Short answer: On the seventh day after a baby is born, many Muslim families shave the baby's head, give the weight of the hair in silver (or its value) to the poor, name the child, and sacrifice a sheep or goat. Together this is called the aqiqah. They do it because the Prophet ﷺ taught it: "Every child is held in pledge for his aqiqah, which is slaughtered for him on his seventh day, and his head is shaved, and he is named." It is a sunnah and a way of thanking Allah for the child, not an obligation in any of the four schools.
What the Quran says
No verse of the Quran mentions shaving a baby's head. It comes from the Sunnah, the example of the Prophet ﷺ, which the Quran tells Muslims to follow:
لَّقَدْ كَانَ لَكُمْ فِى رَسُولِ ٱللَّهِ أُسْوَةٌ حَسَنَةٌۭ لِّمَن كَانَ يَرْجُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ وَٱلْيَوْمَ ٱلْءَاخِرَ وَذَكَرَ ٱللَّهَ كَثِيرًۭا ﴿٢١﴾
Laqad kaana lakum fee Rasoolil laahi uswatun hasanatul liman kaana yarjul laaha wal yawmal Aakhira wa azkaral laaha kaseeraa
There has certainly been for you in the Messenger of Allah an excellent pattern for anyone whose hope is in Allah and the Last Day and [who] remembers Allah often.
Quran 33:21 · Sahih International · Read Surah Al-Ahzab
What the Prophet ﷺ taught
كُلُّ غُلاَمٍ رَهِينَةٌ بِعَقِيقَتِهِ تُذْبَحُ عَنْهُ يَوْمَ سَابِعِهِ وَيُحْلَقُ وَيُسَمَّى
Every child is held in pledge for his aqiqah, which is slaughtered for him on his seventh day, and he is shaved, and he is named.
Sunan Abi Dawud 2838; Sunan an-Nasa'i 4220; Sunan Ibn Majah 3165 · narrated by Samurah ibn Jundub · graded sahih by al-Albani and others
مَعَ الْغُلاَمِ عَقِيقَةٌ، فَأَهْرِيقُوا عَنْهُ دَمًا وَأَمِيطُوا عَنْهُ الأَذَى
With the boy there is an aqiqah, so shed blood for him and remove the harm from him.
Sahih al-Bukhari 5471-5472; Sunan Abi Dawud 2839 · narrated by Salman ibn Amir ad-Dabbi · sahih
Al-Hasan al-Basri explained "remove the harm" as shaving the head (Sunan Abi Dawud 2840). For the silver, Ali ibn Abi Talib reported that the Prophet ﷺ made the aqiqah for his grandson al-Hasan with a sheep and said: "O Fatimah, shave his head and give the weight of his hair in silver as charity." It weighed about a dirham (Jami at-Tirmidhi 1519). At-Tirmidhi noted that its chain is not connected; al-Albani graded it hasan through supporting reports.
The wisdom scholars mention
- Thanks to Allah. The aqiqah marks the gift of a child with worship and charity, not only a party.
- Charity tied to the child. The silver, however small, makes the baby's first act in the world a gift to the poor.
- Cleanliness. Scholars saw the birth hair as part of the "harm" removed from the baby.
- Sharing. The meat is eaten with family and given to neighbours and the poor.
Some people believe shaving makes the hair grow back thicker. That claim has no source in the hadith, and it is not the reason.
Wisdom, not the reason. These are benefits scholars have reflected on. Muslims follow this because Allah and His Messenger ﷺ commanded it, and would follow it even if none of these benefits were known.
The ruling, Hanafi first
The aqiqah is mustahabb (recommended), and some Hanafi texts call it simply permissible (mubah). It is a way of thanking Allah, so a family that cannot afford it is not sinful. Shaving the head on the seventh day and giving the hair's weight in silver are part of it, for girls as well as boys. If the seventh day is missed, it can be done later.
Other madhhabs
- Shafi'i, Maliki, Hanbali
- The aqiqah is a sunnah, and a confirmed sunnah in the Hanbali school. Shaving the head and giving its weight in silver are recommended. Most scholars apply this to girls too; a minority limited the shaving to boys.
Plan the aqiqah
Work out the seventh day, the animals needed, and the silver for the hair at today's price.
Open the aqiqah calculatorMore "why do Muslims" questions
- Why do Muslims not eat pork?
- Why do Muslims wear the hijab?
- Why do Muslims wash their feet?
- Why do Muslims pray five times a day?
- Why do Muslims go to Makkah?
- Why do Muslims have beards?
- Why do Muslims eat halal?
- Why do Muslims say peace be upon him?
- Why do Muslims face Makkah when praying?
- Why do Muslims not drink alcohol?
- Why do Muslims get circumcised?
- Why do Muslims fast in Ramadan?
FAQ
Do you have to shave a baby girl's head?
It is recommended, not required, for girls as well as boys in the Hanafi school and in the view of most scholars. A minority limited it to boys.
How much silver do you give for the hair?
The weight of the hair in silver, or its value in money. A newborn's hair weighs very little, so many parents give a rounder amount. Our aqiqah calculator does the sum.
What if the hair is not shaved on the seventh day?
Nothing is lost. The seventh day is best, but it can be done later. Some scholars mention the 14th or 21st day, from a report with a weak chain.
Is aqiqah compulsory?
No. None of the four schools makes it obligatory. It is a recommended sunnah of thanks.
Who should shave the baby's head?
Any careful adult, often a parent or a barber used to babies. Use a safe razor or clippers and take care with the soft spot.
The rulings on this page are pending review by the scholars on our team.
Sources
- Quran 33:21, translation by Sahih International.
- Sunan Abi Dawud 2838, Sunan an-Nasa'i 4220 and Sunan Ibn Majah 3165, from Samurah ibn Jundub.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 5471-5472 and Sunan Abi Dawud 2839, from Salman ibn Amir ad-Dabbi; Sunan Abi Dawud 2840, the saying of al-Hasan al-Basri.
- Jami at-Tirmidhi 1519, from Ali ibn Abi Talib (at-Tirmidhi: hasan gharib, chain not connected; al-Albani: hasan).
- Ibn Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar, Kitab al-Udhiyah, for the Hanafi position, as on our aqiqah page.
- Ibn Qudamah, al-Mughni, and al-Nawawi, al-Majmu, for the other schools.
Quran: Arabic from the Tanzil Uthmani text, English translation by Sahih International. Hadith gradings are those of the hadith scholars named. AmalKit cites the scholars; it does not issue fatwas.