Hejaz

al-Hejaz, an aw Hijaz (Arabic: الحجاز‎ al-Ḥiǧāz, literally "the barrier") is a region in the wast o present-day Saudi Arabie. Defined primarily bi its wastren mairch on the Reid Sea, it extends frae Haql on the Gulf o Aqaba tae Jizan. Its main ceety is Jeddah, but it is probably better kent for the Islamic holy ceety o Medina. As the steid o Islam's holy places the Hejaz haes significance in the Arab an Islamic historical an poleetical landscape. The region is sae cried as it separates the land o Najd in the east frae the land o Tihamah in the wast.

History

Evidence suggests that the northren pairt o Hejaz wis pairt o the Roman province o Arabia Petraea.

The Biblical story o the Garden o Eden is in Genesis 2:10-12: "An a river went oot o Eden tae watter the garden; an frae thence it wis pairtit, an became intae fower heids. The name o the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land o Havilah, whaur there is gowd; An the gowd o that land is guiod: there is bdellium an the onyx stane."

Havilah is uisually associatit wi aither the Arabie Peninsulae or north-wast Yemen, but in the wirk associatit wi the Garden o Eden bi Juris Zarins, the Hejaz muntains appear tae satisfactorily meet the description. The Hejaz includes baith the Cradle o Gowd at Mahd adh Dhahab (23°30′12.96″N 40°51′34.92″E) an a potential soorce o the nou dreed oot Pishon River that uised tae flow 600 mile (970 km) north east tae the Persie Gulf via the Wadi Al-Batin seestem. Airchaeological research led bi Farouk El-Baz o Boston University indicates that the river seestem, nou prospectively kent as the Kuwait River, wis active 2500–3000 BC.

Due tae the presence o twa holy ceeties in Hejaz, the region went unner numerous empires throughoot its modren history. Hijaz wis later at the centre o the Caliphate, afore its caipital wis muivit tae Damascus. The region wis then unner the control o regional pouers sic as Egyp an the Ottoman Empire throu hintle o its later history, efter which the Hejaz haed a brief period o poleetical unthirldom in the early 20t century.

In 1916, Sharif Hussein ibn Ali, a descendant o Muhammad, proclaimit hissel keeng o an independent Hejaz, as a result o the Hussein-McMahon Correspondence. The ensuin Arab Revolt successfully owerthrew the Ottoman Empire. In 1924, housomeivver, ibn Ali's authority wis usurpit bi Ibn Saud o the neighborin region o Nejd, unitin it intae wha became kent as the Kinrick o Nejd an Hejaz an later the Kinrick o Saudi Arabie.

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  Banner o Rashidun Caliphate (632–661)
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  Banner o Umayyad Caliphate (661–750)
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  Banner o Fatimid Caliphate (967-1094)
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  Banner o Ayyubid dynasty (1094–1254)
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  Banner o Mamluk Sultanate (1254–1517)
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  Banner o Ottoman Empire (1517–1916)
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  Banner o Kinrick o Hejaz (1916–1925)
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  Banner o Kinrick o Saudi Arabie (1925-present)

Geography

Geographically, the region is locatit alang the Great Rift Valley. The region is an aw kent for its daurker, mair volcanic sand. Dependin on the previous definition, Hejaz includes the heich muntains o Sarawat which topographically separate Najd frae Tehamah. Bdellium plants are an aw abundant in the Hijaz.

Ceeties

• Medina
• Ta’if

• Al Bahah
• Tabuk

See an aw

• Hijaz muntains                     
• Hejazi Arabic
• Hejazi turban
• Mizmar (dance)

• Kinrick o Hejaz
• Hejaz railway
• Hijaz scale
• Hijazi script
• Nejd

Notes