I say: Al-Dhahabī did not mention him in al-Mushtabih, nor did anyone else, as far as I know. I fear that it may be an epithet for the father of ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ḥawālah, for the hadith has come by another route from ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Jubayr in a more complete form. Yaʿqūb ibn Sufyān said in al-Maʿrifah (2/288–289), and al-Bayhaqī narrated it from him in Dalāʾil al-Nubuwwah (6/327–328):

ʿAbd Allāh ibn Yūsuf narrated to us: Yaḥyā ibn Ḥamzah narrated to us: Abū ʿAlqamah Naṣr ibn ʿAlqamah narrated to me, tracing the hadith back to Jubayr ibn Nufayr, who said: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ḥawālah said:

“We were with the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, and complained to him of nakedness, poverty, and scarcity. The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said:

‘Receive glad tidings! By Allah, I fear for you the abundance of wealth more than I fear its scarcity. By Allah, this authority will continue to remain among you until Allah opens for you the land of Persia, the land of the Romans, and the land of Ḥimyar, and until you become three armies: an army in Syria, an army in Iraq, and an army in Yemen; and until a man is given a hundred, yet rejects it in displeasure.’”

Ibn Ḥawālah said: “I said: ‘Messenger of Allah, who could manage Syria while the horned Romans are there?!’ He said:

‘By Allah, Allah will surely open it for you, until a group of them, white-shirted and thick-naped, stand over the little dark-complexioned, shaven-headed man: whatever he commands them to do, they do it. Yet there are men in it today in whose eyes you are more insignificant than ticks on camels’ rumps.’”

Ibn Ḥawālah said: “I said: ‘Messenger of Allah, choose for me if I live to see that time.’ He said:

‘Indeed, I choose Syria for you, for it is Allah’s choicest portion of His lands, and to it He will gather the chosen ones among His servants. O people of Yemen, hold fast to Syria, for it is Allah’s choicest portion of the land of Syria. Take heed—’