Sunan Ibn Majah
The Chapters on Manumission (of Slaves)
كتاب العتق
Chapter 10
مَنْ أَرَادَ عِتْقَ عَبْدِهِ وَامْرَأَتِهِ فَلْيَبْدَأْ بِالرَّجُلِ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Muhammad ibn Bashshar narrated to us; Hammad ibn Mas'adah narrated to us. (H) Muhammad ibn Khalaf al-'Asqalani and Ishaq ibn Mansur narrated to us; they said: 'Ubaydullah ibn 'Abd al-Majid narrated to us; 'Ubaydullah ibn 'Abd al-Rahman ibn 'Abdullah ibn Mawhab narrated to us, from al-Qasim ibn Muhammad, from 'Aishah, who had a male slave and a female slave who were married. She said: Messenger of Allah, I wish to emancipate them both. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: If you emancipate them, begin with the man before the woman.
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The Arabic preserves two transmission routes, though the first ends after Hammad ibn Masadah in this excerpt. The legal instruction and the fact the two enslaved people were spouses are retained.