Country Saudi Arabia Area 589 km2 | Region Al Madinah Governor Faisal bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud Mayor Khalid Taher Population 1,180,770 | |
Colleges and Universities Taibah University (Medina), Islamic University of Madinah (Medina), Yanbu University College, Madinah College of Technology (Medina) Points of interest Al-Masjid an-Nabawi, Quba Mosque, Masjid al-Qiblatain, Mount Uhud, Madain Saleh | ||
Medina ("the radiant city" or , al-Madinah, "the city"), also transliterated as Madinah, is a city in the Hejaz, and the capital of the Al Madinah Region of Saudi Arabia. The city contains al-Masjid an-Nabawi ("the Prophets mosque"), which is the burial place of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the second-holiest site in Islam after Mecca.
Contents
- Map of Medina
- Ep 4 omar in al madinah saudi arabia inacitynearyou net vlog
- History
- Geography
- Economy
- References
Map of Medina
Medina was Muhammads destination after his Hijrah from Mecca, and became the capital of a rapidly increasing Muslim Empire, first under Muhammads leadership, and then under the first three Rashidun caliphs Abu Bakr, Umar, and Uthman. It served as the power base of Islam in its first century where the early Muslim community developed. Medina is home to the three oldest mosques, namely the Quba Mosque, al-Masjid an-Nabawi, and Masjid al-Qiblatain ("the mosque of the two qiblas"). Muslims believe that the chronologically final surahs of the Quran were revealed to the Prophet in Medina, and are called Medinan surahs in contrast to the earlier Meccan surahs.
Ep 4 omar in al madinah saudi arabia inacitynearyou net vlog
Similar to Mecca, non-Muslims are forbidden from entering the sacred core of Medina (but not the entire city) or the city center by the national government.
History
Into the Amalekite town of Yathrib, Jews likely arrived sometime between the era of Moses and the Babylonian captivity. By the fourth century, Arab tribes began to encroach from Yemen, and there were three prominent Jewish tribes that inhabited the city into the 7th century AD: the Banu Qaynuqa, the Banu Qurayza, and Banu Nadir. Ibn Khordadbeh later reported that during the Persian Empires domination in Hejaz, the Banu Qurayza served as tax collectors for the shah.
The situation changed after the arrival from Yemen of two new Arab tribes named Banu Aus (or Banu Aws) and Banu Khazraj. At first, these tribes were allied with Jewish rulers, but later they revolted and became independent. Toward the end of the 5th century, the Jewish rulers lost control of the city to Banu Aus and Banu Khazraj. The Jewish Encyclopedia states that they did so "by calling in outside assistance and treacherously massacring at a banquet the principal Jews", Banu Aus and Banu Khazraj finally gained the upper hand at Medina.
Most modern historians accept the claim of the Muslim sources that after the revolt, the Jewish tribes became clients of the Aus and the Khazraj. However, according to scholar of Islam William Montgomery Watt, the clientship of the Jewish tribes is not borne out by the historical accounts of the period prior to 627, and he maintained that the Jewish populace retained a measure of political independence.
Early Muslim chronicler Ibn Ishaq tells of a pre-Islamic conflict between the last Yemenite king of the Himyarite Kingdom and the residents of Yathrib. When the king was passing by the oasis, the residents killed his son, and the Yemenite ruler threatened to exterminate the people and cut down the palms. According to Ibn Ishaq, he was stopped from doing so by two rabbis from the Banu Qurayza tribe, who implored the king to spare the oasis because it was the place "to which a prophet of the Quraysh would migrate in time to come, and it would be his home and resting-place." The Yemenite king thus did not destroy the town and converted to Judaism. He took the rabbis with him, and in Mecca, they reportedly recognized the Kaba as a temple built by Abraham and advised the king "to do what the people of Mecca did: to circumambulate the temple, to venerate and honour it, to shave his head and to behave with all humility until he had left its precincts." On approaching Yemen, tells ibn Ishaq, the rabbis demonstrated to the local people a miracle by coming out of a fire unscathed and the Yemenites accepted Judaism.
Eventually the Banu Aus and the Banu Khazraj became hostile to each other and by the time of Muhammads Hijra (emigration) to Medina in 622 AD/1 AH, they had been fighting for 120 years and were the sworn enemies of each other. The Banu Nadir and the Banu Qurayza were allied with the Aus, while the Banu Qaynuqa sided with the Khazraj. They fought a total of four wars.
Their last and bloodiest battle was the Battle of Buath that was fought a few years before the arrival of Muhammad. The outcome of the battle was inconclusive, and the feud continued. Abd-Allah ibn Ubayy, one Khazraj chief, had refused to take part in the battle, which earned him a reputation for equity and peacefulness. Until the arrival of Muhammad, he was the most respected inhabitant of Yathrib. To solve the ongoing feud, concerned residents of the city met secretly with Muhammad in Aqaba, inviting him and his small band of believers to come to Yathrib, where the Prophet could serve as disinterested mediator between the factions and his community could practice its faith freely.
Geography
The soil surrounding Medina consists of mostly basalt, while the hills, especially noticeable to the south of the city, are volcanic ash which dates to the first geological period of the Paleozoic Era.
In 1256, Medina was threatened by lava flow from the last eruption of Harrat Rahat.
Economy
Historically, Medina is known for growing dates. As of 1920, 139 varieties of dates were being grown in the area. Medina also was known for growing many types of vegetables.