Arabia Awaiting a Messenger
Arabia, also known as the Peninsula of the Arabs (Jazîratu al-‘Arab) or the Land of the Arabs (bilâd al-‘Arab), lies to the southwest of Asia, bordered by Egypt to the west and separated only by the Red Sea. To the east of the peninsula lies Persia (present-day Iran), and the northern side of Arabia is occupied by the Shâm to the west and Iraq to the east, separated by the Arabian Gulf. The south, meanwhile, covers Yemen, known as the fertile province of Arabia. Finally, Arabia’s southern coast is bordered by the Indian Ocean.
Arabia is an essentially desert peninsula, and as its name suggests, it’s inhabited by Arabs. The Arabs are divided into several tribes, each of which – in the case of those that settled down – took up residence in a particular geographical area.
Among the most famous of these are :
