Understanding the results
How to read the shares panel — fractions versus amounts, fixed shares versus residue, the badges, the worked calculation, and the reasons behind every figure.
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As soon as you add a surviving heir, the results panel fills in. This page explains everything it shows, so no part of the answer is a mystery.
The headline
At the top you see the estate value (or, if you have not entered one, the number of heirs), how many heirs it is divided among, and which school of law produced the result. A small switch beside it lets you flip the whole panel between:
- Amounts — every share as a money figure.
- Fractions — every share as a fraction and percentage, with no money.
If you only want to understand the proportions and have no specific estate in mind, switch to Fractions. The numbers are exact either way.
The badges
Just below the headline, a row of small badges gives you context for the result. The Base (aṣl) badge is always present — it shows the common denominator the shares were worked out over (the “aṣl al-masʾala”). The remaining badges appear only when they apply to the family you entered:
| Badge | Meaning |
|---|---|
| ʿAwl | The fixed shares added up to more than the whole estate, so every share was scaled down. |
| Radd | A surplus remained with no residuary heir, so it was returned to the fixed-share heirs. |
| A named case | The family matches one of the famous classical compositions — for example al-Akdariyya, al-Mushtaraka, al-Jadd wa al-Ikhwa, or Umariyyatān. |
ʿAwl and radd are explained in plain terms below and in detail in the article on them.
The shares table
The table lists every heir you entered, with four things for each:
- Heir — the relative, with a count (for example “×2”) when there is more than one.
- Share — the fraction of the estate. When several heirs of one kind share a portion, you also see the amount each one receives.
- % — the same share as a percentage.
- Amount — the money figure (shown only in the Amounts view).
The row total always comes to a whole — fraction 1, 100%, and the full net estate — confirming the estate is completely and exactly divided.
Fixed shares versus the residue (ʿaṣaba)
Heirs come by their share in two main ways, and the results reflect both:
- Fixed-share heirs (aṣḥāb al-furūḍ) — such as the spouse, the parents, and the daughters — take a named fraction set by the Qurʾan.
- Residuary heirs (al-ʿaṣaba) — chiefly the sons and the male agnatic line — take whatever remains after the fixed shares are paid.
Some relatives move between the two roles depending on who else is present. A daughter normally takes a fixed share, but becomes a residuary the moment she inherits alongside her brother. A full or paternal sister does the same beside a daughter.
Blocking (ḥajb) — why an heir got nothing
Sometimes a relative you entered receives nothing. This is ḥajb (blocking): a nearer heir excludes a more distant one. For example, a son blocks the grandchildren and all the brothers and sisters; the father blocks the brothers.
The calculator never hides this. A blocked heir stays in the table, greyed out and marked excluded, with a short note explaining exactly which relative blocked them. Blocking can be total (the heir gets nothing) or partial (their share is merely reduced — as when a mother drops from ⅓ to ⅙).
ʿAwl and radd — when the shares don’t fit exactly
Most families divide perfectly: the fixed shares add up to exactly one whole. Two mechanisms handle the cases that don’t, and both keep the division fair:
- ʿAwl (over-subscription). When the fixed shares demand more than the whole estate — for instance a husband (½) with two full sisters (⅔) — the base is raised so everything fits, and every heir is reduced in the same proportion. No one is dropped; each simply gives up a little.
- Radd (return of surplus). When the fixed shares fall short and there is no residuary heir to take the remainder, the surplus is returned to the fixed-share heirs in proportion. One relative is left out of this return: a surviving spouse keeps their fixed share but does not share in the radd.
Whenever either applies, the matching badge appears so you can see it was at work.
Show the calculation (ḥisāb)
Open Show the calculation — ḥisāb to see the arithmetic laid out. The estate is divided over a base (aṣl al-masʾala) of a certain number of shares (sihām), and each heir’s slice of that base is listed. If ʿawl or radd adjusted the base, a note explains how. This is the same working a student of farāʾiḍ would write out by hand.
Why these shares — daleel
Below the table, the Why these shares — daleel section gives a one-line justification for every heir’s portion — most often a citation to the Qurʾan (chiefly verses 4:11, 4:12, and 4:176), and for the special cases, the named rule that applies. This is what makes the result something you can check rather than just trust.
“This case needs a scholar’s review”
For a small number of rare or genuinely disputed compositions, the calculator will not show a number it is not certain of. Instead it displays This case needs a scholar’s review with a short reason. This happens, for example, when:
- The only survivor is a spouse, so the surplus would pass to the public treasury (bayt al-mal) — which this tool does not model.
- A grandfather competes with both full and paternal siblings (a refinement called al-muʿādda) that lies beyond the current rule set.
In these cases, treat it as a prompt to consult a qualified scholar.
The disclaimer beneath every result says it plainly: this tool follows the classical Sunni rules and shows its evidence, but a real distribution should always be confirmed with a qualified scholar.