Editing United Arab Emirates (section)

===Islam===
The spread of [[Islam]] to the northeastern tip of the [[Arabian Peninsula]] is thought to have followed directly from a letter sent by the [[Islamic prophet]] [[Muhammad]] to the rulers of [[Oman]] in 630 CE. This led to a group of rulers travelling to [[Medina]], converting to Islam, and subsequently driving a successful uprising against the unpopular [[Sasanian Empire|Sassanids]], who dominated the coast at the time.{{sfnp|Heard-Bey|1996|p=127}} Following the death of Muhammad, the new Islamic communities south of the [[Persian Gulf]] threatened to disintegrate, with insurrections against the [[Muslim leaders]]. Caliph [[Abu Bakr]] sent an army from the capital [[Medina]] which completed its reconquest of the territory ([[Ridda wars|the Ridda Wars]]) with the [[Battle of Dibba]] in which 10,000 lives are thought to have been lost.{{sfnp|Heard-Bey|1996|pp=127–128}} This assured the integrity of the [[Caliphate]] and the unification of the Arabian Peninsula under the newly emerging [[Rashidun Caliphate]].

In 637, Julfar (in the area of today's [[Ras Al Khaimah]]) was an important port that was used as a staging post for the Islamic invasion of the [[Sasanian Empire]].<ref name="AbedHellyer2001">{{cite book|author1=Ibrahim Abed|author2=Peter Hellyer|title=United Arab Emirates, a New Perspective|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QcMz3zV0qAMC&pg=PA83|year= 2001|isbn=978-1-900724-47-0|pages=83–84|publisher=Trident Press }}</ref> The area of the [[Al Ain]]/[[Buraimi Oasis]] was known as Tu'am and was an important trading post for camel routes between the coast and the Arabian interior.{{sfnp|Heard-Bey|1996|pp=22–23}}

The earliest [[Christianity|Christian]] site in the UAE was first discovered in the 1990s, an extensive monastic complex on what is now known as [[Sir Bani Yas]] Island and which dates back to the seventh century. Thought to be [[Nestorianism|Nestorian]] and built in 600 CE, the church appears to have been abandoned peacefully in 750 CE.<ref>{{Cite news|url = http://www.thenational.ae/news/uae-news/ancient-secrets-of-sir-bani-yas-island-unveiled|title = Ancient secrets of Sir Bani Yas unveiled|last = Thomas|first = Jen|date = 12 December 2012|work = The National|url-status=dead|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151222103357/http://www.thenational.ae/news/uae-news/ancient-secrets-of-sir-bani-yas-island-unveiled|archive-date = 22 December 2015|df = dmy-all}}</ref> It forms a rare physical link to a legacy of Christianity, which is thought to have spread across the peninsula from 50 to 350 CE following trade routes. Certainly, by the fifth century, Oman had a bishop named John – the last bishop of Oman being Etienne, in 676 CE.<ref>{{Cite book|title = The Trucial States|last = Hawley|first = Donald|publisher= Allen & Unwin|year = 1971|isbn = 978-0-04-953005-8|location = UK|pages = 48–51}}</ref>