
- See how the different accounts of the emigrants' return are attributed to their narrators.
How to read this trail
This lesson is smaller than "The Meccan Period" and narrower than it. It focuses on a single event and its people, and shows how the museum presents the different accounts of the same event. Approximate duration: 25 minutes; 11 steps. This is an experimental trail within "Tour and Learn".
Before you begin
It is best to begin with The Meccan Period: From the Cave to the Hijra.
The steps
1. Why did they leave?
The persecution of the vulnerable: the context, the harm that came before the migration. 1
2. The first migration
The first migration to Abyssinia: who left, when, and how. 1
3. The king who sheltered them
The Negus: who the Negus is, as the page presents him, and what is said about his Islam. 2
4. The second migration
The second migration to Abyssinia: who left a second time, and what Quraysh did. 1
5. Ja'far ibn Abi Talib
Ja'far ibn Abi Talib: the one who spoke before the king on behalf of the emigrants. 2
6. The emigrants of Abyssinia
The emigrants of Abyssinia: how Ibn Ishaq classifies them according to their return.
7. A different case
The conversion of Ubaydullah ibn Jahsh to Christianity in the land of Abyssinia: not everyone who emigrated remained upon Islam, as Ibn Ishaq relates. The book does not date the event. 3
8. Umm Habiba
Umm Habiba Ramla bint Abi Sufyan: who emigrated, then returned, and became one of the Mothers of the Believers. 4
9. Asma bint Umays
Asma bint Umays: one of the women who emigrated with their husbands. 5
10. The return
The arrival of the Abyssinian emigrants with Ja'far ibn Abi Talib: its account on the page, according to Ibn Ishaq. 6
11. Another account of Ja'far's arrival
Ja'far ibn Abi Talib's arrival to the Prophet at Khaybar: a report that Ibn Hisham transmits from a source other than Ibn Ishaq. Compare the two pages. 6
When you finish
Next, try: The Women Around the Prophet: Twelve Lives.
Sources
- al-Raheeq al-Makhtum — Safi al-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri
- Ibn Sa'd, Kitab al-Tabaqat al-Kabir (Bewley translation, Ta-Ha)
- al-Sira al-Nabawiyya — Ibn Hisham, al-Saqqa edition (1355/1936) , 4/6
- al-Sira al-Nabawiyya — Ibn Hisham, al-Saqqa edition (1355/1936) , 4/38; cite:ibn-sad-tabaqat-bewley
- Siyar a'lam al-nubala' — al-Dhahabi (al-Abyari edition, vol. 2) , p.204-205
- al-Sira al-Nabawiyya — Ibn Hisham, al-Saqqa edition (1355/1936) , 4/3
- al-Sira al-Nabawiyya — Ibn Hisham
- al-Isaba fi tamyiz al-sahaba — Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani
Cite this page
islam.museum contributors. “The Two Emigrations to Abyssinia”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/exhibits/path-abyssinia-migrations/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-21.