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How is the inheritance divided among four sons, a father, a mother, a daughter, and a wife?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

If the heirs are limited to those mentioned, the inheritance is divided as follows:

1. The wife: She receives one-eighth (1/8) due to the presence of a lineal descendant, based on the Almighty's saying: ﴿But if you have a child, then for them is one-eighth of what you leave, after any bequest you [may have] made or debt.﴾ [An-Nisa: 12]. 2. The father and mother: Each receives one-sixth (1/6) due to the presence of a child, based on the Almighty's saying: ﴿And for his parents, each of them receives one-sixth of what he leaves if he has a child.﴾ [An-Nisa: 12]. 3. The sons and the daughter: The male receives the share of two females, based on the Almighty's saying: ﴿Allah instructs you concerning your children: for the male, what is equal to the share of two females.﴾ [An-Nisa: 11].

The original fractional basis for the problem is (24) and it corrects to (216) shares: Wife (27), Mother (36), Father (36), Daughter (13), Son (26).

Matters of inheritance should be referred to Sharia courts for investigation, due to the possibility of undisclosed heirs, bequests, or debts that take precedence over the rights of the heirs.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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