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Dhu Nuwas (Yusuf Asʾar Yathʾar)

ذو نواس

The last Himyarite king before the second Abyssinian occupation: a convert to Judaism who in October 523 tried to force the Christians of Najran to apostatize and, on their refusal, dug the trench of fire — the event the Quran recalls in Surat al-Buruj.

Depth

At a glance

Era
Pre-Islamic Arabia
Region
Arabia
Review
Draft Completeness 2/5 · Help complete it

Wars and campaignsIslam and Christianity

Place in the story

Jewish (transmitted)

Roles are dated and sourced; the museum describes the act and attributes the judgement.

Summary

Yusuf Dhu Nuwas was the Jewish king of Himyar, son of Tubban As'ad Abu Karib. In 523 CE he led his campaign against the Christians of Najran and dug the trench for them: the People of the Ditch in Surat al-Buruj 1 2 3.

The Trench

When Yusuf Dhu Nuwas, the son of Tubban As'ad, took power over Yemen, he attacked the Christians of Najran and called them to embrace Judaism. When they refused, he dug the trench for them and burned them with fire. He made no distinction between man and woman, young children and old men. It is said that the number killed was between twenty thousand and forty thousand, and this took place in October 523 CE 2 4. See the trench of Najran.

Legacy

This led to the vengeance of the Christian powers, active under the Roman emperors. They incited the Abyssinians, and the Abyssinians occupied Yemen in 525 CE 1 5.

Notes for researchers

The word "it is said" (yuqal) in the death toll is recorded as a mark of doubt. Comparison with inscriptions and Syriac sources has not yet been added.

For young visitors

Dhu Nuwas is a king in the story told in the Qur'an. He burned the people of Najran in a trench of fire because they refused to give up their religion.

Connections

Explore the connections

Ruler of
Yemen
Member of
Himyar
Participated in
The Massacre of Najran (Ashab al-Ukhdud)
Child of
Tuban As'ad Abu Karib

People and things also explored

Tuban As'ad Abu Karib· The First Abyssinian Occupation of Yemen· Sayf ibn Dhi Yazan (Maʾdikarib)· The sending of Mu'adh ibn Jabal to Yemen and the Prophet's charge to him· Nasr· Himyar· Abraha· Yemen

Sources

  1. al-Raheeq al-Makhtum — Safi al-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri , p. 24
  2. al-Raheeq al-Makhtum — Safi al-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri , p. 40
  3. Tafhim al-Quran — Abu al-A'la al-Mawdudi , 6/297-298
  4. al-Sira al-Nabawiyya — Ibn Hisham , 1/20-36
  5. al-Raheeq al-Makhtum — Safi al-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri , p. 25
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Dhu Nuwas (Yusuf Asʾar Yathʾar)”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/person/dhu-nuwas/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-25.

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Wing

People

Prophets, companions, scholars, rulers, scientists, poets, travelers: women and men who shaped the story. Related

Tuban As'ad Abu Karib

The Himyarite king through whom Judaism entered Yemen: he went to fight at Yathrib, adopted Judaism there and brought two rabbis of Banu Qurayza back to Yemen, where Judaism then spread; his son Yusuf Dhu Nuwas was the king of the Najran trench, in al-Raheeq al-Makhtum's account. In Ibn Zabala's version preserved by al-Samhudi, he came meaning to destroy the town until two rabbis of Qurayza — Suhayt and Munabba — told him it was protected, the future refuge of a prophet of the Ishmaelites named Ahmad, so he believed them and desisted, built each scholar a house and married him off, wrote a gold-sealed letter attesting his Islam and testifying to Ahmad to be passed to the Prophet or whichever descendant met him, and built the Prophet a house that passed through heirs until it reached Abu Ayyub, a descendant of that scholar. The hadith says: 'Do not curse Tubba', for he had become Muslim.'