The capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz area of western Saudi Arabia, Mecca (/ˈmɛkə/; formally Makkah al-Mukarramah, frequently abbreviated to Makkah) is the holiest city in Islam. It is located in a small valley 277 meters (909 feet) above sea level, 70 kilometers (43 miles) inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea. The population as of 2022 was 2,385,509, according to records. With 2.4 million people living there as of 2022, its metropolitan population ranked third in Saudi Arabia, after Riyadh and Jeddah. Saudi nationals make up around 44.5% of the population, while foreigners from other Muslim nations make up about 55.5%. Every year at the Ḥajj pilgrimage, which is held in the twelfth Hijri month of Dhūl-Ḥijjah, pilgrims number more than three times as many. Mecca was among the world’s ten most visited cities in 2023, with approximately 10.8 million foreign tourists.
Most people agree that Mecca is “the fountainhead and cradle of Islam”.[8][9] Islam holds Mecca in high regard as it is the birthplace of the prophet Muhammad. Muslims believe Muhammad received the Quran for the first time at the Hira cave, located just outside the city, on top of the Jabal al-Nur (“Mountain of Light”).[10] Every capable Muslim has a responsibility to perform the Hajj by traveling to Mecca. The Kaaba, which Muslims believe Abraham and Ishmael built, is housed in the Great Mosque of Mecca, also known as the Masjid al-Haram. It is the holiest place in Islam and the qibla, or direction of prayer, for all Muslims around the world.
Like most of the Hejaz area, the city has witnessed several regime changes as a result of the long-standing attempts by Muslim rulers from inside and surrounding the region to seize and hold control of the city. The city was most recently taken during Ibn Saud and his allies’ 1925 Saudi invasion of Hejaz. Since then, Mecca’s infrastructure and size have grown significantly, and the city now boasts a third of the world’s biggest floor area and four of the tallest structures in the world, the Abraj Al Bait, which towers over the Great Mosque. Ajyad Fortress is only one of the ancient buildings and archeological sites that the Saudi government has destroyed.
Nonetheless, a large portion of the demolitions have been formally attributed to the ongoing construction of the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina, the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, and its associated service buildings to serve the growing number of Muslims who are completing the pilgrimage (hajj). It is strictly forbidden for non-Muslims to enter the city.
Mecca is managed by the Mecca Regional Municipality, which is overseen by the Saudi government-appointed mayor, known locally as Amin. The Mecca Regional Municipality consists of fourteen members who are chosen locally. Osama bin Fadhel Al-Barr served as the city’s mayor in 2015; Saleh Al-Turki took over as mayor in January 2022. The seat of the Mecca Province, which also includes the neighboring towns of Jeddah and Ta’if, is the City of Mecca Amanah, which covers Mecca and the surrounding area, despite Jeddah having a far higher population than Mecca. Since May 16, 2007, Prince Khalid bin Faisal Al Saud has served as the province’s provincial governor.
Meaning and Origin
There are several names for Mecca. Like a lot of Arabic terms, its origin is unknown. Though Muslim scholars commonly interpret it to refer to the sacred region of the city that immediately surrounds and includes the Ka’bah, it is claimed to be more particularly the early term for the valley located there. It is often regarded to be a synonym for Makkah.
Bakkah
In Surah Al Imran (3), verse 96 of the Quran, the city is referred to as Bakkah: “Indeed the first House [of worship], established for mankind was that at Bakkah.” According to Islamic legend, this was the name of the city when Abraham (also known as Ibrahim) lived there. It can also be transliterated as Baca, Baka, Bakah, Bakka, Becca, and Bekka. In the ancient world, it was the name of the city.
Mecca, Makkah, and Makkah al-Mukarramah
The Saudi government’s official transcription, Makkah, is more closely aligned with the Arabic pronunciation. Although Makkah was officially accepted by the government in the 1980s, not everyone is familiar with or uses it everywhere. Makkah al-Mukarramah (Arabic: مكة المكرمة), which translates to “Makkah the Honored,” is the full official name. Verse 24 of Surah Al-Fath in the Quran refers to the city as Makkah.
Since the English word “Mecca” has evolved to refer to any location that attracts a lot of people, some English-speaking Muslims find it disrespectful when the city is spelled with this name. However, the English transcription of the Arabic name of the city is most often known as Mecca.
It was also asserted that Macoraba, another ancient city named in Claudius Ptolemy Felix’s Arabia Felix, was Mecca. This relationship has been questioned in certain research. Numerous etymologies have been suggested; the conventional one holds that it comes from the Old South Arabian root M-K-R-B, which signifies “temple”.
Alternative names
In the Quran, Mecca is also referred to as Umm al-Qurā (أُمّ ٱلْقُرَى), which translates to “Mother of All Settlements” (6:92). The Quran and hadith mention the city by several different names. Tihāmah is another historical name for Mecca. As to an Islamic proposition, Fārān, another name for Mecca, is equivalent to the Desert of Paran that is referenced in Genesis 21:21 of the Old Testament. According to Arab and Islamic legend, Mecca is where Ishmael resided and the wilderness of Paran is, in general, the coastal plain of Tihamah. Fārān, according to the Syrian geographer Yaqut al-Hamawi (d. 12th century), is “an arabized Hebrew word, one of the names of Mecca mentioned in the Torah.”
Past Events
Prior History
After the discovery of a Saadanius fossil in 2010, Mecca and the surrounding region gained significance in paleontology as it relates to the development of primates. According to scientific theory, Saadanius was a primate that shared a common ancestor with Old World monkeys and apes. The fossil environment was a moist forest between 28 and 29 million years ago, located in western Saudi Arabia, close to the present-day Red Sea. The study’s paleontologists anticipate discovering more fossils nearby.
Ancient history, up to the sixth century CE
There is still a lot of unclear evidence about Mecca’s early past. The city is located in the central region of western Arabia, where there are little written or archeological records. There are no known clear allusions to Mecca in ancient literature before the emergence of Islam, despite the Islamic tradition’s thousands of years of existence. This ignorance contrasts with both the northern and southern regions of western Arabia, notably Yemen and the Syro-Palestinian frontier, where historians have access to a variety of sources, including the physical remnants of shrines, inscriptions, observations made by Greco-Roman writers, and data gathered by church historians. The region of Hejaz that encircles Mecca was known for being arid, stony, and hostile; it was home to only sparse established communities that were sporadic oases and patches of productive land. There were no readily accessible ports along the Red Sea coast, and the Bedouins and residents of the oasis were illiterate.
The population of Mecca during the time of Muhammad was closer to 10,000 people, according to research published by Binimad Al-Ateeqi in 2020. This figure was extrapolated from historical records about the Battle of Badr and other military expeditions, emigrants to both Abyssinia and Madinah and Muhammad’s household. One individual has suggested that the population was around 550. The number of women, children, servants, and slaves in Mecca at the time is also estimated by Kuwaiti researcher Al-Ateeqi, who has written extensively about the city’s early history. He notes that some wealthy people, like Abdullah ibn Jud’an, had as many as 100 slaves.
Long after Muhammad’s death, in 741 CE, the Byzantine-Arab Chronicle makes the earliest known mention of Mecca in non-Islamic literature. However, the author of this account locates the location in Mesopotamia rather than the Hejaz.
The possible prior mentions are not entirely clear. In his Bibliotheca Historica, the Greek historian Diodorus Siculus describes a sacred shrine in first-century BCE Arabia, writing, “And a temple has been set up there, which is very holy and exceedingly revered by all Arabians.” There have been claims that this is an allusion to Mecca’s Ka’bah. On the other hand, the region that Diodorus describes is found in the Roman province of Arabia Petraea, the old Nabataean Kingdom, and the vicinity of Leuke Kome in northwest Arabia.
The legend in Arabic sources linking Muhammad to Ma’ad ibn Adnan and Quraysh to the Ma’add is supported by Procopius’s assertion from the sixth century that the Ma’ad tribe ruled the coast of western Arabia between the Ghassanids and the Himyarites in the south.
The following early Quranic texts refer to Mecca:
- Radiocarbon dates Codex Is. 1615 I, folio 47v, to 591–643 CE.
- Radiocarbon dated between 633 and 665 CE, Codex ṚanϿώ DAM 01–29.1, page 29a.
- The radiocarbon dating of Codex Arabe 331, folio 40 v, falls between 652 and 765 CE.
The region around Mecca and Ta’if is home to the oldest Muslim inscriptions.
Islamic story
According to the Islamic perspective, Adam, Abraham, Hagar, and Ishmael are the biblical characters who are credited with founding Mecca. Based on a celestial model, Adam constructed the first God’s home in Mecca; however, it was destroyed during the Noahic Flood. It is thought that Mecca’s civilization began when Ibrāhīm (Abraham) obeyed Allah’s instruction and left his wife Hājar (Hagar) and son Ismāʿīl (Ishmael) in the valley. They took in some Jurhumite Yemeni settlers, and it is said that at Ibrahim’s recommendation, Isma’il married two wives, the second after divorcing the first. One Jurhum man at least assisted Ismāʿīl and his father in building the Ka’bah (the “Cube”), which would have significant social, religious, political, and historical ramifications for the location and surrounding area. This work is described in Islamic tales.
Similar to the Quran in Surah 3:96, Muslims interpret the Old Testament chapter Psalm 84:3–6’s mention of a pilgrimage at the Valley of the Bakha as referring to Mecca. It is stated that the sons of Nebaioth, the eldest son of Ismāʿīl or Ishmael, constructed Mecca. The Sharḥ al-Asāṭīr is a commentary on the Samaritan midrashic chronology of the Patriarchs. It was written in the 10th century CE, though the exact date of composition is uncertain.
Inscriptions from Thamud
Several names, including “Servant of Mecca” (ſَبْد مَكَّة), were found in various Thamudic inscriptions found in southern Jordan.[69]
A tribe called “Makkah” may have existed, according to Jawwad Ali of the University of Baghdad, even though other inscriptions had personal names like Makki (مَكّّي, “Makkan, of Makkah”).
By the Quraish
The Ka’bah served as a center of devotion for the gods of the pagans living in Arabia at some point in the fifth century. Hubal was the most revered pagan deity in Mecca, having been positioned there by the dominant Quraish clan. and persisted until Muhammad conquered Mecca. The Quraish arrived to rule Mecca in the fifth century and developed became expert traders and merchants. They entered the lucrative spice trade in the sixth century when conflicts abroad caused trade routes to be rerouted from perilous maritime routes to safer landways. The Red Sea had previously been under the sovereignty of the Byzantine Empire, but piracy had been rising. The Sassanid Empire’s exploitation of a different ancient route that crossed the Persian Gulf via the Tigris and Euphrates rivers was also a danger, while the Lakhmids, Ghassanids, and Roman-Persian Wars were causing disruptions. Mecca was also more important as a commerce hub than Petra and Palmyra.[73][74] However, Mecca was not always in danger from the Sassanids; in 575 CE, they defended the city against an assault by the Yemeni army under the command of Abraha, a Christian leader. Khosrau I, the Persian monarch, responded to the pleas for assistance from the tribes in southern Arabia by traveling to the region with a fleet of ships and foot soldiers in the vicinity of Mecca.
There were three significant towns in northern Arabia by the middle of the sixth century. They were all located in an area that was livable between the Red Sea and the Hejaz mountains to the east, on the southwest coast of the country. Despite the total lack of vegetation, Mecca was the richest of the three towns due to its location at the intersection of important caravan routes and the plentiful water supply from the well-known Zamzam Well.
The local tribes were in a state of near-constant strife due to the severe circumstances and topography of the Arabian peninsula, but once a year they would proclaim a ceasefire and gather in Mecca for an annual pilgrimage. Until the 7th century, the pagan Arabs used this pilgrimage for religious purposes to honor their shrine and consume Zamzam. But it was also the time of year when Meccan fairs were held, where business took place conflicts were arbitrated and debts settled. Mecca became a focal point for the peninsula as a result of these yearly celebrations, which also provided the tribes with a feeling of shared identity.
570 CE is known as the Elephant Year.
The year 570–572 CE, known as the “Year of the Elephant” in Islamic history, is said to have been when, according to Islamic sources like Ibn Ishaq, Abraha rode down on an elephant with a large army and arrived at Mecca after constructing a cathedral at San’aa that was named al-Qullays in honor of the Negus of Axum. It became well-known and even attracted the interest of the Byzantine Empire. In an attempt to convert the Arabs to Christianity, Abraha tried to reroute their pilgrimage from the Ka’bah to al-Qullays. Islamic tradition states that Muhammad was born in this year. Muhammad ibn Khuza’i is said to have been dispatched by Abraha to convey to Mecca and Tihamah that al-Qullays were superior to other places of worship and more pristine due to the absence of idol dwelling. Upon reaching the Kinana region, the lowland people recognized Muhammad ibn Khuza’i’s purpose and dispatched ʿUrwa bin Hayyad al-Milasi, a Hudhayli, to shoot and kill him with an arrow. He was further enraged and furious after his brother Qays, who was with him, escaped to Abraha and informed him of the news. He then vowed to invade the Kinana tribe and demolish the Ka’bah.
With a vast army that included one or more war elephants, Abraha marched onto the Ka’bah to demolish it. The Arab tribes of Quraysh, Kinanah, Khuza’a, and Hudhayl banded together to defend the Ka’bah and the city upon hearing of his army’s approach. Abraha dispatched a representative from the Himyarite Kingdom to tell them that he just wanted to destroy the Ka’bah and that if they resisted, he would crush them. Abdul Muttalib and a few Qurayshite members stayed inside the Kaaba’s boundaries, telling the Meccans to take refuge in the hills. Abdul-Muttalib was extended an invitation by Abraha to meet and discuss issues through a dispatch. “The Owner of this House is its Defender, and I am sure he will save it from the attack of the adversaries and will not dishonor the servants of His House,” Abdul-Muttalib was overheard stating as he exited the conference.
Eventually, Mecca was assaulted by Abraha. Mahmud, the lead elephant, is reported to have stopped at the Mecca border and refused to go within. There is a theory that suggests a failed assault on Mecca might have been precipitated by an outbreak, like smallpox. The narrative in the Quran is briefly mentioned. The following day, a black cloud of tiny birds that Allah had sent came, according to the 105th Surah of the Quran, Al-Fil. The birds, with tiny pebbles in their beaks, pounded the Ethiopian soldiers, reducing them to the consistency of mashed straw.
Finance
Rumored to have been utilized by Muhammad’s great-grandfather, camel caravans played a significant role in Mecca’s thriving economy. The local nomadic tribes, who would bring products to Mecca to be put on caravans and sent to towns in Shaam and Iraq, formed alliances with the Meccan merchants in exchange for animals, leather, and metals mined in the nearby mountains.[86] Historical narratives also suggest that Mecca may have served as a transit point for commodities coming from other continents. Spices, leather, medicine, textiles, and slaves were among the goods that traveled through Africa and the Far East on their way to Syria. In exchange, Mecca got cash, weapons, wine, and grains, which were then dispersed across Arabia. The Meccans arranged safe passageways for caravans and granted them access to water and pasture by signing treaties with the Bedouins and the Byzantines. A loose confederation of client tribes, including the Banu Tamim, centered around Mecca. The Meccan commerce became the main force uniting Arabia in the late 6th century when other regional powers like the Abyssinians, Ghassanids, and Lakhmids were declining.
Muhammad and Mecca’s conquest
Islam and Mecca have always been closely associated since Muhammad’s birth in 570 CE. He was born into the Banu Hashim section of the Qurayshite royal tribe. Islamic tradition states that Muhammad started hearing revelations from God around 610 CE through the archangel Jibreel in the neighboring mountain cave of Hira on Jabal al-Nour.
After 13 years of persecution by the pagan tribes, Muhammad and his followers, the Muhajirun, immigrated (hijrah) in 622 CE to Yathrib (later renamed Medina) in support of his brand of Abrahamic monotheism against Meccan idolatry. It is acknowledged that at this moment the Quraysh and the Muslims started their battle. All things considered, Meccan attempts to eradicate Islam were costly and fruitless.[Reference required] The united armies of Arabia were unable to overcome Muhammad’s forces in the Battle of the Trench in 627 CE because Muhammad’s soldiers were shielded from harm by the trench around them and a storm was sent to break the Quraysh clan.
Muhammad and his adherents attempted to enter Mecca for a pilgrimage in 628 CE, but the Quraysh stood in their way. The Quraysh and its supporters then pledged to stop attacking Muslims and their allies, and Muslims were guaranteed permission to enter the city the next year to carry out the pilgrimage. This led to the Muslims and Meccans signing the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah. The pact was supposed to last for ten years, but two years into it, the Quraish’s supporters, the Banu Bakr, broke it by killing some of the Muslims’ friends, the Banu Khuza’ah. With ten thousand supporters, Muhammad advanced into Mecca and took control of the city. Muhammad’s followers demolished the pagan images and Islamized the area, rededicating it to the worship of Allah alone. As one of the Five Pillars of Islam, Mecca was designated as the holiest place on earth and designated as the hub of the Hajj.
Muhammad was then named ‘Attab ibn Asid’ governor of Medina and left the city. The Arabian Peninsula came together under the Islamic flag as a result of his prior endeavors in Arabia. Muhammad passed away in 632 CE. The Islamic realm expanded during the following few centuries, encompassing not just North Africa but also areas of Asia and Europe. Mecca drew pilgrims from all across the Muslim world and beyond as the Islamic domain expanded, and Muslims gathered to make the yearly Hajj pilgrimage. Scholars, devout Muslims who desired to reside near the Kaaba, and locals who provided services to the pilgrims all year round drew to Mecca. Owing to the hardship and cost of the Hajj, pilgrims either joined the yearly caravans from Syria or Iraq or landed by water in Jeddah before traveling overland.
Pre-modern and medieval periods
There was never an Islamic state with Mecca as its capital. Muslim rulers did make contributions to its maintenance. For example, during the reigns of ‘Umar (r. 634–644 CE) and ‘Uthman ibn Affan (r. 644–656 CE), Christian engineers were brought in by the caliphs to build barrages in the low-lying areas and to build dykes and embankments to protect the area surrounding the Kaaba due to fears of flooding.
Muhammad’s return to Medina caused the attention to move away from Mecca, and it did so much more when ‘Ali, the fourth caliph, chose Kufa as his capital and came to power. The capital of the Islamic Empire was shifted by the Umayyad Caliphate from Damascus, Syria, to Baghdad, modern-day Iraq; both caliphates stayed in place for around 500 years. When Abdullah ibn az-Zubayr and the Zubayrids staged the Second Fitna, Mecca was once again involved in Islamic political history. The Umayyads attacked the city twice, in 683 and 692 CE. After that, the city was mostly ignored by politics for a while, continuing to be a center of learning and devotion under the rule of several groups. The Qarmatians, a millenarian Shi’a Isma’ili Muslim sect located in eastern Arabia and commanded by Abū-Tāhir Al-Jannābī, stormed and plundered Mecca in 930 CE. Mecca was struck by the Black Death epidemic in 1349 CE.
Mecca as described by Ibn Battuta
Ibn Battuta, a Moroccan philosopher and adventurer, was one of the most well-known visitors to Mecca in the fourteenth century. He gives a detailed overview of the city in his rihla (account). Approximately around 1327 CE, or 729 AH, Ibn Battuta made his way to the sacred city. He claims that right away, it seemed like a sacred sanctuary, therefore he began the pilgrimage’s customs. He spent three years at Mecca before departing in 1330 CE. He claims that his caravan came “with a great quantity of alms for the support of those who were staying in Mecca and Medina” during his second year in the holy city.
At the Kaaba in Mecca, prayers were offered for Salaheddin al-Ayyubi, the Sultan of Egypt and Syria, as well as for the King of Iraq. According to Battuta, the Kaaba was formerly rather huge but was later destroyed and rebuilt to be much smaller. Ibn Battuta claims that the original Kaaba held images of angels and prophets before the Prophet conquered Makkah. These images included Jesus (known as Isa in Islamic tradition), his mother Mary (known as Maryam in Islamic tradition), and many others. Ibn Battuta also claims that the Prophet destroyed all of these images in the year of victory. In his day, Battuta characterized the Kaaba as a significant component of Mecca since so many people come here on pilgrimages. According to Battuta, the residents of the city are courteous and modest, and they are also eager to share what little they have with others who have nothing. He claims that Mecca’s residents and the village itself were immaculate. The area also exuded an air of refinement.
During the Ottoman Empire
Barakat bin Muhammad, the Sharif of Mecca at the time, recognized the Ottoman Caliph’s authority in 1517 but maintained a high degree of local autonomy. A number of the ancient tombs and domes in and around Mecca were destroyed when the First Saudi State took control of the city in 1803. Mecca was held by them until 1813. Muhammad Ali Pasha, the strong Khedive (viceroy) and Wali of Egypt was given the mission by the Ottomans to retake Mecca. In 1813, Muhammad Ali Pasha was able to effectively retake Mecca for the Ottoman Empire. The Saudis were beaten once more in 1818, but they managed to survive and establish the Second Saudi State, which gave rise to the modern-day nation of Saudi Arabia and lasted until 1891.
Disguised as a Muslim, Sir Richard Francis Burton made the Hajj to Mecca and Medina in 1853. While Ludovico da Varthema completed the Hajj in 1503, therefore Burton was undoubtedly not the first non-Muslim European to do so[93], his journey is nonetheless among the most well-known and well-researched of the modern era. Cholera outbreaks plagued Mecca frequently. There were twenty-seven cases of cholera among Mecca visitors between 1830 and 1930.
Contemporary history
The Hashemite Rebellion and the Sharif of Mecca’s subsequent rule
The Ottoman Empire and the Allies fought each other in World War I. It had effectively repelled attacks on Baghdad at the Siege of Kut and Istanbul during the Gallipoli campaign. In the 1916 Battle of Mecca, it was the first city that British intelligence operative T.E. Lawrence’s soldiers took during their plot to overthrow the Ottoman Empire alongside Hussain bin Ali, the Sharif of Mecca. The fight on the eastern front was turned around by Sharif’s uprising. Declaring himself the state’s Sharif and Mecca as its capital, Hussein established the Kingdom of Hejaz.
According to news reports from November 1916 obtained via contacts with returning pilgrims who had done the Hajj, the Hajj of 1916 was devoid of the traditional tremendous extortion and monetary demands made by the Turks, who were agents of the Ottoman government, since the Ottoman Turkish authorities had been overthrown.
Saudi Arabian conquest and modern history
After the Battle of Mecca in 1924, the Saud dynasty toppled the Sharif of Mecca, and Mecca became a part of Saudi Arabia. The Saudi rulers destroyed a large portion of the ancient city while it was under Saudi authority because of concern that these locations would be used for worship other than Allah (shirk). The holy city has grown to encompass other settlements that were once thought to be distinct from it. Today, it is only a few kilometers away from the major Hajj locations, Mina, Muzdalifah, and Arafat. There isn’t an airport in Mecca because of worries about public safety. Instead, Ta’if Regional Airport (about 120 km distant) serves it for domestic flights, and King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah (about 70 km away) for international flights.
Located at the intersection of the two most significant highways in the Saudi Arabian highway network, the city is connected to Jeddah in the west, the capital, Riyadh, and Dammam in the east, and to Medina, Tabuk, and Jordan in the north, Abha, and Jizan in the south, via Highway 40 and Highway 15, respectively. Due to their involvement in the First World War, the Ottomans were compelled to renounce their plans to expand their railway network to the holy city. The modern Haramain high-speed railway system, which travels at 300 km/h (190 mph) and connects Medina and Mecca via Jeddah, King Abdulaziz International Airport, and King Abdullah Economic City near Rabigh, takes two hours to complete. This plan was later implemented by the Saudi government.
Compared to Medina, Mecca’s haram area—which prohibits non-Muslims from entering—is far greater.
1979 Seizures of Grand Mosques
On November 20, 1979, two hundred armed rebels under the leadership of Juhayman al-Otaibi took control of the Grand Mosque. They declared that the Saudi royal family was no longer a representative of authentic Islam and that only sincere believers should have access to the Ka’bah and Masjid al-Haram. Tens of thousands of pilgrims were taken prisoner by the insurgents, who then locked themselves inside the mosque. Several hundred people died during the two-week siege, which also seriously damaged the shrine, particularly the Safa-Marwah gallery. In the end, the dissidents were driven out of the mosque by an international army. The Grand Mosque has since undergone many additions, and numerous more are now being planned.
Islamic historical sites being demolished
An estimated 95% of Mecca’s historic structures, the majority of which date back more than a millennium, have been destroyed during the Saudi administration. Reportedly, there are currently less than twenty structures in Mecca that were built during Muhammad’s lifetime. The birthplace of Muhammad, the house of Abu Bakr, the residence of Khadijah, the wife of Muhammad, and the Ajyad Fortress from the Ottoman Empire are just a few of the significant structures that have been demolished. Much of the ancient building deterioration has been caused by the development of parking spaces, hotels, residences, and other infrastructure for Hajj visitors.
Events that occur while on a pilgrimage
Because of the enormous number of people that go to Mecca to perform the Hajj, the city has seen a lot of accidents and instances of poor crowd management. For instance, on July 2, 1990, a Mecca pilgrimage ended tragically when a pedestrian tunnel’s ventilation system malfunctioned, killing 1,426 pilgrims through asphyxia or stampede. During the stoning-the-Devil ceremony at Jamarat on September 24, 2015, a stampede in Mina claimed the lives of 700 pilgrims.
complete solar eclipse in 2027
On Monday, August 2, 2027, there will be a complete solar eclipse over Mecca that lasts for five minutes and eight seconds.
Importance within the Islamic faith
Mecca is regarded as the holiest city in all of Islam and has a significant role in the faith. The city is significant because of its significance in the Hajj and ‘Umrah, as well as because Muhammad was born there.
Masjid al-Haram
Two of the most significant Hajj and Umrah rituals, the circumambulation around the Ka’bah (tawaf) and the trek between the two peaks of Safa and Marwa (see), take place at the Masjid al-Haram. The Zamzam Well is located in the masjid. A prayer at the masjid is equivalent to 100,000 prayers in any other masjid worldwide, according to Islamic custom.
Kaaba
There is disagreement among Islamic scholars on who constructed the Ka’bah first; some think Adam did it, while others believe the angels did. Still, it was constructed several times before arriving at its present configuration. All Muslims use the Ka’bah as their common prayer direction or qibla. The Mataf is the name given to the area where Muslims walk around the Ka’bah.
Aswad Hajr (The Black Stone)
The Black Stone is a stone that Muslims believe to be divine in origin, although scientists consider it to be a meteorite or similar object. It is Sunnah to touch and kiss the stone, which is located in the Ka’bah’s eastern corner. To protect the pilgrims, the area surrounding the stone is usually constantly congested and manned by police officers. According to Islamic custom, the stone used to construct the Ka’bah was sent down from Jannah, or Paradise. It was a white stone once, much whiter than milk. It gradually turned dark throughout the years after it was dragged down to Earth as a result of the worldly misdeeds of man.
Ibrahim Maqam
When building the upper portions of the Ka’bah, Ibrahim (Abraham) stepped on this stone. It has two footprints on it that are bigger than the typical foot of a modern person. On the Mataf plate, the stone is elevated and kept in a golden, hexagon-shaped chamber next to the Ka’bah. The square-shaped stone within the casing is 20 cm (7.9 in) high, 40 cm (16 in) wide, and measures 40 cm (16 in) long. It was once surrounded by a building known as the Maqsurat Ibrahim, which was covered in an exquisitely embroidered curtain known as a sitara that was changed yearly. It is currently housed within a golden-metal container. The exterior has undergone several alterations throughout time; old photos indicate that the Banu Shaybah Gate’s arch was formerly situated adjacent to it.
Marwa and Safa
Muslims hold that Allah portrays the mountains of Safa and Marwah as emblems of His divinity in the Quran, the holy revelation to Muhammad. One of the required pillars (rukn) of ‘Umrah is walking between the two mountains seven times, walking four times from Safa to Marwah and three times from Marwah in turn.
The Hajj and the Umrah
For one week in the twelfth and final Islamic month of Dhu al-Hijjah, millions of Muslims from all over the globe go to Mecca as part of the Hajj pilgrimage, also known as the bigger pilgrimage, which almost triples the city’s population. The holy city saw 2,489,406 pilgrims for the 2019 Hajj. You can do the minor pilgrimage, known as the ‘Umrah, at any time of the year. At least once in their lifetime, every adult, healthy Muslim who is able to afford and physically go to Mecca must undertake the Hajj. The Quran recommends Umrah, the smaller pilgrimage, although it is not required. For certain Hajj ceremonies, travelers must also visit the neighboring towns of Mina/Muna, Muzdalifah, and Mount Arafat in addition to the Masjid al-Haram.
Jabal an-Nur
This mountain is said by Muslims to be the location where Muhammad spent his time in solitude, away from the busy city of Mecca. near 642 meters (2,106 feet), the peak, which is the city’s highest point, is situated near the eastern entrance.
The Hira Cave
This grotto, which is perched atop Jabal an-Nur, is where Muslims believe Muhammad, at the age of forty, got the first revelation from Allah through the archangel Gabriel (called Jibril in Islamic tradition).
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