Ptolemy may have called the city "Macoraba", though this identification is controversial.
[13] Archaeology found no inscriptions or mentionings of Mecca from before that time, although other cities and kingdoms in that region are well documented in historical records.
Around the 5th century CE, the Kaaba was a place of worship for the deities of
Arabia's pagan tribes. Mecca's most important
pagan deity was
Hubal, which had been placed there by the ruling
Quraysh tribe
[14][15] and remained until the 7th century CE.
In the 5th century, the Quraysh took control of Mecca, and became skilled merchants and traders. In the 6th century they joined the lucrative
spice trade as well, since battles in other parts of the world were causing
trade routes to divert from the dangerous sea routes to the more secure overland routes. The
Byzantine Empire had previously controlled the
Red Sea, but
piracy had been on the increase. Another previous route, that from the
Persian Gulf via the
Tigris and
Euphrates rivers, was also being threatened by exploitation from the
Sassanid Empire, as well as being disrupted by the
Lakhmids, the
Ghassanids, and the
Roman–Persian Wars. Mecca's prominence as a trading center surpassed the cities of
Petra and
Palmyra.
[16][17]
1787 Turkish artwork of the Masjid al-Haram and related religious sites (Jabal al-Nour)
By the middle of the 6th century, there were three major settlements in northern
Arabia, all along the south-western coast that borders the Red Sea, in a habitable region between the sea and the great desert to the east. This area, known as the Hejaz, featured three settlements grown around
oases, where water was available. In the center of the Hijaz was Yathrib, later renamed
Medina, from "Madinatun Nabi," or "City of the Prophet." 250 mi (400 km) south of Yathrib was the mountain city
Ta’if, north-west of which lay Mecca. Although the area around Mecca was completely barren, it was the wealthiest of the three settlements with abundant water via the renowned
Zamzam Well and a position at the crossroads of major
caravan routes.
[18]
The harsh conditions and terrain of the Arabian peninsula meant a near-constant state of
conflict between the
local tribes, but once a year they would declare a truce and converge upon Mecca in an annual pilgrimage. Up to the 7th century, this journey was intended for religious reasons by the pagan Arabs to pay homage to their shrine, and to drink from the Zamzam Well. However, it was also the time each year that disputes would be arbitrated, debts would be resolved, and trading would occur at Meccan fairs. These annual events gave the tribes a sense of common identity and made Mecca an important focus for the peninsula.
[19]
Camel caravans, said to have first been used by Muhammad's great-grandfather, were a major part of Mecca's bustling economy. Alliances were struck between the merchants in Mecca and the local nomadic tribes, who would bring goods – leather, livestock, and metals mined in the local mountains – to Mecca to be loaded on the caravans and carried to cities in
Syria and
Iraq.
[20] Historical accounts also provide some indication that goods from other continents may also have flowed through Mecca. Goods from
Africa and the
Far East passed through on route to Syria including spices, leather, medicine, cloth, and slaves; in return Mecca received money, weapons, cereals and wine, which in turn were distributed throughout Arabia. The Meccans signed treaties with both the Byzantines and the
Bedouins, and negotiated safe passages for caravans, giving them water and pasture rights. Mecca became the center of a loose confederation of client tribes, which included those of the
Banu Tamim. Other regional powers such as the
Abyssinian, Ghassan, and Lakhm were in decline leaving Meccan trade to be the primary binding force in Arabia in the late 6th century.
[19]
