Al-Zubayr ibn Al-‘Awwām ibn Khuwaylid ibn Asad ibn ‘Abd Al-‘Uzzā ibn Quṣayy ibn Kilāb ibn Murrah ibn Ka‘b ibn Lu’ayy ibn Ghālib.
He was the disciple of the Messenger of Allah (صلى الله عليه وسلم), the son of his paternal aunt Ṣafiyyah bint ‘Abd Al-Muṭṭalib, one of the ten companions promised Paradise, and one of the six members of the Shūrā (consultative council). He was also the first to unsheathe his sword in the cause of Allah. Known as Abū ‘Abdullāh (رضي الله عنه), he accepted Islam at a young age, when he was sixteen years old.
Al-Layth narrated from Abū Al-Aswad, from ‘Urwah, who said:
"Al-Zubayr embraced Islam at the age of eight. At one point, a whisper from Shayṭān spread that the Messenger of Allah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) had been captured in the upper parts of Makkah. Al-Zubayr, who was only twelve years old, rushed out holding his sword. People marveled at him, saying: ‘A young boy carrying a sword!’ He reached the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم), and the Prophet asked: ‘What is the matter, O Zubayr?’ He replied: ‘I came to strike with my sword whoever has captured you!’”
It is reported that Al-Zubayr was a tall man; when he rode a horse, his feet would touch the ground. He had a light beard and thin sideburns.
He narrated a few hadiths.
Among those who narrated from him were his sons:
- ‘Abdullāh,
- Muṣ‘ab,
- ‘Urwah,
- Ja‘far,
And others such as:
- Mālik ibn Aws ibn Al-Ḥadathān,
- Al-Aḥnaf ibn Qays,
- ‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Āmir ibn Kurayz,
- Muslim ibn Jundub,
- Abū Ḥakīm (his freed slave), and others.
Both Al-Bukhārī and Muslim agreed on two hadiths from him, while Al-Bukhārī exclusively narrated four additional hadiths, and Muslim recorded one more hadith from him.