Thamud

The Thamud (Arabic: _ar. ثمود) were a people of ancient Arabia who were known from the 1st millennium BC to near the time of Muhammad. Although they are thought to have originated in southern Arabia, Arabic tradition has them moving north to settle on the slopes of Mount Athlab near Meda'in Saleh. Numerous Thamudic rock writings and pictures have been found on Mount Athlab and throughout central Arabia. [ [http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9071923/Thamud Encyclopædia Britannica Online] ]

History

The oldest known reference to Thamud is a 715 BC inscription of the Assyrian king Sargon II which mentions them as being among the people of eastern and central Arabia subjugated by the Assyrians.M. Th. Houtsma et al., eds., "E.J. Brill's first encyclopaedia of Islam, 1913-1936"]

They are referred to as "Tamudaei" in the writings of Aristo, Ptolemy, and Pliny. [Phillip Hitti, A History of the Arabs, London: Macmillan, I970, p. 37.]

The Qur'an

In the Qur'an, 'Ad and Thamud are always mentioned together. Moreover, the verses advise Thamud to take warning from the destruction of 'Ad.

This verse suggests some kind of relationship between 'Ad and Thamud, and 'Ad may even have been a part of Thamud's history and culture. Just as Nuh's people were seen as the ancestors of 'Ad, it seems 'Ad were seen in a similar relation to Thamud.

The 'Ad were a people living in southern Arabia. Some remains of Thamud were found in the region where 'Ad had lived, especially around the region where capital city of the Hadramites, the descendants of 'Ad, stood.Fact|date=May 2008

Hadith

Ibn Umar (ca.614-693) narrated that while Muhammad was passing by Thamud's houses on his way to the Battle of Tabouk, he stopped together with the people there. The people fetched water from the wells from which the people of Thamud used to drink. They prepared their dough (for baking) and filled their water skins from it (the water from the wells). Muhammad ordered them to empty the water skins and give the prepared dough to the camels. Then he went away with them until they stopped at the well from which the she-camel (of Salih) used to drink. He warned them against entering upon the people that had been punished, saying "I fear that you may be affected by what afflicted them; so do no enter upon them."

Historians

The famous historian Ali ibn al-Athir mentions the Thamud in his book "The Complete History" (Arabic: الكامل في التاريخ - "al-Kamil fi at-tarikh") composed ca. 1231.Fact|date=May 2008

Ibn Khaldun

Historian and scholar, Ibn Khaldun also mentions the Thamud several times in his great universal history "al-Kitābu l-ʕibār" ("Book of Evidence"), but only in passing, seldom giving much information.

Some examples from the Muqaddimah ("Introduction"):

Script

A script graphically similar to the Smaitic alpabet (called Thamudic) has been found in southern Arabia and up throughout the Hijaz. [Brian Doe, Southern Arabia, Thames and Hudson, 1971, pp. 21-22.] The script was first identified in a region in north central Yemen that is known as Thamud, which is bound to the north by the Rub' al Khali, to the south by the Hadhramaut and to the west by Shabwah. The script was named after the place where it was first discovered, not for the people. Inscriptions in Thamudic come mostly from northern Saudi Arabia, but can be found throughout the Arabian peninsula. [ [http://www.mnh.si.edu/EPIGRAPHY/e_pre-islamic/thamudic.htm Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History - Thamudic inscriptions exhibit] ]

Photos of Thamudi dwellings

ee also

* 'Ad
* Prophet Saleh
* Thamud, Yemen
* Thamudic

References

External links

* [http://www.zubeyr-kureemun.com/SaudiArabia/PhotoGalleryOfMadainSaleh.htm Photos of Thamud dwellings at Madain Saleh, Saudi Arabia]
* [http://www.islamawareness.net/Prophets/salih.html The story of the Prophet Salih]