Arabia prior to Islam In the 6th century, the region of the Hijaz was far removed from the mainstream of Greco-Roman civilization. Until the Yemeni-Ethiopian War (544-572 CE), this region was largely ignored by the two remaining global superpowers, Persia and Rome. The principal social, economic and political unit of the Hijaz was the tribe. Ethnically, the Arabian tribes descended from two legendary ancestors, 'Adnan in the north and Qahtan in the south. Though the descendants of Qahtan considered themselves the purer strain (also known as al-'Arab al-'Aribah or 'the true Arabs'), both 'Adnan and Qahtan traced their lineage back to Ishmael, son of Abraham.

Alabaster head of a Yemeni ruler, possibly Jewish, from the 6th century CE

Many of these tribes were either settled (al-hadar) around oases or caravan posts. Others were Bedouin nomads (al-badiyah) who moved throughout the region with their sheep, camels and goats. When in need, they would sometimes raid the settled tribes for sustenance. This was actually considered accepted practice by both sides, for the laws of necessity dictated such actions but only on occasion - it was sort of a 'code of desert life.' Such raids were never for more than sustenance and never a usual practice - the concept of hoarding or gathering surplus by violence was barely known by the badiyah. In addition, loss of human life during such encounters was rare. The result was a tension-filled tolerance between nomadic and settled tribes - sometimes this tension would grow to animosity, depending on various events and political exigencies. This pattern must be differentiated from banditry, which also existed - and was usually organized by those of the badiyah. These dynamics persisted well into the Islamic era.

Even among the settled Arabs themselves, however, there was rarely peace. The tribes were highly class-conscious; many considered themselves to be of higher pedigree than the neighboring tribes, prompting endless warfare over land, water rights or simply a lack of proper respect.

Throughout this checkerboard of interlocking tribal fiefdoms ran the principal caravan routes. Petra in Roman Arabia (today's Jordan) was the main terminus of the caravan traffic, which radiates out to the coastal ports of the Red Sea or across the desert to Bosra and other ports on the Persian Gulf. Makkah is located in a valley that would have given travelers a welcome pause after the long and arduous journey through the Sirat Mountains. The city is encircled by a number of impressive ridges: the 1,200 feet Jebel Ajyad and Jebel Abu Qubays in the east; the 1,400 foot peaks of the Jebel Qu'ayqan in the west; and the Jebel an Nur or Jebel Hira with an altitude of some 2,000 feet in the north.

No city of the Hijaz was exclusively 'Arab.' Each settlement worthy of the name was a hodgepodge of traders, caravan drivers, 'guest workers' and other support personnel from all over the Middle East, much as we see in the modern cities of the United Arab Emirates and Oman today. Christians from Asia Minor rubbed shoulders with Jews from Egypt or Yemen and local tribesmen from all corners of the peninsula. In this atmosphere of lassez-faire, attitudes towards religion were tolerant, if not indifferent. Despite being hemmed in by three monotheistic faiths — Judaism, Christianity and Zoroastrianism in Persia — the Arab tribes clung tenaciously to their pagan beliefs.

Despite their pagan gods, Arabs remained proud of their descendance from Ishmael and Abraham. As stated above, Islamic tradition maintains that it was Abraham himself who, together with Ishmael, dedicated the ancient shrine of the Kaaba, the cube-like structure located in Makkah, to Allah (The God - El of Abraham, Ellohim in Hebrew, and Ellah in the Aramaic of Christ). According to Islamic tradition, the site of the Kaaba was originally the site in which Adam worshipped The One God, and a black stone thought to have descended from Heaven during the time of Adam, was discovered by Abraham and Ishmael and incorporated in the structure. Scholars believe that this rock, known as Alhajar Alsad ("the happiest stone") may in fact have been a piece of a meteor.

Over time, traders and tribal chieftains brought other deities to Makkah which were likewise included in worship, until the Kaaba was literally stacked to the rafters with hundreds of different idols. This made Makkah an important site of pilgrimage for tribes throughout the Arabian Peninsula — even though Allah was now worshipped as only primus inter pares — a chief god among many. Among the rites performed at the shrine was the circumambulation — the ritual walk around the shrine that would be maintained in Islam.

The Hijaz — and indeed Arabia itself — was not exclusively pagan. The communities on the border of Persia and Byzantium were mostly Christian. Yemen was Jewish, and there were Jewish traders in posts along all the main trade routes of the Hijaz. In addition, many of the Christian 'dissident' sects that flourished in the first centuries after Christ had sought refuge in Arabia in order to avoid persecution by the 'zero-tolerance' policy of the orthodox Byzantine Empire. There were monasteries of Arianist, Monophysite and Nestorian monks all along the principal trade routes.

Hardly any of the Arabs had converted to Zoroastrianism, for unlike the Byzantines the Persians regarded their brand of monotheism as a national religion, to be practiced only by Persians.