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Concept
Hejaz
Summary
The Hejaz (hiːˈdʒæz,_hɪˈ-, also UShɛˈ-; al-Ḥijāz, alħɪˈdʒaːz) is a region which includes the majority of the west of Saudi Arabia, which includes the cities of Mecca, Medina, Jeddah, Tabuk, Yanbu, Taif and Baljurashi. It is thus known as the "Western Province", and is bordered in the west by the Red Sea, in the north by Jordan, in the east by the Najd, and in the south by the Region of 'Asir. It is the most cosmopolitan region in the Arabian Peninsula. Its largest city is Jeddah, which is the second largest city in Saudi Arabia, with Mecca and Medina respectively being the fourth and fifth largest cities in the country.
As the location of the cities of Mecca and Medina, respectively the first and second holiest sites in Islam, the Hejaz is significant in the Arabo-Islamic historical and political landscape. This region is the most populated in Saudi Arabia, and Arabic is the predominant language, as in the rest of Saudi Arabia, with Hejazi Arabic being the most widely spoken dialect here. Some Hejazis are of ethnically diverse origins, although the vast majority are of Arab origin.
According to Islamic tradition, this region is the birthplace of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, who was born in Mecca, which is locally considered to have been founded by his ancestors Abraham, Ishmael, and Hagar. The area became part of his empire through the early Muslim conquests, and it formed part of successive caliphates, first the Rashidun Caliphate, followed by the Umayyad Caliphate, and finally the Abbasid Caliphate. The Ottoman Empire held partial control over the area; after its dissolution, an independent Kingdom of Hejaz existed briefly in 1925 before being conquered by the neighbouring Sultanate of Nejd, creating the Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd. In September 1932, the Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd joined the Saudi dominions of Al-Hasa and Qatif, creating the unified Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The name of the region is derived from a verb ḥajaza (حَجَز), from the Arabic root ḥ-j-z (ح-ج-ز), meaning "to separate", and it is so called as it separates the land of the Najd in the east from the land of Tihāmah in the west.
Official source
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