Hijaz
1
9.1
- proper noun
- His eldest son, Ali, became king of Hijaz for one year, after which Ibn Saud became monarch of all Saudi Arabia.
Examples
-
For Muslims, as we in the West sometimes tend to forget but those familiar with Islamic history and literature know, the holy land par excellence is Arabia—Mecca, where the Prophet was born; Medina, where he established the first Muslim state; and the Hijaz, whose people were the first to rally to the new faith and become its standard-bearers.
Academic text (1998) -
Beyond is the entire western coastline of the Red Sea, Hijaz and Yemen.
-
Send bids to the rulers in all of Hijaz.
-
But the decree was final and irreversible, and from then until now, the holy land of the Hijaz has been forbidden territory for non-Muslims.
Academic text (1998) -
Many Jews found homes in Hijaz and towns like Yathrib, Keba, Fadak and Umelkura.
-
The coastal highlands of the Hijaz, with their arid environment and wadi-based grain and date agriculture, are also similar to Egypt and Cyrenaica's northwestern desert coasts.
Academic text (2003) -
Sharif Hussain, ruler of Mecca and later of the whole Hijaz (western Arabia) and a Hashimite (member of the same clan as Muhammad), acknowledged keeper of the Holy Places of Islam, had been an ally of Britain during World War I.
Academic text (2002) -
The Hijaz region is historically significant because it includes the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.
-
Many pilgrims travel to the Hijaz each year to perform the Hajj.
-
The Hijaz once functioned as an independent kingdom before joining with Nejd to form Saudi Arabia.
Synonyms
1
8.7
A coastal region in western Saudi Arabia by the Red Sea that includes Mecca and Medina
1
9.9
A coastal region in western Saudi Arabia along the Red Sea that includes the holy cities Mecca and Medina
Surface Forms
Etymology
The word Hijaz comes from Arabic al-Hijaz, which means 'barrier' or 'something that separates' because a line of mountains and valleys separates the Red Sea coast from the Arabian interior. It comes from the same word as hijab ('veil' or 'cover'), so a helpful image is to think of the Hijaz as a natural 'barrier' that marks the area with the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.