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History of name Al-Muttalib

Question

Who started the generation of the name Al-Muttalib.

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah and that Muhammad  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ) is His slave and Messenger.

The name Al-Muttalib was a common name among the Arabs in the pre-Islamic era. We could not find any scholar who mentioned the first person to have this name. Many Arabs were named Al-Muttalib, one of the most famous of whom was Al-Muttalib ibn ʻAbd Manaaf, the paternal uncle of ʻAbd Al-Muttalib ibn Haashim, the grandfather of the Prophet  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ).

Another man who carried this name was Al-Muttalib ibn Asad ibn ʻAbd Al-ʻUzza ibn Qusayy ibn Kilaab ibn Murrah ibn Kaʻab ibn Lu'ayy, known as Al-Aswad ibn Al-Muttalib, one of the (five) disbelievers who mocked the Prophet  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ). Qataadah  may  Allaah  have  mercy  upon  him reported:

"The verse: {Indeed, We are sufficient for you against the mockers} [Quran 15:95] refers to Al-Waleed ibn Al-Mugheerah, Al-ʻAas ibn Waa'il, ʻAdiyy ibn Qays, Al-Aswad ibn ʻAbd Yaghooth, and Al-Aswad ibn Al-Muttalib. They passed by the Prophet  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ) one by one while Jibreel (Angel Gabriel) was with him. Whenever one of them passed by, Jibreel would ask the Prophet  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ) 'How do you describe this man?' The Prophet  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ) answered, 'Wicked is the man; he is the enemy of Allaah!' And Jibreel would remark, 'Allaah safeguarded you from his harm.'" [At-Tabari]

In fact, knowing who started the generation of the name Al-Muttalib does not lead to doing any action or embracing a certain belief and can only be classified as futile. We, therefore, advise the brother who asked the question to preoccupy himself with asking about what benefits him in his worldly life and religious affairs and help him attain bliss in the Hereafter.

Allaah knows best.

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