A Tradition Invented 55 family members.1 51 Ibn Sa‘d mentions her clumsy tongue and her malapropisms. For example, she would mistakenly greet others with “ saldm Id ‘ alaykum ” [Peace not be upon you] until Muhammad allowed her to make do with “saldm.” As with Lubaba, the Prophet visited her frequently. She is also known for participating in the battles of Uhud and Khaybar (7/628), during which she provided water for the Muslim warriors and cared for the wounded. Umm Ayman’s two traditions, however, give no indication of her status in the early Muslim community. One concerns the generic topic of the Prophet’s exhortations to be steadfast in prayer. Another describes her preparation of some food for Muhammad. In spite of her proximity to the Prophet, she was clearly not regarded as a good vehicle for conveying his sunna. FEMALE PARTICIPANTS IN BATTLES The participation of women on the battlefield as nurses or as fighters boosted the reputation of some female Companions as traditionists. Umm Ayman, discussed earlier, is one such example. Biographers also laud Nusayba bint Ka‘b for taking part in several raids and minor battles ( ghazawdt ) with Muhammad. Ibn Sa‘d reports that she was present at the momentous occasions of Uhud, al-Hudaybiyya (6/628), the expedition to Khaybar, the first completed 'umra (7/628), and the battles of Hunayn (8/630) and Yamama (11/632). At Uhud, she courageously defended Muhammad while others around him fled. And at Yamama, she persevered in fighting even after losing her hand in combat. ’ Yet only one of Nusayba bint Ka‘b’s twenty traditions pertains to her military efforts. Instead, her badith mostly touch on ritual purity and the pledge of 131 Her life is the subject of a monograph by Muhammad Rida ‘Abd al-Amir al-Ansan, Wafa’ al-Ima’ (Beirut: Majma‘ al-Buhuth al-Islamiyya, 1996). 132 Ibn Hanbal, Musnad , 6:469, #26353. 133 Ibn Maja, Sunan, 2:1107. 134 For a more detailed study of this topic, see Ilse Lichtenstadter, Women in the Aiyam al‘Arab (London: Royal Asiatic Society, 1935). 135 For her biographies, see Ibn Sa‘d, al-Tabaqat , 8:301^4; Abu Nu‘aym al-Isbahanl, Ma‘rifat al-Sahaba, 6:3455-56; and Ibn Hajar, al-Isaba, 13:257-58. Her life is also the subject of a monograph by Amina ‘Umar al-Kharrat, Umm Tmara (Damascus: Dar alQalam, 1998). 136 Ibn Sa‘d, al-Tabaqat, 8:301-4. The biographical accounts of Nusayba’s participation in battles are unusually detailed and provide rich source material for research on women’s participation in the battlefield in early Islam. In particular, the reports of her brave defense of Muhammad at Uhud clearly captured the imagination of her biographers, who dwell on this episode.