Monthly Archives: November 2020

Muhammad’s First Marriage

Posted on November 30, 2020 by Ruth

Muhammad is said to have been 25 when his employer, Khadijah, asked him to marry her. She was trying to run a business inherited from her deceased husband, having to depend on relative strangers and men whose interests might go … Continue reading →

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Early Life of Muhammad

Posted on November 29, 2020 by Ruth

Muhammad ibn (son of) Abd-Allah ibn Abd al-Muttalib was born at Mecca in approximately 570, maybe earlier. His father had died while returning from a caravan trip to the west, before the baby was born. Not long after his birth, … Continue reading →

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Muhammad’s Family

Posted on November 28, 2020 by Ruth

It helps to know a little bit of background on Muhammad’s clan and tribe, because the shape of these family structures were extremely important to the way Islam developed. In the entry on Mecca, you read that his tribe, the … Continue reading →

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The Outside World in Muhammad’s Time

Posted on November 27, 2020 by Ruth

The nearest neighbors to Muhammad’s Arabia (circa 600) were Abyssinia (modern Somalia and Ethiopia), “Rome,” and the Sasanian Empire of Persia. I put “Rome” in quotes because at that time, it included Egypt, some of North Africa, Palestine/Syria, Anatolia (modern … Continue reading →

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The Arab World in Muhammad’s Time

Posted on November 25, 2020 by Ruth

Muhammad was born in Mecca sometime around 560 AD. We’ve traced the development of culture in Arabia for about the thousand years before this, bringing us up to his time. What did it mean then to be an Arab? The … Continue reading →

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Classical Arabic and Poetry

Posted on November 19, 2020 by Ruth

We come to the last major cultural element that brings us up to the time—and the phenomenon—of Muhammad. This is a particularly difficult element for Americans to understand because it’s so unlike us. (1) Every culture has at least one … Continue reading →

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Writing in Arabia

Posted on November 16, 2020 by Ruth

Until very late in Arabia’s history, writing was used only for inscriptions and other short statements made for important occasions. The first book written in Arabic—or in any form of Arabian language—was the Quran. East Arabia used Sumer’s cuneiform during … Continue reading →

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Exodus of the Marib Dam

Posted on November 15, 2020 by Ruth

For most of Arabia’s history (and prehistory), the Eastern region was oriented toward Persia, the Southern region was oriented toward Africa and Egypt, and the central desert was culturally different from both. But during the years before Muhammad’s birth, a … Continue reading →

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Arabian Monotheism before Islam

Posted on November 15, 2020 by Ruth

During the Roman occupation of Palestine, Jews began moving to other parts of the Empire and its edges. Rome didn’t rule Arabia proper, but its province of Arabia Petraea included the legendary town of Petra and its trade routes. After … Continue reading →

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Origins of Mecca

Posted on November 14, 2020 by Ruth

At the time Mohammad was born there, Mecca was a central place for polytheistic worship. We don’t have much to go on, for its history. The Quran suggests a faith-based account of Mecca’s history. The story begins with Abraham’s having … Continue reading →

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