Muhammad

~570–632 CE · Arab (Meccan, Quraysh tribe) · Late Antiquity / Early Medieval

Known for: Founded Islam, unified Arabia, and established a religion-state-civilization that reshaped the world within a century of his death

Muhammad ibn Abdullah was an Arab merchant from Mecca who, at age 40, received what he believed were divine revelations from God (Allah) through the angel Gabriel. These revelations, compiled as the Quran, became the foundation of Islam. He preached monotheism and social justice in Mecca, faced persecution, emigrated to Medina (the Hijra, 622 CE), built a political-religious community, conquered Mecca, and unified most of the Arabian Peninsula before his death in 632.

Within a century of his death, his followers had built an empire stretching from Spain to Central Asia — one of the fastest territorial expansions in history. Islam became the world's second-largest religion with nearly 2 billion adherents. Muslims consider him the final prophet in a line including Abraham, Moses, and Jesus. His life is documented in extraordinary detail through the hadith (sayings) and sira (biography) traditions.

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