Question: At what age can a child lead the people in prayer?
Answer: What is correct is that a child can lead the people once he is aware and comprehends the Salāh — even if he is 7 years old so long as he comprehends the prayer and understands it. There is a narration reported by Bukhāri from ‘Amr Ibn Salamah al-Jurmi who said: My father said: I have come to you from the Prophet (salallāhu ‘alaihi wasallam) in truth, and the Prophet said: “When the prayer time enters, let one of you call the adhān, and let the one who has memorised the most Quran lead the Prayer.” So they looked around, and they did not find anyone who had more Quran memorised than me. So they put me forward to lead and I was 6 or 7 years old. (Bukhāri, Abu Dawood and others).
So, if a child is comprehending, and understands well the prayer — and he has memorised more than others present, he leads them, even if they are all adults and he is not.
If they are the same in terms of memorisation, then the adult is given precedence — the more knowledgeable and virtuous a person, the more right — but there is no harm if a young one leads them in Salāh. And if he is the one with the most Quran [memorised] among those present, he has more right due to the saying of the Prophet (salallāhu ‘alaihi wasallam): “The one with the most memorised of the Book of Allāh leads the people.” Allah knows best, and peace and blessings be upon our Prophet, Muhammad.
See: Fatāwa al-Jāmi’ al-Kabeer, al-Imām Ibn Bāz (rahimahullāh).
