The short answer
Prophet Sulaiman (Sulayman), peace be upon him, is the subject of the An-Naml and Saba passages on this page. Those passages give no number of his wives. Two Sahih al-Bukhari reports count women in one night's intention: seventy in 3424 and one hundred in 5242. Neither is a lifetime total, so this page does not add them up.
سُلَيْمَـٰنُ
What does the Quran say about Sulaiman?
An-Naml 27:15 says that Allah gave knowledge to David, peace be upon him, and to Solomon (Sulaiman), and that they both said, "Praise be to Allah." Verse 16 says that Solomon was David's heir and that he said he had been taught the language of birds. Verse 17 says that his armies were gathered together, made up of jinn, humankind and birds, and set in battle order.
وَلَقَدْ ءَاتَيْنَا دَاوُۥدَ وَسُلَيْمَـٰنَ عِلْمًا ۖ وَقَالَا ٱلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ ٱلَّذِى فَضَّلَنَا عَلَىٰ كَثِيرٍ مِّنْ عِبَادِهِ ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَوَرِثَ سُلَيْمَـٰنُ دَاوُۥدَ ۖ وَقَالَ يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاسُ عُلِّمْنَا مَنطِقَ ٱلطَّيْرِ وَأُوتِينَا مِن كُلِّ شَىْءٍ ۖ إِنَّ هَـٰذَا لَهُوَ ٱلْفَضْلُ ٱلْمُبِينُ وَحُشِرَ لِسُلَيْمَـٰنَ جُنُودُهُۥ مِنَ ٱلْجِنِّ وَٱلْإِنسِ وَٱلطَّيْرِ فَهُمْ يُوزَعُونَ
The jinn are named in his armies (An-Naml 27:17) and as workers before him (Saba 34:12). The jinn lesson covers what the sources say about them.
The passages below are episodes from the Quran. They are not a full biography or a chronology, and each one is given only as far as its verses go.
What happened with the ant?
In An-Naml 27:18, an ant exclaimed. It tells the other ants to enter their dwellings, so that Solomon and his armies do not crush them without noticing. Verse 19 says that he smiled, laughing at her speech. He asks his Lord to arouse him to be thankful for the favour given to him and his parents, and to do good that pleases Him.
حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَآ أَتَوْا۟ عَلَىٰ وَادِ ٱلنَّمْلِ قَالَتْ نَمْلَةٌ يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّمْلُ ٱدْخُلُوا۟ مَسَـٰكِنَكُمْ لَا يَحْطِمَنَّكُمْ سُلَيْمَـٰنُ وَجُنُودُهُۥ وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ فَتَبَسَّمَ ضَاحِكًا مِّن قَوْلِهَا وَقَالَ رَبِّ أَوْزِعْنِىٓ أَنْ أَشْكُرَ نِعْمَتَكَ ٱلَّتِىٓ أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَىَّ وَعَلَىٰ وَٰلِدَىَّ وَأَنْ أَعْمَلَ صَـٰلِحًا تَرْضَىٰهُ وَأَدْخِلْنِى بِرَحْمَتِكَ فِى عِبَادِكَ ٱلصَّـٰلِحِينَ
The passage gives the ant no name and no description. It speaks once, and the verses say nothing more about it.
What happened with the ruler of Sheba?
In An-Naml 27:20 to 22 the hoopoe is missing when Solomon looks for the birds. It returns and reports, "I found a woman ruling over them", and that she and her people were worshipping the sun instead of Allah (27:23 to 24).
Solomon says that he will see whether the report is true, and he sends a letter (27:27 to 28). The ruler consults her chiefs and decides to send a present (27:29 to 35). Solomon rejects the gift and tells the envoy to return, since his forces will come to them (27:36 to 37).
Solomon asks who will bring the throne before they come to him in submission (27:38). A stalwart of the jinn offers to bring it before he rises from his place (27:39), and one with knowledge of the Scripture offers to bring it before Solomon's gaze returns to him (27:40).
قَالَ ٱلَّذِى عِندَهُۥ عِلْمٌ مِّنَ ٱلْكِتَـٰبِ أَنَا۠ ءَاتِيكَ بِهِۦ قَبْلَ أَن يَرْتَدَّ إِلَيْكَ طَرْفُكَ ۚ فَلَمَّا رَءَاهُ مُسْتَقِرًّا عِندَهُۥ قَالَ هَـٰذَا مِن فَضْلِ رَبِّى لِيَبْلُوَنِىٓ ءَأَشْكُرُ أَمْ أَكْفُرُ ۖ وَمَن شَكَرَ فَإِنَّمَا يَشْكُرُ لِنَفْسِهِۦ ۖ وَمَن كَفَرَ فَإِنَّ رَبِّى غَنِىٌّ كَرِيمٌ
When the throne is set before him, Solomon says, "This is of the bounty of my Lord, that He may try me whether I give thanks or am ungrateful."
The ruler is asked whether her throne is like this. She says, "as though it were the very one" (27:42). She is told to enter the hall, and takes it for a pool. Solomon says it is a hall, made smooth, of glass (27:44). She says, "I surrender with Solomon to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds."
The passage does not give the ruler a name, and it does not mention a marriage to Solomon. Some retellings add a name and a marriage. Neither is in these verses, so this page does not add them.
How many wives did Solomon have?
The two Sahih al-Bukhari reports below each say what Sulaiman said he would do in one night. Neither gives a lifetime total of his wives, and this page does not add the two numbers together or treat either as the total.
In 3424, Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, transmits the account from the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. In 5242, Abu Hurayrah reports Sulaiman's words, and the report closes with the Prophet Muhammad's comment on them.
Both reports use the Arabic word for women. Some English translations add "wives" in brackets. That is the translator's word, not the Arabic.
| Report | Number of women | What the report adds |
|---|---|---|
| Sahih al-Bukhari 3424 | Seventy | Sulaiman says he will go round seventy women that night, each to carry a horseman who strives in Allah's cause. His companion says "If Allah will", and he does not say it. Only one of them carries anything, and that one is described as having one side missing. The closing transmission note says ninety and calls that more correct. |
| Sahih al-Bukhari 5242 | One hundred | Sulaiman says he will go round one hundred women that night, each to bear a son who fights in Allah's cause. An angel tells him to say "If Allah will". He does not say it and forgets. Only one woman gives birth, to a child described as half a person. The Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, says that saying it would have made Sulaiman more hopeful for his need. |
1AuthenticSahih al-Bukhari 3424
2AuthenticSahih al-Bukhari 5242
The note about ninety is part of the 3424 report, so the page keeps it with 3424 and does not move it to 5242. The numbers are not added, averaged or merged. A lifetime figure would need a report that gives one, and the two reports on this page do not.
What does the account of his death show?
Saba 34:14 says that when death was decreed for Sulaiman, nothing showed them his death except a creeping creature of the earth which gnawed away his staff. When he fell, the jinn saw clearly how, if they had known the Unseen, they would not have continued in despised toil.
فَلَمَّا قَضَيْنَا عَلَيْهِ ٱلْمَوْتَ مَا دَلَّهُمْ عَلَىٰ مَوْتِهِۦٓ إِلَّا دَآبَّةُ ٱلْأَرْضِ تَأْكُلُ مِنسَأَتَهُۥ ۖ فَلَمَّا خَرَّ تَبَيَّنَتِ ٱلْجِنُّ أَن لَّوْ كَانُوا۟ يَعْلَمُونَ ٱلْغَيْبَ مَا لَبِثُوا۟ فِى ٱلْعَذَابِ ٱلْمُهِينِ
The verse gives no age at death and no length of time for the staff to be eaten. The verses before it (34:12 and 34:13) say that the wind was given to him, that Allah caused the fount of copper to gush forth for him, and that some jinn worked before him by permission of his Lord.
What do the passages point to?
These are points the verses make in their own words, not a reading of his character.
- Thanks. In 27:19 Sulaiman asks to be thankful. In 27:40 he calls the throne a bounty, and says it may test whether he gives thanks or is ungrateful.
- Checking a report. In 27:27 he says, "We shall see whether you speak truth or whether you are of the liars", and he sends a letter (27:28).
- The unseen. In 34:14 the jinn saw clearly when he fell, and, if they had known the Unseen, they would not have continued in despised toil.
Where do the sources stop?
| Question | What the sources give |
|---|---|
| A lifetime number of wives | Not given. The two reports give seventy and one hundred women for one night's intention, and they are not added. |
| The ruler of Sheba's name | Not given in An-Naml 27:20 to 44. |
| A marriage to the ruler | Not stated in those verses. |
| The ant's name or appearance | Not given. |
| His age at death, and how long the staff was eaten | Not given in Saba 34:14. |
| Who advises him to say "If Allah will" | In 3424 it is his companion; in 5242 it is an angel. Both are recorded on this page. |
My dad told me about Sulayman and the ant after he saw me stamp on an ant on our garden path. He made me sit on the back step while he told it. I did not tread on an ant for a long time after that, and I still look down on that path.
Try it: three quick questions
Pick an answer; each one explains itself.
1What does Sulaiman ask for after hearing the ant?
Answer: Help to be thankful and to do good that pleases Allah. An-Naml 27:19 asks Allah to arouse him to be thankful and to do good that pleases Him.
2Does An-Naml name the ruler of Sheba?
Answer: No, the passage does not name her. An-Naml 27:20 to 44 describes her without a name and does not mention a marriage.
3Does the comparison of the two reports give a lifetime total?
Answer: No, it compares two wordings about one night. Sahih al-Bukhari 3424 and 5242 each describe what Sulaiman said he would do that night. Neither gives a lifetime count.
Questions people ask
How many wives did Solomon have?
The Quran passages on this page give no number of wives. Sahih al-Bukhari 3424 says seventy women and 5242 says one hundred women, both for one night's intention. Neither is a lifetime total, so this page does not add them up or choose one as the total.
Did Sulaiman marry the ruler of Sheba?
The passages do not say so. An-Naml 27:20 to 44 describes the ruler's visit and her submission, and does not mention a marriage.
Is Sulaiman the same prophet as Solomon?
Yes. Sulaiman (Sulayman) is the Arabic name. The translation on this site uses Solomon for the same prophet, as in An-Naml 27:15.
What happened with the ant in the Quran?
In An-Naml 27:18 an ant tells the other ants to enter their dwellings, so that Sulaiman and his armies do not crush them. Sulaiman smiles at its words and prays to be thankful. The passage gives no name or description of the ant.
Sources
Every claim on this page comes from one of these. Gradings are reported with the scholar's name; we do not grade hadith ourselves.
- 1
The Prophet told of Sulayman son of Dawud, who said seventy women would each carry a horseman to strive in Allah's cause. His companion said 'in sha Allah'; Sulayman did not say it, and the Prophet said that had he said it, they would have striven in Allah's cause.
Sahih al-Bukhari 3424 Book 60, Hadith 96
Authentic: in Sahih al-Bukhari
- 2
Abu Hurayrah reports that Sulayman son of Dawud said he would go round one hundred women that night, each of whom would bear a son who would fight in Allah's cause; an angel told him to say 'If Allah will'; he did not say it and forgot; only one of the women gave birth, to a half person; and the Prophet said that saying it would have made him more hopeful for his need
Sahih al-Bukhari 5242 Book 67, Hadith 175
Authentic: in Sahih al-Bukhari
- Q
Quran Arabic and English for An-Naml 27:15 to 44 and Saba 34:12 to 14, as cited in the text.
Tanzil Project Uthmani text, CC BY 3.0. English: adapted from Marmaduke Pickthall's translation (1930), modernised and checked against modern translations.
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