Mecca

 

(mĕk'ə) or Makkah (măk'ə) , city (1993 pop. 966,381), capital of the Hejaz, W Saudi Arabia. The birthplace c.A.D. 570 of Muhammad the Prophet, it is the holiest city of Islam, and the goal of the annual Muslim hajj. It is c.45 mi (70 km) from its port, Jidda, and is in a narrow valley overlooked by hills crowned with castles. Unlike those of most Middle Eastern cities, many of the buildings, constructed of stone, are more than three stories high. The city was an ancient center of commerce and a place of great sanctity for idolatrous Arab sects before the rise of Muhammad. Muhammad's flight (the Hegira) from Mecca in 622 is the beginning of the rise of Islam. He captured the city shortly after. Although Mecca never lost its sanctity, it declined rapidly in commercial importance after its capture by the Umayyads in 692. It was sacked in 930 by the Karmathians and taken by the Ottoman Turks in 1517. The Wahhabis held it from 1803 to 1813. In Mecca, in 1916, Husayn ibn Ali proclaimed his independence from Turkey and maintained himself as king of the Hejaz until Mecca fell to Ibn Saud in 1924. At the center of Mecca is the Great Mosque, the Haram, which encloses the Kaaba, the focus of Muslim worship. Next to the Kaaba is Zamzam, a holy well used solely for religious and medicinal purposes. The bazaar outside the mosque is noted for its silks, beadwork, and perfumes. The commerce of the city depends heavily on the more than 2.5 million pilgrims who visit Mecca during the annual hajj. Muslims are the only people allowed to reside in Mecca. Roads link Mecca with many other cities in Saudi Arabia, such as Medina and Jidda. Mecca has little arable land and must import most of its food. The oil boom in Saudi Arabia has significantly improved services in Mecca, resulting in greater numbers of pilgrims each year. In Nov., 1979, Muslim fundamentalists occupied the Great Mosque in Mecca; after a 2-week siege, more than 100 rebels were killed. Iranian pilgrims later rioted in July, 1987, during the hajj, clashing with Saudi troops and ending with the death of more than 400 people. The hajj continues to be well-monitored by Saudi Arabia, yet remains a turbulent religious and increasingly political event. Mecca is home to two colleges and the Umm al-Qura Univ. (1979).

Bibliography

See G. De Gaury, Rulers of Mecca (1954, repr. 1982); E. Guelloz, Pilgrimage to Mecca (1982).

Makkah al-Mukarramah مكة المكرمة
Location in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Coordinates: 21°25′N 39°49′E / 21.417, 39.817
Province	Makkah
Government
- Mayor	Usama Al-Barr
Area
- City	km²  ( sq mi)
Elevation	m ( ft)
Population (2004)
- City

Mecca IPA: /ˈmɛkə/ or Makkah IPA: [ˈmækə] (in full: Makkah al-Mukarramah IPA: [(Arabic) mækːæ(t) ælmʊkarˑamæ]; Arabic: مكة المكرمة) is an Islamic holy city in Saudi Arabia's Makkah province, in the historic Hejaz region. It has a population of 1,294,167 (2004 census). The city is located 73 kilometres (45 miles) inland from Jeddah, in the narrow sandy Valley of Abraham, 277 metres (909 ft)^{[citation needed]} above sea level. It is located 80 kilometres (50 miles) from the Red Sea.

The city is revered by Muslims for containing the holiest site of Islam, the Masjid al-Haram. A pilgrimage to Mecca during the week of the Hajj is one of the Pillars of Islam, a sacred duty that is required of all able-bodied Muslims who can afford to go, at least once in their lifetime. People of other faiths are forbidden from entering the city.

The English word mecca (uncapitalized), meaning "a place to which many people are attracted" ^[1] is derived from Mecca.

Geography

Mecca is at an elevation of 277 m (910 ft.) above sea level, and approximately 50 miles inland from the Red Sea.^[2] The city is situated between mountains, which has defined the contemporary expansion of the city. The city centers around the Masjid al-Haram (holy place of worship). The area around the mosque comprises the old city. The main avenues are Al-Mudda'ah and Sūq al-Layl to the north of the mosque, and As-Sūg as Saghīr to the south. Houses near the mosque have been razed and replaced with open spaces and wide streets. Residential complexes are more compacted in the old city than in residential areas. Traditional homes are built of local rock and are two to three stories. The city has a few slums, where poor pilgrims who were unable to finance a trip home after the hajj settled.^[3]

Transportation

Transportation facilities related to the Hajj or Umrah (minor pilgrimage) are the main services available. Mecca has no airport, or rail service. Paved roads and modern expressways link Mecca with other cities in Saudi Arabia. The city has good roads. Most pilgrims access the city through the hajj terminal of King Abdul Aziz International Airport (JED) or the Jeddah Islamic Port, both of which are in Jeddah.^[3]

People

Population density in Mecca is very high. Most of the people who live in Mecca live in the old city. The city has an average of four million visitors as "pilgrims" and that is only in hajj time each year. Pilgrims also visit all year round for Umrah. ^[3]

Government

The mayor of Mecca is appointed by the king of Saudi Arabia. The current mayor of the city is Usama Al-Barr. A municipal council of fourteen locally elected members is responsible for the functioning of the municipality.

Mecca is also the capital of Makkah province.^[3], which also includes neighboring Jeddah. The governor was Prince Abdul-Majid bin Abdul-Aziz from 2000 until his death in 2007.^[4] On May 16, 2007, Prince Khalid al-Faisal was appointed as the new governor.^[5]

History

Mecca is one of the oldest and most important cities in Saudi Arabia.

Early history

By the middle of the sixth century, there were three major settlements in northern Arabia, all along the southwestern coast that borders the Red Sea, in a habitable region between the sea and the great desert to the east. This area, known as the Hijaz, featured three settlements that had grown around oases, where water was available. In the center of the Hijaz was Yathrib, later renamed as Medina. 250 miles south of Yathrib was Taif, a mountain town, and northwest of Taif was Mecca. Though the area around Mecca was completely barren, Mecca was the wealthiest and most important of the three settlements. It had abundant water via the Zamzam Well, was the site of the holiest shrine in Arabia, the Kaaba, and was also at the crossroads of major caravan routes.^[2]

The Kaaba, a large cubical building now surrounded by the Masjid al-Haram, was one of multiple such buildings in Arabia, but was the only one made of stone, and therefore the only one still standing. According to the Qur'an, the Kaaba was built by Ibrahim (Abraham) and his son Ismail (Ishmael), around 2000 BC. Secular historians state that the Kaaba was the repository of 360 idols and tribal gods of all of Arabia's nomadic tribes. Prior to Muhammad in the 7th century, the most important idol was that of Hubal, having been placed there by the ruling Quraysh tribe. The Kaaba was also said to hold icons of other faiths, such as statues of Jesus and Mary.^[6]

The harsh conditions of the Arabian peninsula usually meant a constant state of conflict between the tribes, but once a year they would declare a truce and converge upon Mecca in an annual pilgrimage. This journey was intended for religious reasons, to pay homage to the shrine, and to drink from the Well of Zamzam. However, it was also the time each year that disputes would be arbitrated, debts would be resolved, and trading would occur at Meccan fairs. These annual events gave the tribes a sense of common identity and made Mecca extremely important throughout the peninsula.^[7]

In the 5th century, the Quraysh tribe took control of Mecca,^[8] and became skilled merchants and traders. In the 6th century they joined the lucrative spice trade as well, since battles in other parts of the world were causing trade routes to divert from the dangerous sea routes to the relatively more secure overland routes. The Byzantines had previously controlled the Red Sea, but piracy had been on the increase. Another previous route, that from the Persian Gulf via the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, was also being threatened by Sasanian exploitation, as well as being disrupted by Lakhm, Ghassan, and Persian-Roman wars. Mecca's prominence as a trading center surpassed the cities of Petra and Palmyra.

Muhammad's great-grandfather had been the first to equip a camel caravan, and they became a regular part of the town's economy. Alliances were struck between the merchants in Mecca, and the local nomadic tribes, who would bring leather, livestock, and metals which were mined in the local mountains. Caravans would then be loaded up in Mecca, and would take the goods to the cities in Syria and Iraq.^[9][9] Goods from other continents also flowed through Mecca. From Africa and the Far East towards Syria flowed spices, leather, drugs, cloth, and slaves; and in return Mecca received money, weapons, cereals, and wine, which were distributed throughout Arabia. The Meccans signed treaties with both the Byzantines and the bedouins, and negotiated safe passage for caravans, which included such things as water and pasture rights. These further increased Mecca's political power as well as economic, and Mecca became the center of a loose confederation of client tribes, which included those of the Tamim. Other forces such as the Abyssinian, Ghassan, and Lakhm were in decline, and Meccan influence was the primary binding force in Arabia in the late sixth century.^[7]

Muhammad

See also: Muhammad

See also: Conquest of Mecca

Muhammad was born in Mecca in 570, and the story of his life has been inextricably linked with Mecca ever since. He was a member of a minor faction, the Hashemites, of the ruling Quraysh tribe. After he began receiving visions and preaching against the paganism of the city, he emigrated in 622 with some followers to the northern city of Medina, and launched raids on Meccan commerce. In the Battle of Badr he decimated Mecca's leadership, and won for himself considerable prestige among the Bedouin tribes. Conflict continued, such as at the Battle of Uhud and the Battle of the Ditch.^[10]

In 628, Muhammad adopted a more peaceful posture, as he and some followers attempted to enter Mecca on pilgrimage, to show that the traditional rituals could be adopted into his new religion of Islam. At al-Hudaybiya, he agreed to a truce with the Meccans, whereby Muslims would be allowed into the city. Two years later, the truce was broken, but rather than fight, the city of Mecca simply surrendered to Muhammad. He declared amnesty for the inhabitants, gave generous gifts to the leading Quraysh, and instituted some major changes. He removed or destroyed all of the cult images from the Kaaba, declaring it the holiest site in Islam, and dedicating it as the center of Muslim pilgrimage.^[10] Many of the Arabian tribes then chose to accept Islam as their own faith. Muhammad had succeeded in something that seemed impossible for hundreds of years -- uniting the warring tribes of the Arabian peninsula into a single umma, a congregation and community, all followers of a single God. His preaching and Koranic visions had created a synthesis of multiple belief systems, which combined elements of pagan Arabian religous ideas, Judaism, Christianity, the hellfire monastic preaching of the Syriacs, and new ideas unique to the new religion of Islam.^[11]

Muhammad died in 632, but with the sense of unity that he'd passed on to the Arabians, Islam began a rapid expansion, and within the next few hundred years stretched from northern Africa well into Asia. As the Islamic Empire grew, Mecca continued to attract pilgrims not just from Arabia, but now from all across the Empire, as Muslims sought to perform the annual Hajj.

Another major change was that prior to Muhammad, Muslims had faced towards Jerusalem in their daily prayers, but Muhammad changed this practice and required everyone to face towards the Kaaba of Mecca instead.

Mecca also attracted a year-round population of scholars, pious Muslims who wished to live close to the Kaaba, and local inhabitants who served the pilgrims. Due to the difficulty and expense of the Hajj, pilgrims arrived by boat at Jedda, and came overland, or joined the annual caravans from Syria or Iraq.

Political history

Mecca was never the capital of the Islamic empire; the first capital was Medina, some 250 miles (400 km) to the north. During the reign of the fourth caliph Ali, the capital was moved to Kufa. When the Umayyads took power they moved the capital to Damascus, and then the Abbasids moved the capital to Baghdad. The center of the Islamic empire remained at Baghdad for nearly 500 years, until the Mongols conquered the city in 1258, an event considered to be the single most catastrophic event in Islam. Soon after Baghdad, the Mongols also conquered Damascus, and so center of Islamic power was moved to Cairo during the time of the Mamluks. When the Ottoman Empire came into prominence the capital was moved to Constantinople. Mecca still remained as a prominent trading center though. When pilgrims arrived for the hajj they often financed their journey by bringing goods which they could sell in the Meccan markets, and acquiring goods there which they could sell when they returned home.^[12]

Mecca re-entered Islamic political history briefly when it was held by Abd-Allah ibn al-Zubayr, an early Muslim who opposed the Umayyad caliphs. The caliph Yazid I besieged Mecca in 683.^{[citation needed]}

Thereafter the city figured little in politics; it was a city of devotion and scholarship. For centuries it was governed by the Hashemite Sharifs of Mecca, descendants of Muhammad by his grandson Hassan ibn Ali. The Sharifs ruled on behalf of whatever caliph or Muslim ruler had declared himself the Guardian of the Two Shrines.^{[citation needed]}

Mecca was attacked and sacked by Ismaili Muslims in 930.^{[citation needed]}

Ottoman return of Mecca

See also: Ottoman return of Mecca 1813

Mecca in the 20th century

See also: Battle of Mecca 1916

In June 1916, Sharif of Mecca, Hussein bin Ali revolted against Ottoman Empire from Mecca and Mecca was the first city captured by his forces.

In 1926, the Sharifs of Mecca were overthrown by the Saudis, and Mecca was incorporated into Saudi Arabia.^{[citation needed]}

1979 Siege

Main article: Grand Mosque Seizure

On November 20, 1979 two hundred armed Islamist dissidents led by Saudi preacher Juhayman al-Otaibi seized the Grand Mosque. They claimed that the Saudi royal family no longer represented pure Islam and that the mosque, and the Kaaba, must be held by those of the true faith. The rebels seized tens of thousands of pilgrims as hostages and barricaded themselves in the mosque. The siege lasted two weeks, and resulted in several hundreds deaths and significant damage to the shrine, especially the Safa-Marwa gallery. While it is the Saudi forces that carried out the assault, they were assisted with weapons and planning by a small team of advisors from France's GIGN commando unit.^[13]

Tourism

The primary industry in Mecca in modern times is to support the annual pilgrimage of the Hajj, as well as to support the pilgrims who visit the city at all other times of the year. Major stops in their visit include:

Kaaba

Main article: Kaaba

The Kaaba is the ancient stone building towards which all Muslims pray. Many believe that it dates back to the time of Abraham in 2000 BC. All pilgrims are required to walk counter-clockwise around the Kaaba seven times, in a ritual called the Tawaf.

The Black Stone

Main article: Black Stone

The Black Stone (called الحجر الأسود al-Hajar-ul-Aswad in Arabic) is a Muslim object of reverence, said by some to date back to the alleged time of Adam and Eve. It is the eastern cornerstone of the Kaaba. Pilgrims seek to kiss it on each of their seven circuits of the Kaaba, or if they cannot reach it, they are to point to it each time as they pass it. A strip of marble is inlaid into the floor of the Mosque, to tell pilgrims when they are even with the Stone.

Well of Zamzam

Main article: Zamzam Well

Muslims believe that the Zamzam well was revealed to Hagar, concubine of Abraham (Ibrahim) and mother of Ishmael. She was desperately seeking water for her infant son, but could find none. Mecca is located in a hot dry valley with few other sources of water. According to tradition, the water of the Zamzam well is divinely blessed. It is believed to satisfy both hunger and thirst, and cure illness. The water is served to the public through coolers stationed throughout the Masjid al Haram in Mecca and the Masjid al Nabawi in Medina. All pilgrims make every effort to drink of this water during their pilgrimage, and some dip their ihram clothing into it, so that the cloth can be used as their own burial shroud when they die.

Current status

The city has grown substantially in the 20th and 21st centuries, as the convenience and affordability of jet travel has increased the number of pilgrims participating in the Hajj. Thousands of Saudis are employed year-round to oversee the Hajj and staff the hotels and shops that cater to pilgrims; these workers in turn have increased the demand for housing and services. The city is now ringed by freeways, and contains shopping malls and skyscrapers.^[14]

Non-Muslims and Mecca

Non-Muslims are not permitted to enter Mecca. Road blocks are stationed along roads leading to the city, with officials conducting occasional random checks to confirm that intending visitors are legitimate pilgrims and in possession of the required documentation. The main airport has a similar security policy. While one of the purposes of these checks is to ensure that the visitor is, in fact, a Muslim, they also serve to deter illegal immigrants including guest workers whose visas have expired or who have not attained the extra permit required to perform the pilgrimage.^{[citation needed]}

As one might expect, the existence of cities closed to non-Muslims and the mystery of the Hajj aroused intense curiosity in European travelers. A number of them disguised themselves as Muslims and entered the city of Mecca and then the Kaaba to experience the Hajj for themselves.^{[citation needed]} The most famous account of a foreigner's journey to Mecca is A Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina, written by Sir Richard Francis Burton. Burton traveled as a Qadiri Sufi from Afghanistan; his name, as he signed it in Arabic below his front piece portrait for "The Jew, The Gypsy and al-Islam," was al-Hajj 'Abdullah.^{[citation needed]}

Spelling

Mecca is the original English transliteration of the Arabic name. In the 1980s, the Saudi Arabian government and others began promoting the transliteration Makkah (in full, Makkah al-Mukarramah), which more closely resembles the actual Arabic pronunciation.

The spelling Makkah or Meccah is not new and has always been a common alternative ^[15]. (In the works and letters of T E Lawrence, almost every conceivable variation of the spelling appears.)

The spelling Makkah is starting to be taken up by many organizations, including the United Nations^[16], U.S. Department of State^[17] and the British Foreign Office ^[18], but the spelling Mecca remains in common use.

Economy

The Meccan economy is almost entirely dependent on money spent by people attending the hajj. The city takes in more than $100 million during the hajj. The Saudi government spends about $50 million on services for the hajj. There are some industries and factories in the city, but Mecca no longer plays a major role in Saudi Arabia's economy, which is mainly based on oil exports.^[19] The few industries operating in Mecca include textiles, furniture, and utensils. The majority of the economy is service oriented. Water is scarce and food must be imported.^[3]

See also

• Allat
• Hejazi Arabic
• Jeddah
• Manah
• Sharif of Mecca
• Shia
• Uzza
• Guru Nanak & Mecca

Notes

References

• (1999) What life was like in the lands of the prophet: Islamic world, AD 570 - 1405. Time-Life Books. ISBN 0-7835-5465-6. 
• "Quraysh". 'Encyclopaedia Britannica'. (2007). Britannica Concise Encyclopedia (online). Retrieved on 2007-02-19. 
• Lapidus, Ira M. (1988). A History of Islamic Societies. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0 521 22552 5. 

Further reading

• Rosenthal, Franz; Ibn Khaldun (1967). The Muqaddimah: An Introduction to History. Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-09797-6. 
• Crone, Patricia (1987). Meccan Trade and the Rise of Islam. Princeton University Press. 

External links

• Mecca travel guide from Wikitravel
• Holy Makkah Municipality Official website (in Arabic)
• Emirate of Makkah Official website
• Saudi Information Resource - Holy Mecca
• Inside Mecca DVD National Geographic documentary about Mecca
• Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Al Madinah and Meccah, by Richard Burton
• Siege of Mecca A wesbite about the 1979 siege of Mecca's Grand Mosque.

• Maps and aerial photos for 21°′″N 39°′″E / 21.408, 39.8178Coordinates: 21°′″N 39°′″E / 21.408, 39.8178
  • Maps from MapQuest, Multimap and Yahoo! Maps
  • Satellite images and maps from Google Maps and Live Search
  • Other mapping from GlobalGuide and WikiMapia

Saudi Arabian Cities	List of main Saudi Arabian cities
	`Afif | `Ar`ar | Abha | Abqaiq | Al-Bahah | Buraidah | Ad Dammam | Dhahran | Ad Dir`iyah | Duba | Ha'il | Al Hufuf | Al Jawf | Jeddah | Jizan | Al Jubayl | Khamis Mushayt | Al-Kharj | Khobar | Al Majma'ah | Mecca (Makkah) | Medina | Najran | Bisha | Al-Qatif | Ras Tanura | Al-Khafji | Riyadh (National Capital) | At Ta'if | Tabuk | `Unayzah | Yanbu' al Bahr | Hafar Al-Batin

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