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(usually Medina in English, Médine in French), residence of the Prophet Muḥammad after the ḥid̲j̲ra and one of the sacred cities of Islam. Medina is situated in the Ḥid̲j̲āz province of Saʿūdī Arabia in latitude 24° 28′ N, longitude 39° 36′ E, about 160 km. from the Red Sea and about 350 km. north of Mecca. It has developed from an oasis on relatively level ground between the hill of Uḥud on the north and that of ʿAyr on the south. East and west are lava flows (in Arabic ḥarra [ q.v.] or lāba ). There are several wādī s or watercourses which cross the oasis from south to…

(in English normally “Mecca”, in French “La Mecque”), the most sacred city of Islam, where the Prophet Muḥammad was born and lived for about 50 years, and where the Kaʿba [ q.v.] is situated. 1. The pre-Islamic and early Islamic periods Geographical description. Mecca is located in the Ḥid̲j̲āz about 72 km. inland from the Red Sea port of Jedda (D̲j̲udda [ q.v.]), in lat. 21° 27′ N. and long. 39° 49′ E. It is now the capital of the province ( manātiḳ idāriyya ) of Makka in Suʿūdī Arabia, and has a normal population of between 200,000 and 300,000, which …