Inheritance in Islam (Fara'id): How It Is Divided

Inheritance is one of the most tangible trusts a person leaves behind, and Islam does not surrender it to chance or to the preference of the strongest. The science of fara'id determines exactly how much of the deceased's wealth reaches each relative, using measures set down by the Quran. This guide covers the order in which the estate is settled, the shares fixed in the Quran, the categories of heirs, and the wisdom behind these portions, with its sources.

What Is Fara'id?

The word fara'id is the plural of farida, meaning "a determined, fixed portion." As a technical term it refers to the science that examines how the property and rights left by a deceased person are divided among the lawful heirs — that is, ilm al-fara'id. As the Turkiye Diyanet Vakfi Encyclopaedia of Islam notes in its entry on fara'id, the word gradually moved away from its general sense of a religious obligation and came to designate specifically the heirs' shares in an estate.

Islam treats inheritance as an order of rights and responsibilities. Because most of the shares are fixed directly by the Quran, fara'id became one of the earliest systematised and most mathematically precise fields of fiqh. For this reason scholars described it as "half of knowledge" and attached special value to learning and teaching it.

Before Distribution: The Order of Settling the Estate

Inheritance is not divided out of the whole of what the deceased left. First, the claims upon the estate are settled in order. This sequence rests on the phrase repeated in Surah al-Nisa immediately after the shares — "after any bequest and debt":

After any bequest they may have made and any debt, you receive half of what your wives leave if they have no child.

Accordingly, the order of operations is:

1. Funeral costs: The washing, shrouding, and burial of the deceased are paid from the estate.
2. Debts: Outstanding debts owed to people and unpaid financial obligations are settled next. Debt takes precedence over the heirs' shares.
3. Bequest: Any bequest the deceased made to non-heirs or to charitable causes is carried out — but the bequest has a limit.

The upper limit of a bequest is fixed in the well-known report of Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas. When Sa'd, gravely ill, wished to bequeath all or half of his wealth, the Prophet (peace be upon him) did not permit it, and about one-third he said:

One-third, and even one-third is much. It is better to leave your heirs wealthy than to leave them poor, begging from others.

A person may therefore bequeath at most one-third of the estate to those who are not heirs; the remaining two-thirds or more belongs to the heirs Allah has appointed. Only after these three stages is the remainder divided according to the rules of fara'id.

The Shares Fixed in the Quran

The shares of the fixed-share heirs are set chiefly in verses 11 and 12 of Surah al-Nisa. These verses are the clearest and most detailed textual basis of Islamic inheritance law.

The Children's Share

Allah instructs you concerning your children: to the male a share equal to that of two females. If there are only daughters, two or more, theirs is two-thirds of what he left; and if there is only one, hers is one-half.

So if only a single daughter survives, she receives half of the estate; if there are two or more daughters, they receive two-thirds. When sons and daughters inherit together, the son receives twice the share of the daughter.

The Parents' Share

The same verse continues, tying the share of the mother and father to whether the deceased had children:

For the parents, to each of them one-sixth of what he left, if he has a child. But if he has no child and his parents inherit from him, then his mother receives one-third.

The Spouses' Share

Al-Nisa 12 also fixes the spouses' share according to whether there is a child. If there is no child the husband's share is one-half and with a child it is one-quarter; the wife's share is one-quarter with no child and one-eighth if there is a child.

The Siblings' Share (Kalala)

If the deceased leaves neither child nor father — a case fiqh calls kalala — the siblings' inheritance is regulated in the closing verse of Surah al-Nisa:

If a man dies leaving no child but has a sister, hers is half of what he left; and he inherits from her if she has no child. If there are two sisters, theirs is two-thirds of what he left. And if there are brothers and sisters together, the male receives the share of two females.

How Many Groups of Heirs Are There?

Classical fiqh divides heirs into three main groups:

• Ashab al-fara'id (fixed-share heirs): heirs whose portion is fixed by the Quran and the Sunnah. One-half, one-quarter, one-eighth, two-thirds, one-third, and one-sixth are the principal fractions this group may take.
• 'Asaba (residuary heirs): the relatives who take whatever remains of the estate after the fixed shares have been distributed. These are most often relatives from the male line of the deceased.
• Dhawu al-arham (other blood relations): more distant relatives who inherit when no one from the first two groups is present.

The textual basis for this threefold structure is summarised in the report of Ibn 'Abbas:

Give the fixed shares to those entitled to them, and whatever remains goes to the nearest male relative.

This report is the foundational principle showing that the fixed shares set by the Quran are paid first, and the surplus then passes to the residuary heirs.

The Wisdom Behind the Male and Female Shares

That the male receives twice the female's share in certain cases is a frequently misunderstood point. This ratio is not a lowering of the woman's worth but a counterpart to the financial responsibilities Islam places on the man. The man is obliged to pay the mahr on marriage, to provide the maintenance of his wife and children, and, where needed, to support other relatives. The woman's wealth, by contrast, is entirely her own; no obligatory spending is imposed on her.

Bequests, Gifts, and Common Mistakes

One of the most commonly confused matters in practice is a bequest to an heir. As a rule, no bequest may be made to an heir without the consent of the other heirs, because that heir's share is already fixed by the Quran. A bequest may be made only to non-heirs or to charitable causes, and even then only up to one-third of the estate.

Inheritance law is closely tied to the financial areas of fiqh such as debt, interest-based dealings, and lawful earning. To grasp this sensitivity as a whole, you may also read our article on what riba (interest/usury) is and our content on the importance of Zakat and charity.

Conclusion

Inheritance in Islam is the delivery of the rights left behind by the deceased to those entitled to them, by the measure Allah has set. Fara'id does not leave the shares of children, parents, spouses, and siblings to chance; it secures them within a precise order. Yet dividing an actual estate requires careful calculations that vary with the number and degree of the heirs and with particular circumstances.

This guide introduces the basic framework of the subject with its sources; it is general information, not a fatwa. For the division of a real estate, one must consult Diyanet, the provincial and district offices of the mufti, or a qualified specialist in this field. For more verses and hadith you may make use of our Quran and hadith sections.

References

1. Surah al-Nisa, 11 — kuran.diyanet.gov.tr (Presidency of Religious Affairs translation and tafsir).
2. Surah al-Nisa, 12 — kuran.diyanet.gov.tr.
3. Surah al-Nisa, 176 — kuran.diyanet.gov.tr.
4. Sahih al-Bukhari, Wills, no. 2742 — sunnah.com (from Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas; the one-third limit on bequests).
5. Sahih al-Bukhari, Inheritance, no. 6732 — sunnah.com (from Ibn 'Abbas; the surplus after fixed shares passing to the residuary heirs).
6. "Fera'iz" entry, Turkiye Diyanet Vakfi Encyclopaedia of Islam (TDV) — islamansiklopedisi.org.tr.