Middle East A-Z #4

Thanks! I just spat out part 5.

I maybe could have come up with a better clue for "w." They are not a minority throughout the entire world, and not oppressed throughout the entire world, but they are a minority in the Middle East, and in the Middle East they might be the most oppressed group on Earth.

but the clue was already wordy as is.

Muhammad was born in Mecca, which at the time of his birth was already a center of religious pilgrimage and worship. The Kabaa was already there and was apparently full of pagan idols. There were Jews and Christians and other sects in the city. Muhammad was raised by his uncle who belonged to a (non orthodox) sect of Christianity. He was influenced by Jewish, Christian, and pagan traditions growing up.

As an adult, he married a wealthy older woman named Khadija. He started hearing voices while meditating in caves near Mecca. Khadija convinced him that this was the voice of the angel Gabriel and that he was a prophet. He started reciting these verses that came to him in his head and committing them to memory. These verses would come to form the basis of the Qu'ran.

While in Mecca, Muhammad was not very well received. He had a small group of followers who believed that he was a prophet, but most viewed him as a heretic or a crazy person and he was ridiculed and attacked.

His influential uncle and rich wife were able to protect him for a while, but after some time there were so many people in Mecca that wanted him dead he had to leave. He and most of his followers fled to the smaller oasis town of Yathrib. (some went to Ethiopia- establishing one of the oldest Muslim communities in the world there) In Yathrib, a smaller less sophisticated town with less well established religious traditions, Muhammad found a much more receptive audience. He gained many disciples and it was in Yathrib he became the leader, prophet, and warlord that he would remain until his death. People started to call Yathrib "Al Madinat al Nabi" which means "the city of the prophet"- but commonly shortened simply to "Al Madinah" (the city).

So the short answer is that while Mecca is Muhammad's birthplace and the holiest city in Islam because of the presence of the Kabaa, Medina became Muhammad's base of power. It's where he became a religious leader and where he died.