Ansar

American  

[an-sahr] / ˈæn sɑr /

noun

(sometimes lowercase)

1. the first inhabitants of Medina to accept Islam.

2. any of those who helped Muhammad after he began his preaching.

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Other Word Forms

• Ansarian
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of Ansar

< Arabic anṣār, plural of nāṣir helper

Example Sentences

Ansar Allah’s informal name, Houthis, comes from the surname of the late political and religious leader, Hussein Badreddin Houthi.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 1, 2026

He also reactivated the Ansar al-Afifat brigade, which was tasked with gathering intelligence inside the camp and recruiting youths, U.N. investigators said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 24, 2025

Police said the men were linked with Jaish-e-Mohammed, a Pakistan-based Islamist group, and Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind, a Kashmir offshoot of the jihadist group Al-Qaeda.

From Barron's • Nov. 12, 2025

Ansar Dine was one of several Islamist militant groups to exploit an ethnic Tuareg uprising to take over cities in northern Mali.

From BBC • Nov. 20, 2024

They were the Ansar citizens of Al-Madinah, the rival town to Makkah; and the two cities, now having become two sisters, called themselves by the glorious name of "Al-Haramani, the two Sacred Cities."

From The Life of Mohammad The Prophet of Allah by Dinet, Etienne