Before the coming of Islam there were two great empires. The Roman-
Byzantine to the west and the Persian to the east. Christianity was official religion in Byzantine empire. The
dominant religion on the Sasanian side was Zoroastrianism. Zoroastrianism
was state religion. Both claimed to rule by divine pleasure.
The Christian Empire of Byzantium had
made Abbyssinia a client state.
In the sixth century, Sasanian influence some areas of the Arabian peninsula, notably
Bahrayn and al-Yamama and from 572 Yaman in the south-west
were also controlled by the
Sassanian or their allies.
Arab (etymology): The root of the word has many meanings in Semitic languages
including "west/sunset," "desert," "mingle,"
"merchant," "raven" and "comprehensible"
In the Qur’an, the word ʿarab does not appear, only the nisba adjective,
ʿarabiyyun: The Qur'an is referring to itself as ʿarabiyyun "Arabic" and mubinun
"clear". The two qualities are connected, for example in ayat 43:2-3, "By the clear Book:
We have made it an Arabic recitation in
order that you may understand", and the
Qur'an came to be regarded as the prime
example of al-ʿarabiyyatu, the language of
the Arabs
The plural noun ʾaʿrāb refers to the Bedouin tribes of the desert who
resisted Muhammad, for example in ayat 9:97,
al-´a`rābu ´ašaddu kufran wa-
nifāqan "the Bedouin are the worst in disbelief and hypocrisy".
In Hebrew the words `arav and
`aravah literally mean "desert" or
"steppe
Mecca:
The form Bakkah is used for the name Mecca in the Quran in 3:96, while the form Mecca is used in 48:24.
Other references to Mecca in the Quran (6:92,
42:5) call it Umm al-Qura, meaning "mother of all settlements."
Mecca was a commercial city. For the Arabs Mecca was where their common ancestor,
Ishmael, lived. Mecca after being controlled for a long period by the tribe of Jurhum, it passed to Khuzaah. The Khuzaah and their allies lost power to Qusay. Qusay partly from bringing together various groups of Quraysh. Qusay is to be
regarded as the founder of the city of Mecca.
).
Almost the organ of government in Mecca was the senate or mala’. This was an assembly of the chiefs and leading man of the various clans.
