The Multiplicity of Kings titled Negus in the Prophetic Era between Denial and Affirmation: An Analytical Study

Abstract

This research investigates the contested addition in Anas’s hadith—“He is not the Negus for whom the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed”—and seeks to clarify which rulers of Abyssinia the Prophet corresponded with, offering a hadith-based historical account of these exchanges. Employing both descriptive-analytical and critical hadith methodologies, the study analyzes relevant narrations, identifies inconsistencies, and addresses the problem raised in Sahih Muslim regarding the existence of multiple kings titled Negus during the Prophet’s lifetime. The work is structured into two main sections: the first examines the Islam of the Negus and the Prophet’s correspondence with him, while the second explores the origins of scholarly disagreement about whether more than one Negus existed in that era. The findings affirm that the Negus mentioned in Muslim’s narration was Ashama, the righteous king, and that he alone was the recipient of the Prophet’s correspondence, thereby resolving the issue of multiplicity.