Re copyright, much of the following is copy and pasted from my own site.
historyofmecca.com
My own search for information began after having read (first language is Arabic) Dr. Rafat Amari's "Islam: In Light of History". It is an encapsulation of a 20-year full time study of Islam and Arabia, including original source material and investigation of archaeological evidence in Arabia. A lot of great material is available on his site at: religionresearchinstitute.org

Beliefs of Jews and Christians are based on the 1600 year record of revelation of our great God - YHWH - whose people have followed Him through two covenants for 3500 years. That record of revelation is well supported through archaeological and historical evidence, as well as physical geography, and particularly through fulfilled prophecy, while even being supportable mathematically.
beyondtheharbinger.com

No shortage of atheists and agnostics that finally, actually, bother to honestly investigate the evidence, have come into relationship with Jesus Christ, as a result of a genuine effort to seek out the truth - ironically, often in efforts to find evidence to debunk Judeo-Christian beliefs.
allaboutthejourney.org

Same with honest seekers who formerly followed Muhammad alone, through his stand-alone 23-year 7th century record.
muslimjourneytohope.com
The false prophet who fills his followers with complete resolve to DISbelieve the WHOLE SUBJECT of the Gospel.
falseprophetmuhammad.com

Thus the foundation of Muhammad's anti-religion is important for everyone to understand whether one is religious or not. Mecca or Makkah, is the historical and geographical epicenter of Islam. All practicing Muslims, everywhere in the world, prostrate themselves toward the Kaaba in Mecca five times a day. Every Muslim is obliged to travel to Mecca, and perform the Islamic ritual of the Hajj at least once in their lifetime, because it is the "fifth pillar" of Islam. Islamic tradition teaches that the Kaaba, around which Islam revolves, is located in the center of the world and was the first temple on earth. Islamic tradition further holds that it was built by Adam (Adem) and later rebuilt by Abraham and Ishmael (Ibrahim, Ismail).

The archaeological record of Arabia stands as one of the best preserved on earth, because the relatively low rainfall results in less damage to the archaeological evidence. Many ancient towns such as  Yemen, Qudar, Dedan, Tiema, Mada'in Saleh (Al-Hijr), Magan (Oman) and Dilmun are well attested in the historical and archaeological record, and even attest to each other. Some have even been selected as "world heritage" sites. The historical record of Arabia even includes small Arabian towns, established before the Christian era, that came and went within a few centuries.

The history of Mecca makes for an interesting Internet search. Try:
archaeology of mecca - or -
historical and archaeological evidence mecca - or -
ancient towns of Arabia
Here's a Wikipedia article on Ancient Towns in Saudi Arabia.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Towns_in_Saudi_Arabia

The reason Mecca is not listed as an ancient town is because it isn't. What we do learn from Internet searches is that there is not a shred of historical or archaeological evidence, that suggests that Mecca ever existed before around the 4th century A.D., when immigrants from Yemen settled the area and built their Kaaba in the early 5th century A.D. for Arabian moon, sun, star and jinn-devil worship. Additionally, Mecca was settled some distance away, from what became (after the 6th century BC) one of the most established trade routes in Arabia about which historical record abounds. A route that was not established until about a thousand years after Abraham walked the earth.

Thus the scripture-contrary, archaeologically absent, Islamic "tradition", that suggests thousands of years of pre-6th century AD history, is easily recognized as created fiction, that was all put to the pen in the 7th to 10th centuries AD, without reference to any actual historical record that preceded the 6th century AD.

Compare the absence of pre-4th century historical record of Mecca, with the massive volume of evidence of Jerusalem, the historical and geographical epicenter of Judaism and Christianity. Try
archaeology of Jerusalem - or -
historical and archaeological evidence jerusalem - or -
temple jerusalem - or -
archaeology supports the bible

One quickly learns that archaeology increasingly confirms the Bible as a reliable source of ancient historical record. One can hardly lift a shovel of earth anywhere near Jerusalem without having it contain ancient artifacts. Indeed there are a million artifacts just on display!

What we learn about Islamic so-called tradition, about a town that did not exist prior to the 4th century AD that is located 1200 kilometers away from THE Holy Land of the prophets and patriarchs, is that particularly Islamic rituals, are adopted, adapted and thinly veneered Arabian moon, sun, star and jinn-devil worship rituals, that were also practiced by Arabian pagans for some time before Muhammad was even born. Even some of Muhammad's closest followers didn't like to engage in them as they recognized them as recycled jinn-devil worship rituals.

"I asked Anas bin Malik: "Did you use to dislike to perform Tawaf between Safa and Marwa?" He said, "Yes, as it was of the ceremonies of the days of the Pre-lslamic period of ignorance..."
brotherpete.com/hajj_umrah.htm#al_safa_al_marwah

Pete Waldo wrote on Dec 27^th, 2013 at 12:13am:



gandalf,

Is it true, that there is no hard evidence, that Mecca existed before around the 4th century A.D. ???

As a moslem, and because Mecca as a historical town/city, Mecca must have a great religious significance to your moslem heart, .....as a moslem do you have any evidence that Mecca existed as a town or city, before the 4th century A.D. ?

Stratos wrote on Jan 3^rd, 2014 at 5:20pm:


Muslims face Mecca when they tap their heads on the ground with their asses in the air while praying,watch them pray and you can see why they dont like homos,all those asses in the air would be paradise for a poofter.

Mecca was once a multicultural city with over 360 gods worshipped at the Ka'ba before Mohammad imposed the first religious dictatorship which outlawed all other gods.

Stratos wrote on Jan 3^rd, 2014 at 5:20pm:


Not to me.

Islamic tradition states that Abraham's concubine Hagar was sent away when she was pregnant with Ishmael. She got lost in the desert and eventually was saved when she discovered (by God's help) the natural spring of zamzam. Abraham then (allegedly) built the Kabah over the spring as a sort of shrine to the miracle and mercy of Allah.

That is the legend, but I don't see why it must be at the site of Mecca. The important thing is the miracle and the test that Hagar and Abraham both passed. Why does it matter the exact geographical location? Christians and jews don't get hung up on the exact geographical locations of the garden of eden, or where Noah's ark landed - because its not important to the religious message.

The proof to me that Mecca and the Kabah isn't a critically important geographic location for islam is that in the early years of islam, Prophet Muhammad instructed his followers to pray towards Jerusalem. Changing this to Mecca was merely a recognition of the cultural importance of Mecca to the Arabian people of that time - and the practical consideration that it might attract more followers. But why does it matter to islam what direction we pray? The important thing is we all pray in the one direction to symbolise a oneness and unity in islam.

polite_gandalf wrote on Jan 3^rd, 2014 at 6:02pm:


Mohammad was making it up as he went along which is why there were changes,he did order dogs be killed then allowed hunting and guard dogs then said only black dogs should be killed, does that sound like a wise all knowing creator or a madman making things up as he went along?

CONTRAST;


1/ Moslems claim that long before the Christian era the Kabaa was constructed by Abraham and his son(s).




2/ But moslems insist, that the Old Testament, Jewish Temples, never existed.                

Honest!            



e.g.

Quote:



n.b.
The article links are old, but the articles are kosher.

Is it just me, or are the spiritual aspects of Islam even more absurd than the political bits?

wally1 wrote on Jan 3^rd, 2014 at 8:35pm:



wally1,

Does that mean then, that moslems believe that Adam [of 'Adam and Eve'] was the founder of Mecca ?
[i.e. in accordance with ISLAMIC history/tradition.]