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Hadana Timeline Calculator | Map Birth Date to Hadana Milestones

Maps a child's date of birth to the classical hadana (custody) milestones of the four Sunni schools — weaning, tamyiz and the age the mother's default custody ends.

Last updated: June 2026 · Free · No sign-up required

Results

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In classical fiqh the mother holds default custody (hadana) of young children — “You have more right to him as long as you do not marry,” the Prophet ﷺ told a divorced mother (Abu Dawud 2276). Where the four Sunni schools differ is when that default ends: at 7 or 9, at puberty or marriage, or when the child chooses. This tool converts those positions into actual dates for your child.

Enter the date of birth, gender and madhhab to see the weaning milestone (two lunar years, Quran 2:233), the age of discernment, and each school’s hadana milestone side by side. It is an educational map of the classical positions — modern family courts apply statutory law and the child’s best interests, so treat this as study material, never legal advice.

Quick reference

SchoolBoysGirls
HanafiMother until 7, then fatherMother until 9, then father
MalikiMother until pubertyMother until marriage
ShafiʻiChild chooses at 7Child chooses at 7
HanbaliBoy chooses at 7Mother until 9, then father

info Child Custody (Hadana) Timeline Calculator

Free islamic calculator — enter your numbers and get an instant, accurate result.

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Everything runs locally in your browser. No uploads, no accounts, no tracking.

info Works everywhere

Fully responsive and mobile-friendly — calculate on any device, any time.

info Educational

Includes the formula and step-by-step explanation so you understand the math, not just the answer.

Interpretation guide

PhaseMeaning
Hadana (0–7)Mother's default custody in all four schools — her right unless she is unfit
Tamyiz (~7)Age of discernment — choice or transfer triggers in most schools
Milestone reachedThe school's default transfer/choice age has passed
Modern courtsStatutory family law usually overrides these classical defaults

lightbulb Worked example

Let's say you are using the Child Custody (Hadana) Timeline Calculator. Maps a child's date of birth to the classical hadana (custody) milestones of the four Sunni schools — weaning, tamyiz and the age the mother's default custody ends. Enter the values that match your situation into the input fields and press calculate — using realistic numbers makes the result directly useful for you.

Result: The calculator instantly applies the formula Milestone date = date of birth + school's hadana age (boy/girl); nursing ends at 2 lunar years (Quran 2:233) and returns the result with appropriate precision.

What this means: Read the result in the context of what you are measuring. The step-by-step breakdown lets you confirm the math and understand which input most affects the outcome.

Formula & methodology

Formula: Milestone date = date of birth + school's hadana age (boy/girl); nursing ends at 2 lunar years (Quran 2:233)

The Child Custody (Hadana) Timeline Calculator is built on a well-established calculation method. It uses the formula Milestone date = date of birth + school's hadana age (boy/girl); nursing ends at 2 lunar years (Quran 2:233) to turn your inputs into a reliable result. Maps a child's date of birth to the classical hadana (custody) milestones of the four Sunni schools — weaning, tamyiz and the age the mother's default custody ends. The steps are shown on the page so you can follow the reasoning from input to output.

  1. Enter the child's date of birth, select boy or girl, and pick the fiqh school.
  2. The timeline shows the end of the nursing period (2 lunar years), the age of discernment (~7), and the school's hadana milestone date.
  3. All four schools' milestone dates are listed side by side for comparison.

Worked example: a boy born 15 March 2020 under the Hanafi school: nursing milestone 15 Mar 2022, tamyiz 15 Mar 2027 — the mother's default custody runs until 15 March 2027 (age 7), after which care transfers to the father while the mother retains visitation.

Authoritative source: Islamic Relief

Frequently asked questions

Who gets custody of children in Islam?
The mother holds default custody (hadana) of young children in all four Sunni schools — the Prophet ﷺ told a mother: “You have more right to him as long as you do not marry” (Abu Dawud 2276). The schools differ on when that default ends.
At what age does the mother's custody end?
Hanafi: 7 for boys, 9 for girls. Shafiʻi: the child chooses at 7. Hanbali: boys choose at 7, girls to the father at 9. Maliki: boys until puberty, girls until marriage. The calculator converts these into actual dates for your child.
Does the child get to choose a parent?
In the classical hadana rules, once a child reaches the age of discernment (tamyiz, roughly 7 years in most schools), many scholars give the child the choice of which parent to live with, though the exact age and conditions differ by school. Before that age, the mother's right of custody is the default for young children. The calculator maps these school-specific milestones from the birth date.
Is this how courts actually decide custody?
No — modern family courts, including in Muslim-majority countries, apply statutory law and the child's best interests, which often differ from classical defaults. Use this timeline for study, and a family lawyer for a real case.
Does remarriage affect hadana?
Classically, the mother's custody right lapses if she marries a man who is a stranger (non-mahram) to the child, based on the hadith that the one with most right to custody is the mother 'unless she marries'. Modern courts weigh this within the child's overall welfare and may keep the mother's custody if it serves the child. The calculator marks this classical condition on the timeline.
What does the Child Custody (Hadana) Timeline Calculator do?
Maps a child's date of birth to the classical hadana (custody) milestones of the four Sunni schools — weaning, tamyiz and the age the mother's default custody ends. The calculator takes your inputs, applies the standard calculation, and returns a clear result so you can make an informed decision without doing the math by hand.
What formula does the Child Custody (Hadana) Timeline Calculator use?
The Child Custody (Hadana) Timeline Calculator applies the standard formula: Milestone date = date of birth + school's hadana age (boy/girl); nursing ends at 2 lunar years (Quran 2:233). The tool walks through each step of the calculation so you can verify the numbers yourself.
Is the Child Custody (Hadana) Timeline Calculator free and private?
Yes — the Child Custody (Hadana) Timeline Calculator. There is no sign-up, no paywall, no trial, and no limit on how many calculations you can run. CalcaTools covers its costs with non-intrusive display advertising, so the calculator itself never asks for payment or restricts any feature.
How accurate is the Child Custody (Hadana) Timeline Calculator?
The Child Custody (Hadana) Timeline Calculator applies the standard formula: Milestone date = date of birth + school's hadana age (boy/girl); nursing ends at 2 lunar years (Quran 2:233). It is tested against published worked examples before launch and uses native double-precision arithmetic, so results are accurate to typical precision for the values you enter — with no intermediate rounding that could distort the answer.

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