(570?–632). The founder of the religion known as Islam was Muhammad, a prophet who received messages from Allah (God). These messages were later collected into a holy book called the Koran, which continues to serve as the guideline for the faith. Muhammad also was known for his role in creating a union of Arab tribes by bringing them together under Islam.
Muhammad was born in the Arabian town of Mecca (now in Saudi Arabia) in about 570. Muhammad's father died before Muhammad was born, and Muhammad's mother died when he was 6. The youth was then cared for by his grandfather and later by his uncle.
Muhammad sometimes went with his uncle on trading journeys to Syria. On one of these trips, Muhammad—who was about 25 at the time—met a rich, older woman named Khadijah. Their marriage, which produced two sons (both of whom died young) and four daughters, helped Muhammad gain the wealth and social standing that he lacked. Although many men at the time had more than one wife, Khadijah was Muhammad's only wife until after her death.
A person who liked to think about the world, Muhammad sometimes spent quiet nights in a cave near Mecca. On one such night in about the year 610, Muhammad had a vision (thought to be of the angel Gabriel) and heard a voice say to him, “You are the messenger of God.” At various points from this time until the end of his life, Muhammad received verbal messages that he believed came directly from God. Many of these messages were written down, while others were preserved in memory. They were collected in the Koran after Muhammad's death.
Muhammad's first followers were his friends and family. He began public preaching in Mecca in about 613. He told people they should worship only one God, which was different from the Arab practice of worshiping many gods. He also told people to be generous as a way of expressing their appreciation to God. His new religion came to be called Islam, meaning “submission to God.” Followers of Islam were called Muslims, meaning “those who have submitted.”
Many people in Mecca were against the new religion. Those who believed in several gods were afraid that their holy places might be destroyed. Merchants disliked Muhammad because he criticized them for being greedy.
In Arab society at the time, most people were members of groups called clans. Clans, in turn, were part of larger groups called tribes. Muhammad was a member of the Hashem clan, and it offered him protection from his enemies. However, when the head of the clan (Muhammad's uncle) died in 619, the clan's new leader refused to keep protecting Muhammad.
Muhammad worried that his enemies might hurt him and others who practiced the new religion, so he encouraged his followers to move to the nearby city of Medina. Muhammad himself reached Medina on September 24, 622. This flight, known as hijrah in Arabic (“hegira” in English), provides the starting date for the history of Islam.
Muhammad was determined to join the Arab tribes together under Islam. He hoped that by uniting they could use their military strength to spread Islam to other areas.
To achieve his goal, Muhammad knew he had to get the support of Mecca. His great victory against forces from Mecca in 624 was followed by a loss the next year. He began to get the upper hand again in 627, and the number of his followers increased with every victory. By the time Muhammad entered Mecca with a force of 10,000 in the year 630, many notable citizens had already moved to Medina to become Muslims; Mecca submitted with little fight.
Muhammad also strengthened his position through agreements with many wandering tribes. As he became more powerful, Muhammad was able to offer a tribe protection if its members became Muslims.
Muhammad died on June 8, 632, in Medina. He left most of Arabia united and ready to spread the faith into Syria and Iraq. However, problems arose among the Muslims because they did not agree on who should be the new Muslim leader. This situation led to the breakup of Islam into different branches.
