Medina

Examples of Medina in the following topics:

• Flight from Mecca to Medina

  • As Islam faced more political and religious opposition in Mecca, Muhammad and his followers migrated to Medina in 622 CE.
  • After several unsuccessful negotiations, he found hope with some men from Yathrib (later called Medina).
  • A delegation from Medina, consisting of the representatives of the twelve important clans of Medina, invited Muhammad as a neutral outsider to serve as the chief arbitrator for the entire community.
  • Muhammad instructed his followers to emigrate to Medina until nearly all of them left Mecca.
  • After eight days' journey, Muhammad entered the outskirts of Medina, but did not enter the city directly.

• Islam Ascendant

  • Upon his arrival in Medina, Muhammad unified the tribes by drafting the Constitution of Medina, which was a formal agreement between Muhammad and all of the significant tribes and families of Medina, including Muslims, Jews, Christians, and pagans.
  • An important feature of the Constitution of Medina is the redefinition of ties between Muslims.
  • The victory strengthened Muhammad's position in Medina and dispelled earlier doubts among his followers.
  • Abu Sufyan, the leader of the ruling Quraysh tribe, gathered an army of 3,000 men and set out for an attack on Medina.
  • In 632, a few months after returning to Medina from the Farewell Pilgrimage, Muhammad fell ill and died.

• Arabian Cities

  • Cities like Mecca and Medina acted as important centers of trade and religion in pre-Islamic Arabia.
  • Along with the port of Jidda, Medina and Mecca thrived through years of pilgrimage.
  • During the pre-Islamic period up until 622 CE, Medina was known as Yathrib, an oasis city.
  • Medina is celebrated for containing the mosque of Muhammad.
  • Medina is 210 miles (340 km) north of Mecca and about 120 miles (190 km) from the Red Sea coast.

• The Nomadic Tribes of Arabia

  • Immigration to the Arabian Peninsula began in earnest in the 2nd century CE, and by the 6th and 7th centuries there was a considerable Jewish population in Hejaz, mostly in and around Medina.
  • Before the rise of Islam, there were three main Jewish tribes in the city of Medina: the Banu Nadir, the Banu Qainuqa, and the Banu Qurayza.

• Dates and Calendars

  • The Islamic calendar determines the first year in 622 CE, during which the emigration of Muhammad from Mecca to Medina, known as the Hijra, occurred.
  • The first year was the Islamic year beginning in AD 622, during which the emigration of Muhammad from Mecca to Medina, known as the Hijra, occurred.

• Early Life of Muhammad

  • Muhammad's life is traditionally defined into two periods: pre-hijra (emigration) in Mecca (from 570 to 622 CE) and post-hijra in Medina (from 622 until 632 CE).

• Muhammad's Successors

  • After a series of successful campaigns, Abu Bakr's general Khalid ibn Walid defeated a competing prophet and the Arabian peninsula was united under the caliphate in Medina.

• Culture and Religion in Pre-Islamic Arabia

  • Some Arab women in Yathrib/Medina are said to have vowed to make their child a Jew if the child survived, since they considered the Jews to be people "of knowledge and the book."

• Expansion Under the Umayyad Caliphates

  • The caliph's palace, Medina Azahara, was on the outskirts of the city, and had many rooms filled with riches from the East.

• The Sultanates of Somalia

  • Islam was introduced to the northern Somali coast early on from the Arabian peninsula, shortly after the hijra (also hegira), or the journey of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his followers from Mecca to Yathrib, later renamed by him Medina, in 622 CE.