Utarid ibn Hajib

Utarid ibn Hajib (may God be pleased with him) al-Tamimi was the orator of the ten-man delegation of Banu Tamim that came to Medina after the raid of Uyayna ibn Hisn in the year 9 AH. ¹.

The delegation wanted to boast and show off, so they put forward their orator, Utarid ibn Hajib, to speak. The Prophet ordered Thabit ibn Qays ibn al-Shammas, the orator of Islam, to answer them. ¹. When the two orators and the two poets had finished, al-Aqra ibn Habis said, “Their orator is more eloquent than ours,” and the whole delegation became Muslim. ².

Ibn Ishaq places him at the head of the delegation of Banu Tamim: Utarid ibn Hajib ibn Zurara ibn Ads al-Tamimi, among the nobles of his people. Ibn Hisham traces him to the Banu Darim ibn Malik ibn Hanzala ibn Malik ibn Zayd Manat ibn Tamim. ³ When the Prophet gave him permission to speak, he stood up and praised God, to whom belong the favour and the kindness towards his people. He said that God had made them kings, given them great wealth to spend on good works, and made them the most honoured people of the East, the most numerous, and the best equipped. He asked, “Who is like us among the people?” He said that if they wished, they could speak at length, but they were ashamed to speak too much. Then he sat down. ⁴ The Prophet ordered Thabit ibn Qays to stand up and answer him. ⁴

The editors establish that the word “favour” (al-mann) is missing from one of the manuscripts. ⁴