Arabs - the indigenous population of Arabia - belong to the so-called Semitic group of peoples. In the 6th-7th centuries they were divided into Arab townspeople and Bedouins.
The name "Bedouin" means in Arabic a person living in the steppe, and comes from the word "badiye", which means "steppe, desert."
The Bedouins were nomads. They were engaged in cattle breeding. The camel was the main animal in their household. The whole life of a Bedouin is connected with a camel from birth to death. The camel gave him milk, dairy products, meat. Camel wool was used to make clothes and dwellings - tents and tents. Sandals, saddles, harnesses, wineskins for storing water were made from camel skins and skins. The shoulder blades of a camel often served as a material for records among Arab townspeople, and dried dung was used as fuel.
The camel, on the other hand, was the main means of transportation, especially convenient in the desert, since it can not drink for up to twenty-five days in winter and more than five days in summer. It is no coincidence that there are still about a thousand names of a camel in the Arabic language, which characterize the most subtle shades in the color of wool and differences in age and purpose. The Arabs considered the camel a gift from Allah and sang it in their songs.
In addition to camels, the Bedouins raised sheep, goats and, to a lesser extent, horses.
In addition to raising livestock, raids on neighboring tribes for the sake of robbery and the removal of livestock were considered worthy of a man. The life of a Bedouin, full of hardships and dangers, required constant struggle. Fight against thirst, cold, hunger, enemies. These conditions created strong, courageous and dexterous people who knew how to overcome difficulties and quickly find the right solution in case of danger. And it is not surprising that, living constantly as if in a state of siege, the Arabs considered courage to be the greatest virtue.
Hospitality was another Bedouin virtue. The same camel that the Bedouin sang, he was ready to generously slaughter to feed his hungry companions and his guest.

Bedouin (modern image).

As long as the guest was under the roof of the host, he was safe. However, when the guest, having said goodbye, drove off for a certain distance, the recent host could rob him or even kill him.
The basis of the Bedouin society was the tribal organization. Each tent represented a family of five to eight people. A group of tents made up a "hayy" or camp. All members of the haya
belonged to the same genus. Several clans made up a tribe. The head of the clan was "sheikh", which means "old man", usually the oldest member of the clan. The Sheikh was chosen and he ruled based on personal experience, knowledge, authority and generosity.
Under the sheikh, there was something like a council of representatives of individual families.
It is clear that in such a society the most important thing was kinship by blood, connection with the tribe. In the harsh natural conditions of the desert, a man without a family, without a tribe, was completely helpless and was in constant danger. The mutual connection and support of the members of the tribe was especially clearly manifested in the custom of blood feud. If a member of the clan killed his relative, then the rest of the members of the clan refused to support him. In the event of flight, he became an outcast, and anyone could kill him without fear of revenge. If the murder was committed outside the clan, then any member of the clan could pay for it with his life, and the whole clan protected each of its representatives. And vengeance was bound to follow. The death of the Bedouin did not frighten, but the fear that his blood would be shed in vain was frightening. The enmity caused by the custom of blood feud could last for decades.
Sometimes one tribe asked for protection from another. The tribes connected by such relations promised not to attack each other, to help each other. At the same time, a weak tribe had to bear more responsibilities and obey a stronger one. The same relationship could exist between individuals.
But one should not think that the life of the Bedouins proceeded in patriarchal simplicity, without internal complications and conflicts.
By the 6th-7th centuries, rich and poor stand out more and more sharply among them. The leaders of clans and tribes use power in their own interests. The pastures that belonged to the whole tribe gradually pass into the hands of the leaders. They exploit their poor compatriots. They have slaves and slaves who graze cattle, care for them and perform various household chores. Some families get richer, others get poorer.
Unable to explain to themselves the various phenomena of nature, the Bedouins endowed the objects around them with supernatural qualities. They deified trees, stones, wells, springs, caves and worshiped them. In addition, each tribe had its own deity.
One tribe had a deity made of dough, and when there was a famine year, the tribe ate it without a trace.
The deserts and gorges of the Bedouins were inhabited by spirits, the so-called jinn. These genies, according to the ideas of the Arabs, sometimes helped travelers, but they could destroy them if they were angry with something.
Many tribes of Arabia worshiped the moon, the sun, and the stars. But for all Arabs, the city of Mecca was a sacred place. Representatives of another group of the population of Arabia lived there - the city-Arabs.

Black stone.

The urban Arabs - the settled population of the "Island of the Arabs" - lived in a few oases where cities arose. The largest and most famous were Mecca, Yathrib, later called Medina, and Taif.
In Yathrib, and especially in Taif, the inhabitants were mainly engaged in agriculture and gardening. The main plant cultivated by the Arabs was the date palm. In the life of an Arab city dweller, a palm tree was as important as a camel for a Bedouin.
The fruits of the date palm were eaten fresh and dried in reserve. They also prepared an intoxicating drink - nabiz. Camels were fed with fruit bones, and various household items were made from trunks.
In addition to the date palm, grapes, apples, pomegranates, apricots, almonds, oranges, sugar cane, watermelons, and bananas grew in Arabia. Wheat and barley were grown in small quantities.
Mecca was significantly different from other cities of the peninsula. Located in a dry and unhealthy area, it arose from the very beginning as a holy city for all Arabs.
In Mecca there was a temple, the so-called Kaaba, which in Arabic means "cube". The name of the temple was due to its cubic shape. A sacred black stone was placed in the temple, which, according to legend, fell from the sky. The idols of almost all the tribes of Arabia were also kept there. Every Arab considered it his duty at least once in his life to visit the Kaaba and kiss the black stone. (Probably this stone is of meteoric origin.)
The area around the city was also considered sacred, and it was impossible to wage war on it. In the same place, in Mecca, there is also a sacred spring Zemzem. Pilgrims (people who come to venerate a shrine)

when visiting Mecca, they performed a number of rituals and made sacrifices to the gods.
Mecca was also of great importance as a trading point. For a long time, it has become a station on the “spice road”, through which goods went further north. The Meccans themselves annually sent a rich caravan of goods to Syria. Trade greatly enriched the inhabitants of Mecca. In 624, for example, a caravan was equipped, which consisted of a thousand camels and was estimated at 50,000 dinars, almost 400,000 rubles in our money. The Mecca area was considered sacred, and therefore safe. Therefore, Mecca also became the center of intra-Arabian trade.
Every year, during the holy months when war was forbidden, Arabs from all over the peninsula gathered in the city itself for the fair.
... Here is a Bedouin riding a camel. On his head is a white scarf, the corners of which hang down over his shoulders and back. The scarf is reinforced on top with an akal - a ring made of a rope made of willow

The caravan of Hadjievs (pilgrims) enters Mecca. (Snapshot of the 20th century.)
133

Mecca. General form. In the center is a rectangular building of the Meccan mosque. In the courtyard of the mosque, the Kaaba, hung with a black veil, in which the Black Stone is located. (Drawing of the 18th century.)

puffer wool. On the shoulders of the Bedouin is a long black cloak, under which a white (gray from dust) shirt is visible. Bare feet. In his hand is a long bamboo spear. Behind the rider slowly and sedately paces another camel with skins and skins laden on it, and in front of it a small herd of sheep dusts with bleating and noise. The tents are scattered all around. People crowd in groups. A ram is being slaughtered behind one of the tents. Several people are watching nearby: how can you miss this significant event! Merchants laid out their goods right on the ground. One has colorful Yemeni fabrics. The other has Indian swords. A third offers dried dates. The fourth arranged pottery and various trifles needed in the nomad's household.
At the other end of the fair, a large crowd is listening to the poet. There are exclamations, exclamations of surprise and admiration for the poems.
Everything makes noise, talks, shouts, sings. The fair splashes in a narrow valley, bordered by gray cliffs.
And the bright Arabian sun mercilessly burns the rocks devoid of vegetation, and the steppe with sparse shrubs adjoining the valley, and people...

This is what these annual fairs looked like, at which representatives of all parts of the "Island of the Arabs" met.
Mecca and its shrines were in the hands of the Koreish tribe. The inhabitants of Mecca and other cities, like the Bedouins, had a tribal organization. However, in their environment, property inequality manifested itself much more sharply than among the Bedouins. The Meccan merchants had many more slaves than the Bedouins.
Not limited to the exploitation of slaves, rich merchants enslaved their relatives. This was usually done through loans. Wanting to participate in the trade, the poor borrowed money from the rich before leaving the caravan to Syria. When the caravan returned and all transactions were completed, the debtor was obliged to pay an amount much larger than that borrowed.

Olga Bibikova

From the book "Arabs". Historical and ethnographic essays»

Trying to give a comprehensive portrait of the people is not an easy task. It becomes triple complicated when the subject of study is the Arabs, whose history developed in a territory that has long been inhabited by various peoples. We can judge the existence of some of them only according to archeological data. Here, in the Middle East, over a long period, states appeared and disappeared, and here the main religions of the world arose. Naturally, the dynamic history of the region had an impact on the historical appearance of the Arabs, their traditions and culture. Today in the Middle East and North Africa there are 19 states where Arabs live. Ethnic processes in these countries are particularly complex and have not yet been completed.

The first mention of the Arabs (or those who are identified with them) scientists found in the Assyrian and Babylonian chronicles. More specific instructions are found in the Bible. It is the biblical historical traditions report the appearance in the XIV century BC. in Transjordan, and then in Palestine, Aramaic pastoral tribes from the southern Arabian oases. Initially, these tribes were designated as ‘ibri, that is, “cross-river” or “passed over the river”. Scientists have found that we are talking about the Euphrates and, consequently, the tribes that came out of Arabia, first moved north into Mesopotamia, and then turned south. It is curious that it is the word “‘ibri” that is identified with the name of Abraham (or the name of his legendary ancestor Eber), the biblical patriarch, from whom Jews and Arabs descend. Naturally, the question of the reliability of this plot continues to cause controversy among historians of antiquity. Archaeologist L. Woolley, conducting excavations in the city of Ur, even made an attempt to find the house of Abraham. Let me remind you that the biblical traditions, written down after no less than 12-15 unwritten generations, became a means of later ideological struggle. The probability that Abraham (even according to biblical data, twenty generations away from the time of recording the traditions about him) is a historical person is close to zero.

Homeland of the Arabs

The Arabs call Arabia their homeland - Jazirat al-Arab, that is, the “Island of the Arabs”. Indeed, from the west, the Arabian Peninsula is washed by the waters of the Red Sea, from the south - by the Gulf of Aden, from the east - by the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf. The rugged Syrian Desert stretches to the north. Naturally, with such a geographical position, the ancient Arabs felt isolated, that is, "living on an island."

Speaking about the origin of the Arabs, they usually single out historical and ethnographic areas that have their own characteristics. The allocation of these areas is based on the specifics of socio-economic, cultural and ethnic development. The Arabian historical and ethnographic region is considered to be the cradle of the Arab world, the borders of which by no means coincide with the modern states of the Arabian Peninsula. This includes, for example, the eastern regions of Syria and Jordan. The second historical and ethnographic zone (or region) includes the rest of Syria, Jordan, as well as Lebanon and Palestine. Iraq is considered a separate historical and ethnographic zone. Egypt, Northern Sudan and Libya are united into one zone. And finally, the Maghrebino-Mauritanian zone, which includes the countries of the Maghreb - Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, as well as Mauritania and Western Sahara. This division is by no means universally recognized, since the border regions, as a rule, have features characteristic of both neighboring zones.

Economic activity

The agricultural culture of Arabia developed quite early, although only some parts of the peninsula were suitable for land use. These are, first of all, those territories on which the state of Yemen is now located, as well as some parts of the coast and oases. St. Petersburg orientalist O. Bolshakov believes that "in terms of the intensity of agriculture, Yemen can be put on a par with such ancient civilizations as Mesopotamia and Egypt." The physical and geographical conditions of Arabia predetermined the division of the population into two groups - settled farmers and nomadic pastoralists. There was no clear division of the inhabitants of Arabia into settled and nomads, because there were various types of mixed economy, relations between which were maintained not only through the exchange of goods, but also through family ties.

In the last quarter of the II millennium BC. the cattle breeders of the Syrian desert had a domesticated dromedary camel (dromedary). The number of camels was still small, but this already allowed part of the tribes to move on to a truly nomadic way of life. This circumstance forced pastoralists to lead a more mobile lifestyle and make many kilometers of transitions to remote areas, for example, from Syria to Mesopotamia, directly through the desert.

First state formations

On the territory of modern Yemen, several states arose, which in the 4th century AD. were united by one of them - the Himyarite kingdom. The South Arabian society of antiquity is characterized by the same features that are inherent in other societies. ancient east: the slave-owning system was born here, on which the wealth of the ruling class was based. The state carried out the construction and repair of large irrigation systems, without which it was impossible to develop agriculture. The population of the cities was mainly represented by artisans who skillfully made high-quality products, including agricultural implements, weapons, household utensils, leather goods, fabrics, and decorations from sea shells. Gold was mined in Yemen, and fragrant resins were also collected, including frankincense, myrrh. Later, the interest of Christians in this product constantly stimulated transit trade, due to which the interchange of goods between the Arabian Arabs and the population of the Christian regions of the Middle East expanded.

With the conquest of the Himyarite kingdom at the end of the 6th century by Sasanian Iran, horses appeared in Arabia. It was during this period that the state fell into decline, which affected primarily the urban population.

As for the nomads, such collisions affected them to a lesser extent. The life of the nomads was determined by the tribal structure, where there were dominant and subordinate tribes. Within the tribe, relations were regulated depending on the degree of kinship. The material existence of the tribe depended solely on the harvest in the oases, where there were cultivated plots of land and wells, as well as on the offspring of the herds. The main factor influencing the patriarchal life of nomads, in addition to attacks by unfriendly tribes, were natural disasters - drought, epidemics and earthquakes, which are mentioned in Arab legends.

The nomads of central and northern Arabia have long been raising sheep, cattle, and camels. Characteristically, the nomadic world of Arabia was surrounded by economically more developed regions, so there is no need to talk about the cultural isolation of Arabia. In particular, this is evidenced by the excavation data. For example, in the construction of dams and reservoirs, the inhabitants of southern Arabia used cement mortar, which was invented in Syria around 1200 BC. The presence of links that existed between the inhabitants of the Mediterranean coast and southern Arabia as early as the 10th century BC confirms the story of the trip of the ruler of Saba (“Queen of Sheba”) to King Solomon.

Advance of Semites from Arabia

Approximately in the III millennium BC. Arabian Semites began to settle in Mesopotamia and Syria. Already from the middle of the 1st millennium BC. began an intensive movement of Arabs outside the "Jazirat al-Arab". However, those Arabian tribes that appeared in Mesopotamia in the 3rd-2nd millennium BC were soon assimilated by the Akkadians living there. Later, in the XIII century BC, a new advancement of the Semitic tribes began, who spoke Aramaic dialects. Already in the 7th-6th centuries BC. Aramaic becomes spoken language Syria, displacing Akkadian.

As we have already noted, there are quite detailed archaeological data, as well as historical legends, about the advancement of pastoral tribes moving from the trans-Jordanian steppes. However, they were recorded 400-500 years later. It is generally accepted that the biblical stories about the patriarchs are a reflection of the Semitic nomadic tales, which are based on traditionally memorized genealogies. Naturally, legends about real events are interspersed with folklore legends, which reflects the ideological situation at the time of the recording of ancient legends. Thus, the legend of the sacrifice of Abraham has its own version in the Bible and, somewhat different from it, in the Koran. However, the common origin of both peoples - Israelis and Arabs - can be traced both in language, religious traditions as well as in custom.

Back to top new era significant masses of Arabs moved to Mesopotamia, settled in southern Palestine and the Sinai Peninsula. Some tribes even managed to create state formations. So, the Nabataeans founded their kingdom on the border of Arabia and Palestine, which lasted until the 2nd century AD. Along the lower reaches of the Euphrates, the Lakhmid state arose, but its rulers were forced to recognize vassal dependence on the Persian Sassanids. The Arabs who settled in Syria, Transjordan and southern Palestine united in the 6th century under the rule of representatives of the Ghassanid tribe. They also had to recognize themselves as vassals of the stronger Byzantium. It is characteristic that both the Lakhmid state (in 602) and the Ghassanid state (in 582) were destroyed by their own suzerains, who feared the strengthening and growing independence of their vassals. Nevertheless, the presence of Arab tribes in the Syrian-Palestinian region was a factor that subsequently contributed to softening the new, more massive invasion of the Arabs. Then they began to penetrate into Egypt. Thus, the city of Koptos in Upper Egypt, even before the Muslim conquest, was half inhabited by Arabs.

Naturally, the newcomers quickly joined the local customs. Caravan trade allowed them to maintain ties with kindred tribes and clans within the Arabian Peninsula, which gradually contributed to the convergence of urban and nomadic cultures.

Prerequisites for the unification of the Arabs

In the tribes living near the borders of Palestine, Syria and Mesopotamia, the process of decomposition of primitive communal relations developed faster than among the population of the interior regions of Arabia. In the 5th-7th centuries, there was an underdevelopment internal organization tribes, which, in combination with the remnants of the maternal account and polyandry, testified that, due to the specifics of the nomadic economy, the decomposition of the tribal system in Central and Northern Arabia developed more slowly than in neighboring regions of Western Asia.

Periodically, kindred tribes united in unions. Sometimes there was a fragmentation of tribes or their absorption by strong tribes. Over time, it became obvious that large formations are more viable. It was in tribal unions or confederations of tribes that the preconditions for the emergence of a class society began to take shape. The process of its formation was accompanied by the creation of primitive state formations. As early as the 2nd-6th centuries, large-scale tribal unions(Mazhij, Kinda, Maad, etc.), but none of them could become the core of a single pan-Arab state. The prerequisite for the political unification of Arabia was the desire of the tribal elite to secure the right to land, livestock and income from caravan trade. An additional factor was the need to join forces to resist external expansion. As we have already pointed out, at the turn of the 6th-7th centuries, the Persians captured Yemen and liquidated the Lakhmid state, which was in vassal dependence. As a result, in the south and north, Arabia was under the threat of absorption by the Persian state. Naturally, the situation had a negative impact on Arabian trade. The merchants of a number of Arabian cities suffered significant material damage. The only way out of this situation could be the unification of kindred tribes.

The Hejaz region, located in the west of the Arabian Peninsula, became the center of the unification of the Arabs. This area has long been famous for its relatively developed agriculture, handicrafts, but most importantly - trade. The local cities - Mecca, Yasrib (later Medina), Taif - had strong contacts with the surrounding tribes of nomads who visited them, exchanging their goods for the products of urban artisans.

However, the religious situation prevented the unification of the Arabian tribes. The ancient Arabs were pagans. Each tribe revered its patron god, although some of them can be considered pan-Arab - Allah, al-Uzza, al-Lat. Even in the first centuries in Arabia it was known about Christianity. Moreover, in Yemen, these two religions have practically supplanted pagan cults. On the eve of the Persian conquest, Yemenite Jews fought with Yemenite Christians, while the Jews focused on Sasanian Persia (which subsequently facilitated the conquest of the Himyarite kingdom by the Persians), and the Christians on Byzantium. Under these conditions arose its own form of Arabian monotheism, which (especially in early stage) to a large extent, but in a peculiar way, reflected some of the postulates of Christianity. Its adherents, the Hanifs, became bearers of the idea of ​​a single god. In turn, this form of monotheism set the stage for the emergence of Islam.

The religious beliefs of the Arabs of the pre-Islamic period are a conglomeration of various beliefs, among which were female and male deities, the veneration of stones, springs, trees, various spirits, genies and shaitans, who were intermediaries between people and gods, was also widespread. Naturally, the absence of clear dogmatic ideas opened up wide opportunities for the ideas of more developed religions to penetrate into this amorphous worldview and contributed to religious and philosophical reflections.

By that time, writing began to become more and more widespread, which subsequently played a huge role in the formation of medieval Arab culture, and at the stage of the birth of Islam contributed to the accumulation and transmission of information. The need for this was colossal, as evidenced by the practice of oral memorization and reproduction of ancient genealogies, historical chronicles, poetic narratives, common among the Arabs.

As noted by the St. Petersburg scholar A. Khalidov, "most likely, the language was formed as a result of a long development based on the selection of different dialectal forms and their artistic comprehension" . In the end, it was the use of the same language of poetry that became one of the most important factors that contributed to the formation of the Arab community. Naturally, the process of mastering the Arabic language did not occur at the same time. This process took place most rapidly in those areas where the inhabitants spoke the related languages ​​of the Semitic group. In other areas, this process took several centuries, but a number of peoples, once under the rule of the Arab Caliphate, managed to maintain their linguistic independence.

Ethnic history of the Arabs

As we have already noted, the Arabs are the original inhabitants of the Arabian Peninsula. The lack of historical evidence of any major ethnic invasions in historical time testifies to the relatively homogeneous origin of the indigenous inhabitants of the region. The ethnonym "Arab" itself is probably not a self-name. Most likely, this term was used by the inhabitants of Mesopotamia and Western Asia, calling people from Arabia like that. Subsequently, when the Arabian tribes began to unite under the rule of Muhammad and his successors, it was this term that was assigned to those who became part of the tribes united by his preaching. Thus, we are talking about a group of related tribes, for which not only the habitat was common, religious beliefs, but above all the language (Koine), which distinguished them from those who spoke Aramaic, Greek or Hebrew. Oral (poetic) literature was formed on the basis of this language already in the 4th-5th centuries. In general, the Arabs are part of a group of Semitic peoples, whose name is associated with the name of the biblical character Shem, one of the sons of Noah (Book of Genesis, 10).

The ethnogenesis of the inhabitants of modern Arab states has been poorly studied. The turbulent history of almost every Arab state is replete with facts of invasions and adaptations of various tribes and peoples. It can be said that the ethnogenesis of the Syrian does not coincide with the ethnogenesis of the Egyptian or the Moroccan. But we can talk about the basic substrates, which in ancient times became the basis for the formation of modern Arab peoples.

Anthropologists distinguish different anthropological types within the Arab community. This indicates that in the process of settlement, the Arabs absorbed and Arabized smaller or disappearing groups. Thus, with the greatest distribution of the Mediterranean anthropological type in Iraq and eastern Arabia, there is an Armenoid type, and in southern Arabia, an Ethiopian anthropological type. Naturally, in the border regions one can always detect the anthropological influence of the neighboring ethnic group.

To a large extent, the spread of Islam contributed to the formation of the pan-Arab ethnos. It should be noted that these two processes - Arabization and Islamization - did not develop synchronously. As a rule, Islamization was ahead of the process of Arabization (assimilation) of the conquered population. The fact is that for a number of peoples, the adoption of Islam meant recognition of the patronage of the Arabs. In addition, new converts became members of the ummah (community), which eased the tax burden. It can be said that it was Islam that became the common denominator for the peoples who subsequently made up the population of the Arab Caliphate.

However, the process of Arabization was carried out slowly. It is worth recalling that during the reign of Caliph Umar (632-644), the Arabs made up only a quarter of the population of the caliphate. Characteristically, the process of Arabization of its population took place in different ways in the Middle East and North Africa. The autochthonous population of the Middle East was mostly Semitic (Arameans, Phoenicians), so Arabization and Islamization took place more calmly here. Conquest campaigns also contributed to this, thanks to which cities and large settlements developed.

Most of the population of North Africa (for example, Egypt, where the indigenous population are Copts, as well as Libyan and Berber tribes) belonged to the Hamitic group. Therefore, here the process of gradual assimilation of the local population by the Arab conquerors was the displacement of local dialects by the Arabic language. At the same time, Arab culture also conquered the territory.

The situation developed quite differently in those countries where there were few Arabs. The farther to the east, the less the influence of the Arabic language was felt, which did not interfere with the process of Islamization. However, here Islam acquired features characteristic only of this area. In this context, it is interesting to compare the elements ethnic culture, especially since, despite the unifying Muslim influence, almost every region manifests its own cultural substratum.

As an example, let us cite the Iranian interpretation of the image of Ali, one of the main characters of early Islam. Here the image of Ali acquired features characteristic of ancient Persian cultural heroes and features of earlier deities. Ignatius Goldzier noted that in Persia "the attributes of the thunder god are associated with Ali." In Iran, the local cultural substratum turned out to be so powerful that Arabization was not successful here. One gets the impression that Islam was forced to submit to the local cultural traditions, thanks to which its Shiite branch arose, competing with the original and mainstream Sunni. Nevertheless, attempts to transfer Shiism to the West (for example, during the reign of the Abbasids, who came to power relying on Shiites) failed, although various Shiite communities still exist in a number of countries.

Almost the entire history of the Arab Caliphate indicates that the process of Arabization was carried out in a natural way, because the rulers did not set themselves the task of total Arabization of the population. This was due to the economic policy pursued by the caliphs and governors of the provinces. The economic privileges set for converts gave advantages to converts and made Islam attractive to this part of the population.

It should be noted that from the very beginning, the Muslim administration did not interfere with the process of adapting the traditions of the conquered peoples. This was primarily due to the fact that the process of formation of the Arab state took place simultaneously with the transition of former nomads to a settled way of life. Yesterday's Bedouins were introduced to agriculture, and later to urban life. This circumstance had an impact on the formation of the Muslim worldview, as well as on the nature of religious ideology. At the same time, this predetermined the long and controversial process of the formation of the Arab nation.

An important (but little studied) factor was the conversion of part of the Christians, mainly the inhabitants of the Mediterranean coast of Europe, to Islam. The reason for the mass conversion to Islam F. Braudel calls the economic conditions and overpopulation of European territories. “A sign of the overpopulation of Mediterranean Europe since the end of the 15th century was the repeated persecution of Jews ... this is also evidenced by the numerous transitions from Christianity to the Islamic faith, which were of a balancing nature in a demographic sense” . In the 16th century, the process of voluntary conversion to Islam accelerated: "Christians in multitudes are flowing into Islam, which attracts them with the prospect of advancement and earnings - and their services are really paid." Moreover, Islam attracts Europeans with its tolerance for non-Christians. Here is what the French researcher Fernand Braudel wrote about this: “The Turks opened their doors, and the Christians locked theirs, perhaps acting unconsciously. Christian intolerance, the child of overcrowding, repels rather than attracts new adherents. All whom the Christians expel from their dominions—the Jews in 1492, the Moriscos in the sixteenth century and in 1609-1614—join the crowd of voluntary defectors to the side of Islam in search of work and jobs. Thus, cross-cultural contact between Islam and Christianity, European nations and the Arabs has a long history in which there have been periods of ups and downs.

Naturally, Islamization was accompanied by unification religious life, and also had an impact on the formation of stereotypes social life, as well as on the system of family and public relations, ethics, law, etc. all denominations living in the Muslim world.

Being under the dominion Ottoman Empire, and subsequently under the yoke of the colonial domination of European powers, the population of the Arab countries felt like a single community. It is in the last quarter XIX centuries, the slogans of pan-Arab unity became relevant, on the wave of which public organizations were created that rocked the colonial regime. In an attempt to strengthen its power, the colonial administration sought to rely on the local Christian population, attracting its representatives to the government apparatus. Subsequently, this circumstance became the cause of mistrust between the Christian and Muslim populations, and also provoked a number of conflicts.

By the middle of the 20th century, the process of formation of politically independent states began, in which the national elite, representing the interests of the most powerful tribal clans, occupied the main place. Naturally, at this stage, representatives of the most educated ethnic groups and clans received an advantage, regardless of the specific weight ethnic group in this society.

Thus, the Arabs, the Arabic language, Arab culture and Arab statehood played a significant role in the formation of that common area, which we conventionally call the "Arab world" today. This world arose and was formed during the conquests of the Arabs and under the influence of Islam in the Middle Ages. Over the subsequent time, in the space from Iran to the Atlantic Ocean, the basic principles and norms of being, forms of relations and hierarchies of cultural values ​​were formed and developed, which arose under the influence of the Muslim religion and Arab cultural traditions closely related to it.

Usually, Muslims paid tithe as a tax, while the non-Muslim population paid kharaj, the size of which ranged from one to two thirds of the crop. In addition, Muslims were exempted from paying the jizya, the poll tax. In trade, Muslims paid a duty of 2.5%, and non-Muslims - 5%.

Braudel F. The Mediterranean Sea and the Mediterranean World in the Age of Philip I. M., 2003. Part 2, p. 88.

Braudel F. The Mediterranean Sea and the Mediterranean World in the Age of Philip II. M., 2003. Part 2, p. 641.

Ow, pl. arabes pl. 1. Semitic people ethno-linguistic group. BAS 2. We took the science of rhyming from the Arapov. East rum. 69. I decided to call myself not a European, but a Baghdad Arab. Pant. in. sl. 2 255. This respect is not only for women ... ... Historical dictionary gallicisms of the Russian language

Modern Encyclopedia

- (self-name al Arab) a group of peoples (Algerians, Egyptians, Moroccans, etc.), the main population of the Arab countries Zap. Asia and North. Africa. The total number of St. 199 million people (1992). Arabic language. Most Muslims... Big encyclopedic Dictionary

ARABS, Arabs, unit. arab, arab, male The people of Arabia. Dictionary Ushakov. D.N. Ushakov. 1935 1940 ... Explanatory Dictionary of Ushakov

ARAB, ov, units arab, a, husband. The peoples inhabiting Western Asia and North Africa, the Crimea includes Algerians, Egyptians, Yemenis, Lebanese, Syrians, Palestinians, etc. | female arab, i. | adj. Arabic, oh, oh. Explanatory dictionary of Ozhegov. S.I. Ozhegov, ... ... Explanatory dictionary of Ozhegov

Arabs- (self-name al Arab) a group of peoples with a total number of 199,000 thousand people. Settlement regions: Africa 125200 thousand people, Asia 70000 thousand people, Europe 2500 thousand people, America 1200 thousand people, Australia and Oceania 100 thousand people. Main countries ... ... Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary

Ov; pl. An extensive group of peoples inhabiting the countries of Southwest Asia in the Persian Gulf and North Africa; representatives of these peoples. ◁ Arab, a; m. Arabka, and; pl. genus. side, dat. bcam; and. * * * Arabs (self-name al Arab), a group ... ... encyclopedic Dictionary

Arabs Ethnopsychological dictionary

ARAB- representatives of twenty-two states of the Near and Middle East, having common ethnic roots and similar psychology. Arabs are cheerful, cheerful and funny people, distinguished by observation, ingenuity, friendliness. However… Encyclopedic Dictionary of Psychology and Pedagogy

Arabs- Africa (self-name al Arab), a group of peoples. They make up the majority of the population of Egypt (Egyptian Arabs), Sudan (Sudanese Arabs), Libya (Libyan Arabs), Tunisia (Tunisian Arabs), Algeria (Algerian Arabs), Morocco (Moroccan Arabs) ... Encyclopedic reference book "Africa"

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• Arabs, . Reproduced in the original author's spelling of the 1897 edition (publishing house ʻpublishing the Bookstore of P.V. Lukovnikov`). AT…
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ancient arabs

arabia caliphate arab community islam

The Bible knows the Arabs as a nomadic tribe of Semitic origin, and also as descendants of Ishmael. They were called Zavedey.

The ancient Semitic tribes, from which the ancient Arab people subsequently developed, already in the 2nd millennium BC. occupied the territory of the Arabian Peninsula. The first Arab state formations arose on the northern border of Arabia, as well as in Central Arabia (the Kindite kingdom, the states of the Lakhmids and Hassanids).

By the 5th-6th centuries, Arab tribes made up the majority of the population of the Arabian Peninsula. In the first half of the 7th century, with the emergence of Islam, the Arab conquests began, as a result of which the Caliphate was created, which occupied vast territories from India to the Atlantic Ocean and from Central Asia to the central Sahara.

The Arabs were famous as excellent doctors and mathematicians.

Arab Caliphate 632-750

In North Africa, the population, who spoke Semitic-Hamitic languages ​​close to Arabic, was relatively quickly Arabized, adopting the language, religion (Islam) and many elements of the culture of the conquerors. At the same time, the reverse process of assimilation by the Arabs of some elements of the culture of the conquered peoples took place. The peculiar Arab culture that developed as a result of these processes had a great influence on world culture.

The Arab caliphate by the 10th century, as a result of the resistance of the conquered peoples and the growth of feudal separatism, broke up into separate parts.

In the 16th century, the Arab countries of Western Asia (except for a significant part of the Arabian Peninsula) and North Africa (with the exception of Morocco) became part of the Ottoman Empire.

Beginning in the 19th century, Arab lands were subjected to colonial conquests and became colonies and protectorates of Great Britain, France, Italy, and Spain. To date, all of them (with the exception of Western Sahara) are independent states.

Flavius ​​Josephus repeatedly mentions the Arabs (starting from the era of the patriarchs): “Meanwhile, Judah, also one of the sons of Jacob, saw Arab merchants from the tribe of Ishmael, who were carrying spices and other Syrian goods to Egypt from Gilead, and gave, in view of the absence of Reubil, to the brothers advice is to pull Joseph out and sell him to the Arabs, because in this way Joseph will die in a foreign land among foreigners, and they themselves will not stain their hands with his blood.

Arabs- a group of peoples, a meta-ethnic community. In Asia, Arabs make up the majority of the population of Bahrain (Bahrainis), Jordan (Jordans), Iraq (Iraqis), Yemen (Yemenis), Qatar (Qataris), Kuwait (Kuwaitis), Lebanon (Lebanese), United Arab Emirates (UAE; Arabs of the United Arab Emirates), Oman (Omanis), Saudi Arabia(Saudi), Syria (Syrians); in Africa - Algeria (Algerians), Western Sahara (Moors), Egypt (Egyptians), Libya (Libyans), Mauritania (Moors), Morocco (Moroccans), Sudan (Sudanese), Tunisia (Tunisians). Palestinians live in Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and other countries; Arabs also live in Turkey, Iran, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Indonesia and other countries. Arab emigrants are in Western Europe(2500 thousand people), Northern and South America(1200 thousand people), West and South Africa, Australia, etc. The total number is 199 million people, of which 70 million people are in Asia; Africa has 125.2 million people.

Arabic language of the West Semitic group of the Afroasian family.

Arabs- the most numerous people on Earth who speak the Semitic language. In addition to Arabic, the Semitic (Semitic-Hamitic) group of languages ​​includes Hebrew, Sabaean (the ancient language of South Arabia), Phoenician, Amorite, Aramaic, Amharic (Ethiopian) and some others. According to one of existing theories, in ancient times, the ancestors of modern Semites lived in those places where the lifeless sands of the world's greatest Sahara desert now spread, and then, in the 5th-6th millennium BC, they moved to the Arabian Peninsula.

The word “Arabs” comes from the common Semitic root [`RB], which means “dry, arid, desert”. Therefore, the Arabs are “hermits, inhabitants of the desert”. It is curious that the Arabs themselves began to call themselves that only in the 7th century AD, when, during the conquests and the creation of the caliphate, the tribes living on the Arabian Peninsula, faced with other peoples, faced the need to acquire their own name, which allowed them to realize their commonality and oppose other peoples. Prior to this, the main thing for every Arab was belonging to his tribe and clan, and the name “Arabs” was used mainly by neighboring peoples.

The Arabs, of course, also have a mythological version of their origin, according to which they are descendants of Isma "il (the biblical Ishmael) and Qahtan (Yoktan), the sons of Ibrahim (the forefather of Abraham). Further, the genealogical chain goes back to Sam (Sim, the progenitor of all Semitic peoples ), his father Nuh (Noah) and the first man Adam. In the Middle Ages, it was very popular among the Arabs to compile genealogies that reflected both real and mythical family relationships. By the way, today many Arabs know the entire “chain” of their ancestors - up to to Adam!

The Arabs who inhabited the Arabian Peninsula belonged to the group of Semitic peoples, as well as the Assyrians, Phoenicians, and Jews. Most Arabs by the beginning of the 7th century. remained nomads, or Bedouins (desert dwellers), who bred camels, goats, and sheep. And only some of them were engaged in agriculture, mainly in the south of the Arabian Peninsula.

The most developed agricultural region was Yemen (happy in Arabic) in the southwest of the peninsula, where there were fertile lands, rich tropical vegetation, dates, grapes, and fruit trees grew. Here was the once flourishing Kingdom of Sheba, the ruler of which, according to the Old Testament, was the guest of King Solomon.

In the middle of the peninsula, the vast plateau of Nejd had no rivers. Water sources were wells or, at times, dry channels carrying streams of rainwater. It was the world of Bedouin nomads. Only on west bank and in the middle of the plateau, where most of wells, there were settlements, plowing and gardens.

The way of life of the population of the Hijaz (border) of the western coastal strip along the Arabian Gulf was different. Here lay the road from Yemen to Egypt, Syria and the Euphrates, which made it possible for the development of local, foreign and transit trade. On the territory of the Hijaz, there were several ancient trading cities of Marib, Sana, Nejran, Main.

Among them, Mecca stood out as a transit trade center on the caravan route from Yemen to Syria. For the first time, Mecca as Makoraba was mentioned by Ptolemy (II century). Mecca, however, was not only a major trading center. It was the cult center of many Arab tribes.

In the center of Mecca stood a cubic-shaped temple, the Kaaba (cube), in the wall of which was a sacred black stone, which was worshipped. In the temple itself there were images of pagan deities of many Arab tribes. The Kaaba was a place of pilgrimage. Mecca and its environs were considered reserved and sacred.

The great winter fair coincided with the time of the pilgrimage. The steppe Arabs brought in cattle and exchanged it for Syrian handicrafts. The solemn holiday of spring was celebrated annually. Military clashes and raids stopped for 4 months. The Arabs were mostly pagans.

Different regions of Arabia believed in different gods. God was especially revered morning star, god of the moon. Women's astral deities were honored. And at the same time, many pagan tribes had an idea of ​​a certain supreme deity, who was called Allah (God, Arabic Alilah, Syrian Alaha).

Thus, the Quraysh tribe, to which the Prophet Muhammad belonged, believed that their supreme deity, Allah, was embodied in that sacred black stone that was embedded in the wall of the Kaaba temple.

Arab trade relations with neighboring countries contributed to the penetration of Christianity and Judaism into Arabia, the first two monotheistic religions in the history of civilization. Judaism was brought to Arabia by Jewish merchants, immigrants from Palestine, who fled from the oppression of the Romans. Christianity became known to the Arabs from merchants, monks, priests from Byzantium and Ethiopia.

Thus, the spiritual prerequisites for the emergence of a new monotheistic religion were formed, both based on the beliefs of the Arabs and offered by Judaism and Christianity. The new religion of Islam became the spiritual and political basis for uniting the Arabs.

By the beginning of the 7th century in Arabia, especially in Mecca, Hanifism, a spiritual and religious teaching aimed at finding a new single God and borrowing some common ideas of Christianity and Judaism, became widely spread. One of the Hanif-preachers was Muhammad (570-632), a merchant from Mecca.