Christianity was one of the prominent monotheistic religions of pre-Islamic Arabia . Christianization emerged as a major phenomena in the Arabian peninsula during the period of late antiquity , especially from the north due to the missionary activities of Syrian Christians and the south due to the entrenchment of Christianity with the Aksumite conquest of South Arabia . Christian communities had already surrounded the peninsula from all sides prior to their spread within the region. Sites of Christian organization such as churches , martyria and monasteries were built and formed points of contact with Byzantine Christianity as well as allowed local Christian leaders to display their benefaction, communicate with the local population, and meet with various officials. At present, it is believed that Christianity had attained a significant presence in Arabia by the fifth century at the latest, that its largest presence was in Southern Arabia (Yemen) prominently including the city of Najran , and that the Eastern Arab Christian community (along the Gulf coast) communicated with the Christianity of the Levant region through Syriac .
74-453: Baltis was an ancient Arabian goddess . She was revered at Carrhae and identified with the planet Venus . Isaac of Antioch mentions Baltis in a text written in the middle of the 5th century CE as a deity worshipped by the Arabs . Baltis here is equivalent to Ishtar (Inanna) , an ancient Mesopotamian goddess . This article relating to a myth or legend from the ancient Middle East
148-656: A sky deity . The worship of sacred stones constituted one of the most important practices of the Semitic speaking peoples , including Arabs . Cult images of a deity were most often an unworked stone block. The most common name for these stone blocks was derived from the Semitic nsb ("to be stood upright"), but other names were used, such as Nabataean masgida ("place of prostration") and Arabic duwar ("object of circumambulation", this term often occurs in pre-Islamic Arabic poetry ). These god-stones were usually
222-608: A form of institutionalized Christianity in this region. The Quran is familiar with Christian religious institutions as well as authorities like the priests and overseers of the Christian community. Multiple Christian cities north of the Arabian peninsula acted as contact points between speakers of Arabic and other languages. For example, Al-Hira , the capital of the Arab Lakhmid tribe located in southern Mesopotamia, acted as
296-556: A free-standing slab, but Nabataean god-stones are usually carved directly on the rock face. Facial features may be incised on the stone (especially in Nabataea), or astral symbols (especially in South Arabia). Under Greco-Roman influence, an anthropomorphic statue might be used instead. The Book of Idols describes two types of statues: idols ( sanam ) and images ( wathan ). If a statue were made of wood, gold, or silver, after
370-529: A goddess of love. Manāt ( Arabic : مناة) was the goddess of destiny. Al-Lāt's cult was spread in Syria and northern Arabia. From Safaitic and Hismaic inscriptions, it is probable that she was worshiped as Lat ( lt ). F. V. Winnet saw al-Lat as a lunar deity due to the association of a crescent with her in 'Ayn esh-Shallāleh and a Lihyanite inscription mentioning the name of Wadd , the Minaean moon god, over
444-526: A human form, it would be an idol, but if the statue were made of stone, it would be an image. Christianity in pre-Islamic Arabia The spread of Christianity into Arabia (which then included the Arabian Peninsula and the southern Levant) has historically been understood through the lenses of Christian literary texts and Byzantine historiography which typically describe the conversion of Arabs (often called " Saracens ") to Christianity in
518-537: A large number of inscriptions were discovered near Najran during the 2010s and published in 2014 known as the Hima Paleo-Arabic inscriptions , many of which contain Christian iconography, including large and ornate crosses, establishing a notable Christian community in the region which had produced them. For example, Ḥimà-al-Musammāt PalAr 5 contains a cross and describes a figure named "῾Abd al-Masīḥ" ("the servant of Christ"). The Christian community of Najran
592-537: A lesser impact in the remainder of the peninsula, but did secure some conversions. With the exception of Nestorianism in the northeast and the Persian Gulf , the dominant form of Christianity was Miaphysitism . The peninsula had been a destination for Jewish migration since Roman times, which had resulted in a diaspora community supplemented by local converts. Judaism had largely grown in South Arabia and
666-646: A letter of consolation to the Christians of Najran in their time of persecution, titled the Letter to the Himyarites . John of Ephesus related a letter from another contemporary, Mar Simeon, directed to Abbot von Gabula about the events. In addition, an anonymous author produced the Book of the Himyarites , a sixth-century Syriac chronicle of the persecution and martyrdom of the Christians of Najran. This event to
740-740: A letter to Qataris wherein he described the presence of several faithful communities, including Talun, which is a now an island of Bahrain . In Oman , a diocese was established by the name of Bet-Mazunaye in the Synod of 424 under the Bishop John. It was mentioned again at the synods of 544, 576, and 767. A monastery has been discovered at Sir Bani Yas , an island in the United Arab Emirates . It contains decorative motifs that resemble ones known from Al-Hira in Iraq. Even more impressive
814-444: A pre-Islamic god called Ailiah and is similar to El , Il, Ilah , and Jehovah . They also considered some of his characteristics to be seemingly based on lunar deities like Almaqah, Kahl, Shaker, Wadd and Warakh. Alfred Guillaume states that the connection between Ilah that came to form Allah and ancient Babylonian Il or El of ancient Israel is not clear. Wellhausen states that Allah was known from Jewish and Christian sources and
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#1732772148342888-539: A role in the appointment of two bishops named Jacob Baradeus and Theodore, the latter being described as the bishop of ‟Hirta de Tayyaye” (the camp of the Saracens). Furthermore, it was said that al-Harith exercised authority in the "southern and [eastern] countries and in the whole of the desert and in Arabia and Palestine" (the reference to Arabia likely being a reference to Arabia Petraea ). The Ghassanids became some of
962-636: A significant counterattack by the Ethiopian kingdom, leading to the conquest of Himyar in 525 and the end of the Jewish leadership of southern Arabia and the beginning of Christian rule. Sumyafa Ashwa came into power, but he was soon overthrown by his rival Abraha , initiating a period of Ethiopian Christian rule over southern Arabia in 530. Christianity survived in Najran into the Islamic period. Muhammad
1036-480: A significant interest in expanding missionary activity in the Himyarite Kingdom. Several legends have been produced to explain how Christianity was introduced into Najran. According to Ibn Ishaq , it was introduced by the miracle working of a Christian monk named Euphemius. Al-Tabari also claims Euphemius was responsible, although he presents a different story as to how Euphemius went about introducing
1110-413: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Religion in pre-Islamic Arabia Religion in pre-Islamic Arabia included indigenous Arabian polytheism , Buddhism , ancient Semitic religions , Christianity , Judaism , Mandaeism , and Zoroastrianism . Arabian polytheism, the dominant form of religion in pre-Islamic Arabia , was based on veneration of deities and spirits. Worship
1184-727: Is a monastery discovered in al-Quṣur in Failaka Island in Kuwait . A monastery has also been discovered at the Kharg Island in Iran , located 40 km offshore from Bahrain. The dating of these archaeological sites is contentious. The new dating suggests their construction in the Islamic era, although this view does not presently have unanimous support. Western Arabia does not feature in episcopal lists or in ecclesiastical hagiography and until recently it has been argued that there
1258-535: Is based on and the unlikelihood that any 6th or 7th-century sect of Christianity, especially one that used biblical literature, would have rejected Jesus' sonship. The use of the phrase "Rahmanan and his son Christ the conqueror" in inscriptions from this time owes to the use of the Syriac loanword Masīḥ. More broadly, the separation of Abraha's Himyar from the Akumsite kingdom corresponded to its greater alignment with
1332-590: Is limited. One early attestation of Arabian polytheism was in Esarhaddon 's Annals, mentioning Atarsamain , Nukhay , Ruldaiu , and Atarquruma. Herodotus , writing in his Histories , reported that the Arabs worshipped Orotalt (identified with Dionysus ) and Alilat (identified with Aphrodite ). Strabo stated the Arabs worshipped Dionysus and Zeus . Origen stated they worshipped Dionysus and Urania . Muslim sources regarding Arabian polytheism include
1406-426: Is little concrete evidence for the presence of Christians in this region, including near Mecca and Medina. Although no Christian inscriptions are yet known from the region immediately around Mecca or Medina, this is likely due to the fact that no systematic epigraphic surveys or archaeological excavations of pre-Islamic sites have been done in these areas. In 2017, a Christian inscription from northwestern Arabia in
1480-762: Is near Madaba . Both Syriac Christianity and the Ghassanids are linked to the three Paleo-Arabic inscriptions known from Syria, including the Jebel Usays inscription , the Harran inscription , and the Zabad inscription ; in particular, the Zabad inscription is located at a martyrium at the Church of St. Sergius . Several other inscriptions have been found at martyria whose sponsors have Arab names, including two dating to
1554-682: Is rendered in the Septuagint . This uncontracted form continued to be used by Christians until the tenth century even as the form ʾllh appeared in the Quran with two consecutive lāms without a hamza. One Islamic-era example of this is in the Yazid inscription . It is also likely that another pre-Islamic inscription from Dumat al-Jandal, DaJ000NabAr1, was composed by a Christian. In 2018, eleven inscriptions written in Greek were published deriving from
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#17327721483421628-563: Is said to have sent a delegation to the Najrani Christian community, and there is a fable claiming that the Christians of Najran were expelled by the caliph Umar . According to the traveler Ibn al-Mujawir (d. 1292), Christianity survived in Najran until the 13th century. During the Ethiopian Christian period, Christianity appears to have become the official religion. Many churches began to be built. For example,
1702-430: Is unlikely and the document is considered a forgery by modern specialists. The first concrete evidence of a highly organized Christian presence in the region of modern-day Qatar is in the description of the synods held at Seleucia-Ctesiphon between 410 and 776, as documented in the eighth-century Synodicon Orientale . The signatory Qatari bishop of this synod was stated to have replaced an earlier bishop, pushing back
1776-556: The jinn of west and central Arabia. Unlike jinn in modern times, ginnaye could not hurt nor possess humans and were much more similar to the Roman genius . According to common Arabian belief, soothsayers , pre-Islamic philosophers, and poets were inspired by the jinn. However, jinn were also feared and thought to be responsible for causing various diseases and mental illnesses. Aside from benevolent gods and spirits, there existed malevolent beings. These beings were not attested in
1850-583: The Al-Jawf Province was published, known as the Dumat al-Jandal inscription (DaJ144PAr1). The inscription contains a cross and also makes use of the divine epithet ʾl-ʾlh ( al-ilāh ), an uncontracted form of allāh which originated among Arabian Christians. Christians may have used this uncontracted form as an isomorphism or calque for the Greek expression ho theos , which is how the Hebrew ʾĕlōhîm
1924-522: The Christian community of Najran , which is in part documented by an inscription made by S²rḥʾl Yqbl (Yusuf's army commander), Ja 1028 , which describes the burning of a church and slaughtering of Abyssinians (Ethiopian Christians), claiming thousands of deaths and prisoners. These events are also discussed in several contemporary Christian sources: in the writings of Procopius , Cosmas Indicopleustes , John Malalas , and Jacob of Serugh . Jacob sent
1998-598: The Kaaba with them, erected them, and circumambulated them like the Kaaba. This, according to al-Kalbi led to the rise of idol worship. Based on this, it may be probable that Arabs originally venerated stones, later adopting idol-worship under foreign influences. The relationship between a god and a stone as his representation can be seen from the third-century Syriac work called the Homily of Pseudo-Meliton where he describes
2072-542: The Sinai Peninsula . Allāt ( Arabic : اللات) or al-Lāt was worshipped throughout the ancient Near East with various associations. Herodotus in the 5th century BC identifies Alilat ( Greek : Ἀλιλάτ) as the Arabic name for Aphrodite (and, in another passage, for Urania ), which is strong evidence for worship of Allāt in Arabia at that early date. Al-‘Uzzá ( Arabic : العزى) was a fertility goddess or possibly
2146-399: The "Lord of heaven and Earth". Aaron W. Hughes states that scholars are unsure whether he developed from the earlier polytheistic systems or developed due to the increasing significance of the Christian and Jewish communities, and that it is difficult to establish whether Allah was linked to Rahman. Maxime Rodinson , however, considers one of Allah's names, "Ar-Rahman", to have been used in
2220-498: The Archimandrites dating to 569/570, composed in Greek but preserved in Syriac, demonstrates the presence and distribution of episcopal sees from its 137 Archimandrite signatories from the province of Roman Arabia . Identifiably Christian Paleo-Arabic inscriptions from this region include the Jebel Usays inscription , Harran inscription , Zabad inscription , and the sixth-century Umm al-Jimal inscription . The latter
2294-550: The Christian Arab Ghassanid tribe . These narratives overwhelmingly derive from Syrian and Iraqi texts. Pre-Islamic Arabian Christians are also described in the Quran and, in recent years, archaeology has begun to play a significant role in the understanding of pre-Islamic Arabian Christianity. Recent years have witnessed discoveries of Christian Paleo-Arabic inscriptions like the Yazid inscription from
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2368-674: The Christianity espoused in Antioch and Syria. Inscriptions from this region disappear after 560. Abraha's influence would end up extending across the regions he conquered, including regions of eastern Arabia, central Arabia, Medina in the Hejaz , and an unidentified site called Gzm. Christianity had become present along the Eastern coast of the Arabian peninsula by the late fourth century, and shows evidence of substantial organization by
2442-655: The Great , sent an Arian bishop known as Theophilus the Indian (also known as "Theophilus of Yemen") to Tharan Yuhanim , then the king of the South Arabian Himyarite Kingdom to convert the people to Christianity. According to the report, Theophilus succeeded in establishing three churches, one of them in the capital Zafar . From the fifth and sixth centuries, the Miaphysite church displayed
2516-595: The Meccans and the other settled inhabitants of the Hejaz worshiped their gods at permanent shrines in towns and oases, the Bedouin practiced their religion on the move. In South Arabia, mndh’t were anonymous guardian spirits of the community and the ancestor spirits of the family. They were known as 'the sun ( shms ) of their ancestors'. In North Arabia, ginnaye were known from Palmyrene inscriptions as "the good and rewarding gods" and were probably related to
2590-662: The Messiah and the Holy Spirit. For example, one (damaged) inscription, as for example in Ist 7608 bis. Another extensive inscription, CIH 541, documents Abraha sponsoring the construction of a church at Marib , besides invoking/mentioning the Messiah, Spirit, and celebrations hosted by a priest at another church. Abraha celebrated the construction of the dam by holding mass in the city church and inviting ambassadors from Rome and Persia. Later Islamic historiography also ascribes to Abraha
2664-512: The Persian army, to cure the ailment of his son. Upon being cured, he converted to Christianity and defected to the Romans along with his clan. Another figure, Ahudemmeh, was said to "visit all the camps of the Arabs, instructing and teaching them in many sermons .... establishing in every tribe a priest and a deacon ... and founding churches and naming them after tribal chiefs." The Letter of
2738-465: The Son of Rahmanan and as "Victor" (corresponding to Aksumite description under Kaleb of Axum ), and made use of Trinitarian formulae, Abraha began to only describe Jesus as God's "Messiah" (but not Son) and, in aligning himself more closely with Syriac Christianity , replaced Aksumite Christian with Syriac loanwords. However, some have rejected this thesis, on the basis of the small number of inscriptions it
2812-522: The construction of a church at Sanaa . Christian Robin has argued that Abraha's inscriptions bear a relatively low Christology, perhaps meant to assuage the Jewish population, and their formulae resemble descriptions of Jesus in the Quran . (The Jabal Dabub inscription is another South Arabian Christian graffito dating to the sixth century and containing a pre-Islamic variant of the Basmala . ) Whereas Abraha's predecessor more explicitly denoted Jesus as
2886-422: The context of interactions with monks and other holy men, followed by renunciations of polytheism and idols. Many of these events are described as having been followed up with the construction of a church. Such descriptions appear in narratives of the bishop Ahudemmeh , the abbot Euthymius the Great , the ascetic Simeon Stylites , and the shrine of St. Sergius at Resafa patronized by Al-Mundhir III , leader of
2960-437: The date of organized Christianity in this region to the late fourth century. The Synodicon shows that four dioceses existed in the region connected to Persia. The earliest and largest of these dioceses was Mashmahig mentioned at the 410 synod, led by the bishop Elijah (Elias). The last known "bishop and metropolitan of the land of Qaṭar" was named Thomas, who signed his name on the synod in 676. The second largest diocese, Darain
3034-539: The daughters of Allah. Regional variants of the word Allah occur in both pagan and Christian pre-Islamic inscriptions. References to Allah are found in the poetry of the pre-Islamic Arab poet Zuhayr bin Abi Sulma , who lived a generation before Muhammad, as well as pre-Islamic personal names. Muhammad's father's name was ʿAbd-Allāh , meaning "the servant of Allah". Charles Russell Coulter and Patricia Turner considered that Allah's name may be derived from
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3108-424: The divine world reflected the society of the time. Trade caravans also brought foreign religious and cultural influences. A large number of deities did not have proper names and were referred to by titles indicating a quality, a family relationship, or a locale preceded by "he who" or "she who" ( dhū or dhāt respectively). The religious beliefs and practices of the nomadic Bedouin were distinct from those of
3182-547: The eighth-century Book of Idols by Hisham ibn al-Kalbi , which F.E. Peters argued to be the most substantial treatment of the religious practices of pre-Islamic Arabia, as well as the writings of the Yemeni historian al-Hasan al-Hamdani on South Arabian religious beliefs. According to the Book of Idols , descendants of the son of Abraham ( Ishmael ) who had settled in Mecca migrated to other lands carried holy stones from
3256-520: The epigraphic record, but were alluded to in pre-Islamic Arabic poetry, and their legends were collected by later Muslim authors. Commonly mentioned are ghouls . Etymologically, the English word "ghoul" was derived from the Arabic ghul , from ghala , "to seize", related to the Sumerian galla . They are said to have a hideous appearance, with feet like those of an ass. Arabs were said to utter
3330-527: The fifth century from the site of Khanasir in northern Syria. The Lakhmid tribe converted under the reign of its final king of its Nasrid dynasty, Al-Nu'man III . In addition, there is evidence attesting to the conversions of the Taghlib and Tanūkhid tribes. According to the Greek historian Philostorgius (d. 439) in his Ecclesiastical History 3.4, Constantius II , the successor of Constantine
3404-537: The fifth century when it first appears in the records of synods being held by the international Christian communities in starting at 410. From then on, bishops and monasteries continue to be mentioned in the Gulf by chronicles, synodic acts, hagiographies and letters all in Syriac records, indicating the presence of many Christian communities in the area. Whereas textual records continue to mention Christian communities until
3478-402: The following couplet if they should encounter one: "Oh ass-footed one, just bray away, we won't leave the desert plain nor ever go astray." Christian Julien Robin notes that all the known South Arabian divinities had a positive or protective role and that evil powers were only alluded to but were never personified. Some scholars postulate that in pre-Islamic Arabia, including in Mecca, Allah
3552-489: The form of Rahmanan earlier. Al-Lāt , Al-‘Uzzá and Manāt were common names used for multiple goddesses across Arabia. G. R. Hawting states that modern scholars have frequently associated the names of Arabian goddesses Al-lāt , Al-‘Uzzá and Manāt with cults devoted to celestial bodies, particularly Venus , drawing upon evidence external to the Muslim tradition as well as in relation to Syria , Mesopotamia and
3626-432: The fourth century, almost all inhabitants of Arabia practiced polytheistic religions at which point pre-Islamic Arabian monotheism had begun to spread. From the fourth to sixth centuries, Jewish , Christian , and other monotheistic populations developed. Until recent decades, it was believed that polytheism remained the dominant belief system in pre-Islamic Arabia, but recent trends suggest that henotheism or monotheism
3700-517: The grammatical form ʿĪsâ for the name Jesus for the first time, resembling its form in the Quran translations . A French-Saudi archaeological mission discovered a monastery in northwestern Arabia, at the site of Kilwa in the Tabuk region of Saudi Arabia. It is dedicated to the veneration of Saint Thecla , a disciple of Paul the Apostle . The establishment of this monastery likely belongs to
3774-528: The inscription RIÉ 191, discovered in Axum , describes the construction of a church off the coast of Yemen. The Marib Dam inscription from 548 mentions a priest, a monastery , and an abbot of that monastery. As in the Himyarite period, Christian inscriptions continue to refer to the monotheistic deity using the name Rahmanan , but now these inscriptions are accompanied with crosses and references to Christ as
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#17327721483423848-583: The leader of the Salihids (the dominant Arab foederati of the Byzantine Empire in the fifth century) is reported by the historian Sozomen to have converted to Christianity. The Ghassanids who had set up a kingdom in the Levant and northern Arabia, converted to Christianity during the reign of their leader Al-Harith ibn Jabalah (r. 528–569). John of Ephesus describes al-Harith as playing
3922-543: The leading patrons of the Miaphysites and became sponsors of the martyr cult of St Sergius , which appealed strongly to Arabs. In turn, the Miaphysite leaders took significant interest in sending missions into the Arabian peninsula. Epigraphic evidence also suggests they sponsored a shrine of St Sergius and basilica in al-Ruṣāfa, likely during the leadership of Al-Mundhir , as well as a three-church complex in Nitl , which
3996-572: The northeastern Jordan and the Hima Paleo-Arabic inscriptions found 90 km north of Najran . In the Life of St Hilarion 16.1–12, composed by the theologian Jerome in the late fourth century, there is a description of St. Hilarion interacting with and helping convert Arabs to Christianity in Elusa , located southwest of the Dead Sea . There he met Arabs devoted to the cult of the goddess Venus . He
4070-613: The northwest Hijaz . Additionally, the influence of the Sasanian Empire resulted in Iranian religions being present in the peninsula. Zoroastrianism existed in the east and south, while there is evidence of either Manichaeism or Mazdakism being possibly practiced in Mecca. Features Types Types Features Clothing Genres Art music Folk Prose Islamic Poetry Genres Forms Arabic prosody National literatures of Arab States Concepts Texts Fictional Arab people South Arabian deities Until about
4144-405: The only Christian site discovered in eastern Arabia that is not either on an island or directly on the coast. Although some have dated it to the fourth century, more recently, it has been redated to the mid-7th century. Several additional archaeological findings have been made elsewhere in the Gulf countries. In the mid-seventh century, the Patriarch of the Church of the East, Isho'yahb , sent
4218-589: The pagan faiths of Syriac-speakers in northern Mesopotamia, who were mostly Arabs. However, mythologies and narratives elucidating the history of these gods, as well as the meaning of their epithets, remains uninformative. The pre-Islamic Arabian religions were polytheistic, with many of the deities' names known. Formal pantheons are more noticeable at the level of kingdoms, of variable sizes, ranging from simple city-states to collections of tribes. Tribes , towns, clans, lineages and families had their own cults too. Christian Julien Robin suggests that this structure of
4292-412: The period of the eve of Islam, and its presence in the arid desert environment is an indication of the conversion of nomadic Arab tribes that had already taken place by that time. Several tribes would convert to Christianity between the fourth and sixth centuries. Conversion was often a requirement for the kings or leaders of these tribes to become clients to the Roman Empire. Around 400, Zokomos ,
4366-416: The physical descriptions of the pre-Islamic gods are traced to idols , especially near the Kaaba, which is said to have contained up to 360 of them, including the Buddha statue. Other religions were represented to varying, lesser degrees. The influence of the adjacent Roman and Aksumite civilizations resulted in Christian communities in the northwest, northeast, and south of Arabia . Christianity made
4440-434: The regions of ʿArniyyāt and Umm Jadhāyidh, northwest of Hegra (Mada'in Salih) in Saudi Arabia . They date from the second and fourth centuries, and some are evidently Christian. For example, UJadhGr 10 contains an inscribed cross. ArGr1 reads "Remember Petros!", which refers to a typical Christian name. The Quran appears to be familiar with a range of Christian beliefs in its environment in Western Arabia and presupposes
4514-418: The religion. According to Nestorian sources , Christianity was introduced by a merchant named Hannan or Hanyan who began by converting his family, and then the rest of the peoples. A significant Christian community was established in the city of Najran between the fourth and sixth centuries. A Greek inscription, likely Christian, has been found north of Najran which reads "Lord, protect me." More recently,
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#17327721483424588-436: The settled tribes of towns such as Mecca . Nomadic religious belief systems and practices are believed to have included fetishism , totemism and veneration of the dead but were connected principally with immediate concerns and problems and did not consider larger philosophical questions such as the afterlife. Settled urban Arabs, on the other hand, are thought to have believed in a more complex pantheon of deities. While
4662-418: The seventh century, evidence for Christian populations unearthed archaeologically additionally attests to their presence from the seventh to ninth centuries, including churches and monasteries. The Chronicle of Arbela , which appears to date to the sixth century, claims that a bishopric already existed in Beth Qatraye (Syriac-originating term for "territory of the Qataris") around the year 225. However, this
4736-400: The sixth to ninth centuries. Unfortunately, the lack of inscriptions to accompany these discoveries have presented difficulties in dating their remains. Discovered in 1986, the Jubail Church is a church found near Jubail in northeastern Arabia and on the Gulf coast of Saudi Arabia . Discoveries of Christian sites have also been made at Jubayl, Thaj, and finally Kilwa, the latter being
4810-424: The title of fkl lt . René Dussaud and Gonzague Ryckmans linked her with Venus while others have thought her to be a solar deity. John F. Healey considers that al-Uzza actually might have been an epithet of al-Lāt before becoming a separate deity in the Meccan pantheon. Paola Corrente, writing in Redefining Dionysus , considers she might have been a god of vegetation or a celestial deity of atmospheric phenomena and
4884-403: Was also linked with Syriac Christianity and some of the clerics located at Najran were trained in Syriac monasteries. Around 500, the Kingdom of Aksum invaded the Arabian peninsula, overthrowing the Himyarite king and installing in his place the hardline Jewish king Dhu Nuwas . Dhu Nuwas went on to try combatting the Christianizing influence from the Kingdom of Aksum militarily and massacred
4958-420: Was considered to be a deity, possibly a creator deity or a supreme deity in a polytheistic pantheon . The word Allah (from the Arabic al-ilah meaning "the god") may have been used as a title rather than a name. The concept of Allah may have been vague in the Meccan religion. According to Islamic sources, Meccans and their neighbors believed that the goddesses Al-lāt , Al-‘Uzzá , and Manāt were
5032-405: Was directed to various gods and goddesses, including Hubal and the goddesses al-Lāt , al-‘Uzzā , and Manāt , at local shrines and temples such as the Kaaba in Mecca . Deities were venerated and invoked through a variety of rituals, including pilgrimages and divination, as well as ritual sacrifice. Different theories have been proposed regarding the role of Allah in Meccan religion. Many of
5106-403: Was discovered located on the pillars base of a basalt slab in the northern part of the "Double Church" (so-named by the excavators) at the site of Umm al-Jimal . In 2021, the first discovery was made of a Christian inscription in the Safaitic script likely dating to the fourth century. This inscription invokes the help of Jesus to aid the maternal uncle of the inscriptions author. It also uses
5180-446: Was dominant from the fourth century onwards. The contemporary sources of information regarding the pre-Islamic Arabian religion and pantheon include a growing number of inscriptions in carvings written in Arabian scripts like Safaitic , Sabaic , and Paleo-Arabic , pre-Islamic poetry, external sources such as Jewish and Greek accounts, as well as the Muslim tradition, such as the Qur'an and Islamic writings. Nevertheless, information
5254-405: Was known to pagan Arabs as the supreme god. Winfried Corduan doubts the theory of Allah of Islam being linked to a moon god , stating that the term Allah functions as a generic term, like the term El- Elyon used as a title for the god Sin . South Arabian inscriptions from the fourth century AD refer to a god called Rahman ("The Merciful One") who had a monotheistic cult and was referred to as
5328-617: Was located on the island of Toduro (modern Tarout Island ) and was founded during the 410 synod. It was led by the bishop Paul. The third diocese, Hajar, was founded during the Synod of 576 under Bishop Isaac. The 676 synod divided it into two, the Hajar and Hatta dioceses. During this event, Hatta became the fourth and last diocese to be founded in Qatar. Later, Isaac the Syrian (613–700), also known as Isaac of Qatar, would grow up in Qatar before he
5402-545: Was ordained and became a monk in Iraq. Other prominent Qatari Christians born in the pre-Islamic period include Gabriel of Qatar , Abraham bar Lipeh , and Ahob of Qatar . Other literary accounts mention additional monasteries. For example, according to the Life of Jonah , a monastery was constructed on the Black Island between 343–346. Several Christian sites have been discovered in Qatar and other Gulf countries in recent decades, and they have been dated between
5476-420: Was said to have freed many of their members from the possession of demons, after which they began to flock to him, asking to be blessed. They ceased their idol worship, and he helped lay out the plans for the construction of a church prior to leaving. According to the Life of Euthymius written by Cyril of Scythopolis , the abbot of Israel Euthymius the Great was approached by Aspebetos, an Arab belonging to
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