Othman 1 | Prosopography of the Byzantine Empire |
| Sex | M |
| Floruit | M VII |
| Dates | 644 (taq) / 656 (ob.) |
| Variant Names | Outhman;
Uthman |
| Religion | Muslim |
| Ethnicity | Arab |
| Locations | Medina (officeplace);
Medina (residence);
Medina |
| Titles | Caliph (office) |
| Textual Sources | Chronicon Anonymi ad annum 1234 pertinens, ed. and tr. J.-B. Chabot, I = CSCO 81-82 (Paris, 1916-20), II = CSCO 109 (Louvain, 1937) (chronicle);
Constantine Porphyrogenitus, De Administrando Imperio, ed. G. Moravcsik, trans. R. J. H. Jenkins (Washington, D.C., 1967) (history);
Elias Barshinaya, Chronicle (Eliae metropolitae Nisibeni, Opus chronologicum, pars prior, ed. and tr. E. W. Brooks, CSCO 62 and CSCO 63 (1910) (chronicle);
Michael the Syrian, Chronicle, ed. and tr. J.-B. Chabot, La chronique de Michel le Syrien (Paris, 1899-1904) (chronicle);
Theophanes Confessor, Chronographia, ed. C. de Boor, 2 vols. (Leipzig, 1883-85, repr. Hildesheim/NewYork, 1980); tr. and comm. C. Mango and R. Scott, The Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor, Oxford 1997 (chronicle) |
Othman 1 was caliph from 644 to 656; see [ODB III, p. 2147 s.n. `Uthman]. A relative of Omar 1 and son of Phan 1, he succeeded Omar 1 as caliph; Theoph. AM 6137 (Οὐθμάν, ὁ τούτου συγγενής, ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ Φάν). The ruler of the Arabs (ὁ τῶν Ἀράβων ἀρχηγός), he was murdered after having ruled (ἀμηρεύσας) for ten years; the succession was disputed between Ali 1 and Mu`awiya 1 with Mu`awiya 1 winning: Theoph. AM 6147. Called `Uthman son of `Afan (`Wtmn br `'pn) and described as the son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad; he was not of the tribe of Quraysh but was an Umayyad; after the murder of `Umar (Omar 1) he became caliph and allegedly made himself unpopular by his avarice, his interference with the law and the splendour of his style which contrasted with the simplicity of his predecessors; a man of learning, he collected the words of the Prophet and compiled the Koran: Chron. 1234, §127 (pp. 261-262), cf. Mich. Syr. II 430 (similar). Father of Sa`id, whom he despatched in c. 650 against the Persian king Yazdigird; subsequently Sa`id sent the diadem of the Persian kings to him, and he placed it in the Ka`ba: Chron. 1234, §133 (pp. 273-274), cf. also §135 (pp. 275-276) on his ostentation. He was killed partly because of his unpopularity and partly because he tried to have Muhammad son of `Abu Bakr and grandson of the Prophet secretly executed; his murder took place in Medina: Chron. 1234, §135 (pp. 276-277), Mich. Syr. II 449- 450. His death was followed by the struggle for the caliphate between Ali 1 and Mu`awiya 1: Chron. 1234, §136 (pp. 277-278). In AH 23 (Nov. 643/Nov. 644) = 955 Sel. (643/644) `Uthman ibn `Affan succeeded `Umar ibn Khattab as ruler, on Friday the 28th of Dhu'l Hijja (October/November 644): Elias, Chron., p. 134, 25 - p. 135, 7 = p. 65. In AH 25 (Oct. 645/Oct. 646) = 957 Sel. (645/646) he instructed Mu`awiya 1 to send Habib ibn Maslama (Abibus 1) to attack Armenia: Elias, Chron., p. 135, 20-28 = p. 65. In AH 35 (July 655/June 656) = 966 Sel. (654/655) `Uthman ibn `Affan was murdered and was succeeded by `Ali ibn Abu Talib on Friday the 18th of Dhu'l Hijja (17 June 656): Elias, Chron., p. 139, 4-9 = p. 67. The fourth ruler of the Arabs (τέταρτος Ἀράβων ἀρχηγὸς Οὐθμάν), he conquered Africa; his successor was Mu`awiya 1: Const. Porph., DAI 20, 1ff.
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