Editing Mecca (section)

====Under the Quraish====
Sometime in the 5th century, the Ka'bah was a place of worship for the deities of [[Arabian mythology|Arabia's pagan tribes]]. Mecca's most important [[Paganism|pagan]] [[deity]] was [[Hubal]], which had been placed there by the ruling [[Quraysh (tribe)|Quraish]] tribe.<ref>{{Cite journal|author=Hawting, G.R.|year=1980|title=The Disappearance and Rediscovery of Zamzam and the 'Well of the Ka'ba'|journal=Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London|volume=43|issue=1|pages=44–54 (44)|doi=10.1017/S0041977X00110523|jstor=616125|s2cid=162654756}}</ref><ref>[[#iw|''Islamic World'']], p. 20</ref> and remained until the [[Conquest of Mecca]] by [[Muhammad]].{{citation needed|date=September 2020}} In the 5th century, the Quraish took control of Mecca, and became skilled merchants and traders. In the 6th century, they joined the lucrative [[spice trade]], since battles elsewhere were diverting [[trade route]]s from dangerous sea routes to more secure overland routes. The [[Byzantine Empire]] had previously controlled the [[Red Sea]], but [[piracy]] had been increasing.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}} Another previous route that ran through the [[Persian Gulf]] via the [[Tigris]] and [[Euphrates]] rivers was also being threatened by exploitations from the [[Sassanid Empire]], and was being disrupted by the [[Lakhmids]], the [[Ghassanids]], and the [[Roman–Persian Wars]]. Mecca's prominence as a trading center also surpassed the cities of [[Petra]] and [[Palmyra]].<ref name="EIE">"Makka – The pre-Islamic and early Islamic periods", ''Encyclopaedia of Islam''</ref><ref name="lapidus-14">[[#Lapidus|Lapidus]], p. 14</ref> The Sassanids however did not always pose a threat to Mecca, as in 575 they protected it from a Yemeni invasion, led by its Christian leader [[Abraha]]. The tribes of southern Arabia asked the Persian king [[Khosrau I]] for aid, in response to which he came south to Arabia with foot-soldiers and a fleet of ships near Mecca.<ref>{{cite book|author=Bauer, S. Wise|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1u2oP2RihIgC&pg=PA243|title=The history of the medieval world: from the conversion of Constantine to the First Crusade|publisher=W.W. Norton & Company|year=2010|isbn=978-0-393-05975-5|page=243}}</ref>

By the middle of the 6th century, there were three major settlements in northern [[Arabian Peninsula|Arabia]], all along the south-western coast that borders the Red Sea, in a habitable region between the sea and the Hejaz mountains to the east. Although the area around Mecca was completely barren, it was the wealthiest of the three settlements with abundant water from the renowned [[Zamzam Well]] and a position at the crossroads of major [[Camel train|caravan]] routes.<ref name="world-13" />

The harsh conditions and terrain of the Arabian peninsula meant a near-constant state of conflict between the [[Tribes of Arabia|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 [[Zamzam Well|Zamzam]]. 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.<ref name="lapidus-16">[[#Lapidus|Lapidus]], pp. 16–17</ref>