QiblaFind
The history of islam begins with the first revelation to the Prophet Muhammad around 610 CE. From a community in western Arabia, Islam spread across regions and cultures; its history includes religious teaching, political change, scholarship, trade, and everyday life.
Dates below are approximate where noted. CE refers to the Common Era. AH means “after the Hijrah” and numbers years in the Islamic calendar from the Prophet’s migration to Madinah; an AH year does not match a CE year exactly.
History of islam: a timeline
- c. 610 CE: Muhammad receives the first revelation in Makkah.
- 622 CE / 1 AH: The Hijrah, or migration, to Madinah begins the Islamic calendar’s era.
- c. 624 CE / 2 AH: The direction of prayer changes to the Kaaba in Makkah.
- 630 CE / 8 AH: The Muslim community takes control of Makkah.
- 632 CE / 11 AH: Muhammad dies; questions of leadership come to the fore.
- 632–661 CE: The period of the four caliphs whom Sunnis call the Rightly Guided Caliphs.
- 661–750 CE: The Umayyad dynasty rules from Damascus.
- 750–1258 CE: The Abbasid caliphate rules from Baghdad for much of its history; learning develops across the wider Muslim world.
- Later centuries: Regional dynasties and empires shape Muslim societies across Africa, Asia, and Europe.
- Today: Muslims live worldwide, with varied languages, cultures, and religious practices.
This timeline is a starting point, not a single story of uninterrupted expansion. Political rule changed hands repeatedly. Muslim communities also grew through trade, migration, teaching, and local relationships.
Revelation and the first Muslim community
Muslims believe the Qur’an was revealed by God to Muhammad through the angel Jibril (Gabriel). Islamic tradition places the first revelation around 610 CE, when Muhammad was in Makkah. The opening verses commonly associated with that event begin with a command to read or recite (Al-‘Alaq 96:1–5).
Muhammad called people to worship one God, care for those in need, and answer for their actions. Early Muslims faced opposition in Makkah. Some found refuge elsewhere; Muhammad and his followers later migrated to Yathrib, the city that became known as Madinah.
Muslims understand the Qur’an as divine revelation. Historians can describe when and where the early community emerged, but historical methods do not decide questions of faith. Keeping those two kinds of claim distinct helps readers approach the period clearly.
The Hijrah: why the calendar begins in 622
The Hijrah (migration) was Muhammad’s move from Makkah to Madinah in 622 CE. It gave the growing Muslim community a new home, where religious and communal life could develop. The Qur’an refers to Muhammad’s journey with a companion during this period (At-Tawbah 9:40).
The Islamic calendar counts its years from the Hijrah, making 622 CE the beginning of 1 AH. The calendar itself was adopted during the caliphate of Umar ibn al-Khattab. Because it follows lunar months, its dates move through the seasons of the solar calendar. You can see how a date corresponds to an AH date with the Hijri calendar and converter.
The Hijrah matters for more than dating. It marks a shift from a vulnerable group in Makkah to an organized community in Madinah. Many developments in worship and communal life belong to this Madinan period.
The change of qibla and the return to Makkah
The qibla is the direction Muslims face in prayer. Early Muslims prayed toward Jerusalem. In Madinah, the direction changed to the Kaaba in Makkah, generally dated to about 624 CE, or 2 AH. The Qur’an instructs believers to turn toward the Sacred Mosque (Al-Baqarah 2:144).
That change remains visible in daily Muslim life: worshippers around the world face the Kaaba when they pray. The direction differs by location. A live Qibla compass can help you find it where you are, while QiblaFind’s methodology explains how its bearing is calculated.
In 630 CE, or 8 AH, Muhammad and the Muslim community took control of Makkah. Islamic accounts describe the removal of idols from the Kaaba. Makkah remained central to Muslim worship, especially as the destination of the Hajj, the pilgrimage Muslims are obliged to make if they are able.
Muhammad died in Madinah in 632 CE, or 11 AH. By then, Islam had become established across much of Arabia. His death also raised a lasting question: who should lead the community, and on what basis?
Succession and the Rightly Guided Caliphs
A caliph is a successor in leadership of the Muslim community, not a successor to Muhammad as a prophet. Sunnis call the first four caliphs the Rightly Guided Caliphs: Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali. They led in succession between 632 and 661 CE, though their circumstances and challenges differed greatly.
Sunni and Shia Muslims understand the earliest succession differently. Sunni accounts recognize Abu Bakr as the first rightful caliph. Shia Muslims hold that Ali, Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law, had the rightful claim to lead after him. For Twelver Shia Muslims, Ali is the first imam, a divinely guided leader. These differences developed into broader traditions of religious authority and practice; neither community’s history is captured by a single dispute.
The early caliphates saw Muslim rule extend beyond Arabia. They also faced internal conflict. Uthman was killed, and Ali’s caliphate was marked by civil war. In 680 CE, after Ali’s death and the end of this four-caliph period, his son Husayn was killed at Karbala. His death holds profound importance for Shia Muslims and is remembered by Muslims more widely.
The Umayyads and Abbasids
The Umayyads ruled from Damascus from 661 to 750 CE. Their state extended across North Africa into the Iberian Peninsula and east into parts of Central and South Asia. Administration, language, and local life varied widely across that territory. Political control did not mean that everyone immediately became Muslim; conversion took place over generations.
The Abbasids took power in 750 CE and established Baghdad as their capital. Baghdad became a major center of government, commerce, and scholarship. Abbasid political control later weakened as other dynasties governed different regions. Mongol forces captured Baghdad in 1258 CE, ending the Abbasid caliphate there, but not Muslim scholarship or society.
The history of these dynasties is important, yet it is not the whole history of Islam. Muslims lived under other rulers, outside imperial capitals, and alongside people of other faiths. Their experiences differed by place and period.
Learning, astronomy, and finding the qibla
From roughly the eighth century onward, scholars working across the Muslim world translated, studied, challenged, and built on earlier learning. Arabic became an important language of scholarship, though scholars came from many linguistic and religious backgrounds. Work in mathematics, medicine, geography, and astronomy developed over centuries rather than during one uniform “golden age.”
Astronomy had practical religious uses. Lunar observation helped communities mark months; the sun’s position helped determine prayer times. Scholars also studied how to find the qibla from distant locations. That problem called for geography and mathematical ways of working with directions on the curved Earth.
These methods changed as knowledge and instruments improved. Today, a digital compass can calculate a bearing from a location, but a displayed direction still depends on the device’s sensors and its location reading. The long history behind qibla calculation is one example of how religious questions and scientific work have met in Muslim societies.
Later empires and regional histories
After Abbasid power declined, no single government represented all Muslims. The Ottoman Empire grew from Anatolia and ruled territories in southeastern Europe, western Asia, and North Africa for centuries; its sultanate ended in 1922. The Safavid Empire, founded in the early sixteenth century, helped establish Twelver Shia Islam as the dominant tradition in Iran. The Mughal Empire ruled much of the Indian subcontinent from the sixteenth century, though its reach and strength changed over time.
These were major states, not the only centers of Muslim life. Muslim communities also grew through trade networks across the Indian Ocean, through scholarship and local kingdoms in Africa, and through long histories in Southeast Asia. The past of Muslims in any one region deserves more than a footnote to an imperial timeline.
In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, European colonial rule affected many Muslim-majority regions. Independence movements, new states, and migration then reshaped political and community life. Their outcomes varied; there is no single modern experience shared by all Muslims.
Islam today
Islam is a worldwide faith whose followers live in many kinds of societies. Muslims share the Qur’an and the example of Muhammad as central points of reference, while differing in language, custom, interpretation, and political history. Sunni and Shia traditions contain diversity within them, too.
The history of Islam is therefore both a timeline and a collection of local histories. The events in Makkah and Madinah remain foundational. What followed includes centuries of scholarship and worship, as well as conflict, change, and adaptation.
Frequently asked questions
When did Islam begin?
Muslims believe its message belongs to the same tradition of worshipping one God taught by earlier prophets. As a historical community centered on Muhammad’s preaching, Islam began in seventh-century Arabia; the first revelation is traditionally dated to around 610 CE.
Why does the Islamic calendar start with the Hijrah?
The Hijrah in 622 CE marked Muhammad’s migration from Makkah to Madinah and a major turning point for the early community. The Islamic calendar later took that event as the start of its era, making 622 CE year 1 AH.
When did Muslims begin facing Makkah in prayer?
The qibla changed from Jerusalem to the Kaaba in Makkah during the Madinan period, generally dated to about 624 CE, or 2 AH. The Qur’an states the instruction to face the Sacred Mosque (Al-Baqarah 2:144).
What is the difference between Sunni and Shia accounts of succession?
The central early difference concerns leadership after Muhammad’s death. Sunnis recognize Abu Bakr as the first rightful caliph; Shia Muslims hold that Ali had the rightful claim. Both traditions have long, varied histories beyond that question.
Was the “golden age” limited to Baghdad?
No. Baghdad was a major center of scholarship under the Abbasids, but learning also flourished in other cities and regions. Scholars worked across long periods and came from varied backgrounds.