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Mecca has been referred to by many names. As with many Arabic words, its etymology is obscure. [24] Widely believed to be a synonym for Makkah, it is said to be more specifically the early name for the valley located therein, while Muslim scholars generally use it to refer to the sacred area of the city that immediately surrounds and includes the Ka'bah.
In Samaritan literature, the Samaritan Book of the Secrets of Moses states that Ismail and his eldest son Nebaioth built the Kaaba as well as the city of Mecca." [ 36 ] The Asatir book was likely compiled in the 10th century CE, [ 37 ] though Moses Gaster suggested in 1927 that it was written no later than the second half of the 3rd century BCE.
Islamic tradition identifies Bakkah as the ancient name for the site of Mecca. [1] [6] [7] [8] An Arabic word, its etymology, like that of Mecca, is obscure.[3]One meaning ascribed to it is "narrow", seen as descriptive of the area in which the valley of the holy places and the city of Mecca are located, pressed in upon as they are by mountains. [6]
Hejaz is the region in the Arabian Peninsula where Mecca and Medina are located. It is where the Islamic prophet Muhammad was born and raised. [10]The two holy cities of Islam, Mecca and Medina, are traditionally known as the Ḥaramayn, which is the dual form of ḥaram, thus meaning "The Two Sanctuaries". [11]
The city of Hebron, in Palestine, is traditionally considered – along with Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem – one of the "four holy cities" in Islam, [25] due to the presence in the city of the Cave of the Patriarchs, the holy site where Abraham is said to be buried.
Masjid Al-Aqsa ("the Farthest Mosque"), also known as the "Al Aqsa compound", is a holy site in Shia and Sunni Islam and is located in the Old City of Jerusalem, and is widely regarded by Jews as the Temple Mount, the site of the Holy Temple. It includes the Qibli mosque and the Dome of the Rock. It is the third holiest site in Islam.
Its capital is Mecca, the holiest city in Islam, and its largest city is Jeddah, which is Saudi Arabia's main port city. The province accounts for 26.29% of the population of Saudi Arabia [3] and is named after the Islamic holy city of Mecca. Historically, the area was inhabited by the Quraysh, the Banu Kinanah and the Thaqif, among other tribes.
Part of the significance of the land stems from the religious significance of Jerusalem (the holiest city to Judaism, and the location of the First and Second Temples), as well as its historical significance as the setting for most of the Bible, the historical locale of Jesus' ministry, the location of the first Qibla before Kaaba in Mecca and ...