Abū Lahab, ʿAbd al-ʿUzzā b. ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib b. Hāshim b. ʿAbd Manāf (d. 2/623), was the Prophet Muḥammad's uncle and one of his staunchest opponents. He was originally named Abū ʿUtba, but his father changed his name to Abū Lahab (lit. ‘Father of Flame’) because of his beautiful face and rosy cheeks (al-Kalbī, 28; Ibn Saʿd, 1/93). His mother Lubnā was the daughter of Hājar bint ʿAbd Manāf, who belonged to the tribe of Khuzāʿa (al-Kalbī, 28; Ibn Saʿd, 1/93; Ibn Hishām, 1/115, 118).

There is no precise information about Abū Lahab's life before the advent of Islam. He was probabl…