[1] As'ad is cited in some sources as the first of several kings of the Arabian Peninsula to convert to Judaism,[2][3][4][5][6][7] although contemporary historians have ascribed this transition to his father.
[13][14] Around the year 400 CE, Dhara' Amar Ayman either retired or died, leaving Abu Karib as the sole ruler in power.
[15][16] While some sources agree that Abu Karib was the first of the Himyarite kings to convert to Judaism, the circumstances of his conversion are immersed in myth and legend.
[17][18] According to the traditional account, Abu Karib undertook a military expedition to eliminate the growing influence of Byzantium in his northern provinces.
[2] Among those who converted to Judaism was Harith ibn 'Amr, a nephew of Abu Karib, who was then appointed as the Viceroy of the people of Ma'ad on the Red Sea, and headed the government of Mecca and Yathrib.
Porter nonetheless acknowledged that a move toward Judaism on Abu Karib's part would be "entirely credible", given the presence of powerful Jewish tribes in Yathrib.
[24] Ibn Kathir claims that Abu Karib had two daughters as well, whose graves were found in the center of a city that was under construction during the time of the Rashidun Caliphate.
[26][27] However, Ibn al-Kalbi holds the view that Dhu Nuwas was the son of Hassan Yuha'min and hence the grandson of Abu Karib.
[29] He brought the Rabbis back with him to Yemen, where they converted the population to Judaism, but after the death of the Tubba' the people went astray and so God sent down his wrath on them.