Before the coming of Islam, the Arabian Peninsula possessed a rich commercial and cultural dynamism. The Arabs, scattered across deserts and oases, gathered in certain months at fixed places to trade, to recite poetry and to settle disputes. These gatherings, known as the seasonal markets (أسواق العرب الموسمية), formed a central part of economic and cultural life during the Jahiliyyah.
The best-known markets were Souq ʿUkaz (سوق عكاظ), Majanna (مجنة) and Dhul-Majaz (ذو المجاز), though places such as Hajar, Dumat al-Jandal and ʿAdan also had their own trading seasons. These markets were devoted not only to commerce, but also to poetry, politics and religious rituals.
The economic function of the seasonal markets
The desert environment of Arabia made permanent trade difficult, and the seasonal markets therefore offered an opportunity for safe barter in specific months, usually preceding the Hajj.
During these sacred months, Dhul-Qaʿdah, Dhul-Hijjah, Muharram and Rajab, warfare was forbidden, so that tribes could meet one another without fear of blood vengeance.¹
Merchants from Yemen, Syria (ash-Sham), Persia and even Abyssinia (Ethiopia) came to these markets to exchange goods such as:
- Spices, frankincense and myrrh from Yemen
- Leather, dates and camels from Najd
- Textiles, wine and weapons from Byzantium and Syria
These seasonal markets lay strategically along the caravan routes. ʿUkaz, for instance, lay between Ta’if and Nakhlah, and connected the trade between the south (Yemen) and the north (Syria).³
The cultural role: poetry and eloquence
Beyond trade, the markets were centres of language and culture, where poets, orators and tribal elders gathered to recite poems, deliver speeches and establish their reputation.
The most famous market, Souq ʿUkaz, was renowned as the stage on which poets recited their works. Here the finest poems were chosen to be hung later in the Kaʿbah as a sign of excellence in language, the so-called Muʿallaqat (المعلقات).⁴
The poets ʿAntarah ibn Shaddad, Imru’ al-Qays and Zuhayr ibn Abi Sulma are among those who, according to tradition, recited their poetry at ʿUkaz.⁵
Alongside poetry, disputes and arbitration also took place, for the tribes used the occasion to settle their quarrels through neutral arbiters, often authoritative poets or wise men. In this way the markets contributed to a form of social order in a time without central authority.
The religious and political significance
The seasonal markets deliberately coincided with the sacred months in which the Arabs performed their pilgrimages to the Kaʿbah, so that trade, religion and ritual were closely interwoven.
In the Sirah of Ibn Hisham it is recorded that the Quraysh used the markets both to trade and to maintain the religious rituals of Ibrahim عليه السلام.⁶
Politically, the markets were also meeting places where alliances were forged or reaffirmed, where tribes arranged marriages, negotiated truces or made agreements for the coming trading seasons.
The principal markets
Souq ʿUkaz (سوق عكاظ)
The most famous and influential market of Arabia, which lasted about twenty days in the month of Dhul-Qaʿdah. Here merchants, poets, warriors and tribal chiefs came together. The reputation of ʿUkaz was so great that even after the coming of Islam the place remained remembered as a symbol of Arab culture.
According to al-Azraqi, the market took place on an open plain between Nakhlah and Ta’if, and the Quraysh maintained order and provided security.⁷
Majanna (مجنة)
This market lay near Mecca, to the south of the road to Jeddah, and took place in the first days of Dhul-Hijjah, immediately after the market of ʿUkaz.
According to Ibn Hisham, pilgrims and traders met here on their way to the pilgrimage.⁸
Dhul-Majaz (ذو المجاز)
This market lay close to ʿArafat and was held during the first days of the Hajj. The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ visited Dhul-Majaz before the Hijra to invite the tribes to Islam.⁹
Dumat al-Jandal (دومة الجندل)
A northern trading town on the route to Syria, where the market took place in Rabiʿ al-Awwal and drew merchants from Syria, Iraq and Najd.¹⁰
ʿAdan and Sanʿa (Yemen)
In southern Arabia, the ports of ʿAdan and Sanʿa served as seasonal markets for sea trade, for goods from India and East Africa arrived here before being carried by caravan to the Hijaz.¹¹
Ibn Hisham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah, chapter on the markets of Arabia.
Qur’an, Surah Quraysh (106:1–2).
Al-Azraqi, Akhbar Makkah, description of Souq ʿUkaz.
Ibn Qutaybah, Kitab al-Shiʿr wa al-Shuʿara, section on the Muʿallaqat.
Al-Jahiz, al-Bayan wa al-Tabyin, volume 1.
Ibn Hisham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah, account of the Quraysh and the trade routes.
Al-Azraqi, Akhbar Makkah, p. 89.
Ibn Kathir, al-Bidayah wa an-Nihayah, volume 2, chapter on the pre-Islamic markets.
Al-Tabari, Tarikh al-Rusul wa al-Muluk, account of Dhul-Majaz.
Al-Baladhuri, Futuh al-Buldan, introduction on Dumat al-Jandal.
Yaqut al-Hamawi, Muʿjam al-Buldan, entries on ʿAdan and Sanʿa.
Qur’an, Surah al-Baqarah (2:198), see also Tafsir Ibn Kathir.