ʿUthmān ibn ʿAffān was born in Mecca sometime between 574 and 579 into one of the most noble and wealthy families—the Banū Umayya clan of the Quraysh tribe. His lineage was closely intertwined with that of the Prophet Muhammad: their common ancestors converged at ʿAbd Manāf, and ʿUthmān’s mother, Arwā bint Kurayz, was the daughter of the Prophet’s aunt.
Even in the pre-Islamic period, ʿUthmān stood out among the Meccan aristocracy. While many indulged in vices, he was known for his exceptional modesty and moral purity. “I never worshipped idols, never drank wine, and never committed adultery,” he would later say, recalling his youth. As one of the few literate people in Mecca among only twenty-two who could write he inherited his father’s trading business and transformed it into a flourishing commercial enterprise, becoming one of the city’s wealthiest merchants. His deep knowledge of genealogy, history, and eloquence made him one of the most respected men of his time.
Returning from a торгов journey to Syria in 611, ʿUthmān learned of Muhammad’s mission. Thanks to his long-standing friendship with Abu Bakr, he became one of the first men (probably the fourth) to accept Islam. This decision cost him peace within his family: his own uncle, al-Ḥakam, bound him and attempted to force him to renounce the new faith, but ʿUthmān remained unshaken.
When persecution in Mecca became unbearable, it was ʿUthmān, together with his wife Ruqayya (the Prophet’s daughter), who led the first group of emigrants to Abyssinia in 615. Even in exile, his commercial acumen did not fail him: he continued trading and increasing his wealth, which he would later devote entirely to the needs of the Muslim community. After a false rumor spread that Mecca had accepted Islam, he briefly returned, but soon made the definitive migration to Medina, becoming one of the Prophet’s closest companions.
His generosity in Medina became legendary. When ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib married Fāṭima, ʿUthmān bought ʿAlī’s armor for 500 dirhams so that he would have money for the wedding, and then returned it to him as a gift. After the death of Ruqayya, the Prophet married his second daughter, Umm Kulthūm, to ʿUthmān, for which he received the honorary title Dhū al-Nūrayn— “Possessor of the Two Lights.”
In 644, after the martyrdom of ʿUmar, the council of elders (shūrā) elected ʿUthmān as the third caliph. His reign became an era of unprecedented territorial expansion. Under his rule, in 648, Arab forces under the command of ʿAbdullāh ibn Saʿd subdued Carthage. The first Muslim navy was created, consisting of 220 ships under the leadership of Muʿāwiya; in 655 it defeated the Byzantines in the Battle of Phoinix, establishing control over the eastern Mediterranean. In the north and east, Georgia, Caucasian Albania, and Armenia were conquered. In 651, the last Sasanian shah, Yazdegerd III, was killed in Merv, marking the final collapse of the Persian Empire. The borders of the caliphate reached Balkh and Khurāsān.
However, ʿUthmān’s most important legacy was the codification of the Qur’an. Around 650, noticing that in different parts of the vast empire the sacred text was being recited in different dialects, ʿUthmān ordered a commission headed by Zayd ibn Thābit to produce a single standardized copy based on Abu Bakr’s original compilation. This text became canonical, and all other scattered versions were destroyed, ensuring the preservation of the Scripture in its authentic form for future generations.
Despite external successes, discontent was growing within the caliphate. ʿUthmān was accused of nepotism, as key provincial posts were occupied by his relatives from the Umayyad clan (including Marwān ibn al-Ḥakam and Muʿāwiya). This led to tensions with such prominent Companions as ʿAlī, Ṭalḥa, and ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn ʿAwf.
By 655, the situation had reached a boiling point. A group of 500 dissatisfied Egyptians arrived in Medina demanding reforms. The caliph, seeking to avoid bloodshed, signed a document guaranteeing the protection of their rights and ensuring their safety. However, the incident involving an intercepted letter to the Egyptian governor whose authorship ʿUthmān denied but which was attributed to Marwān became the spark that ignited the powder keg.
An enraged crowd besieged ʿUthmān’s residence. The siege lasted forty days; the caliph was cut off from food and water. Even in this situation, ʿUthmān forbade his supporters from using weapons, unwilling to shed Muslim blood in the city of the Prophet. He met his death on June 17, 656, while reciting the Qur’an. The murder of ʿUthmān was a profound shock to the community and marked the beginning of the First Fitna — the first civil war in the history of Islam, which divided the Muslim world for centuries.
