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3.TeArabsbeforeIslam…
49
datribeboreonlyapassingresemblancetoastate(itschiefboreatitlemalik,
thatis,aking).Existinginthefirsthalfofthesixthcentury,itwasnothingbut
aconfederationofdilerenttribes.Teuseofthetermmalikwasherequite
extraordinary,astheArabsusuallyreserveditforforeignrulersonly.AsPhilip
Hittiwrites:
Kindah’sriseisinterestingnotonlyinitselfbutasthefirstattemptininnerArabiato
uniteanumberoftribesaroundthecentralauthorityofonecommonchief.Assuch
theexperimentestablishedaprecedentforAl-HidjśzandMuhammad.
28
TepoliticalsystemthatexistedincentralArabiawasbasedonblood
bondsandonasenseoftribalsolidarity((aabiyya)
29.Chiefsofparticulartribes,
alongwiththoseonwhoseassistancetheyrelied-tribalpoetsandreligious
servants,occupiedthedominantroleintheoldArabcommunities.Terhythm
ofthelifeofpre-MuslimArabiawasmarkedbythesuccessionofwarsandbat-
tleswagedbetweendilerenttribesandclans.Tememoryofthesestruggles
hassurvivedintheaccountscalledayydmal-(Arab(“daysoftheArabs”)writ-
tenlongafertheeventstowhichtheyrefer.Temostfamousamongthem
areprobablytheBasūswarandthewarofhisandGhabra.Amixtureof
factandfiction,theseaccountscanonlybereliedontoalimitedextentfor
thereconstructionofhistoricalevents.Nevertheless,theyreflectthewayof
lifeoftypicaltribalcommunitiesinhabitingAl-Hidjśzandthelandsitbor-
dered
30.Terivalrybetweenbeduinsandthesettledpopulationformedone
oftheaxesofthetheseconflicts.Atthattimetherewereseveralcitycentresin
centralArabia.BesidesMecca,therewereYathrib,Khaybar,Taymś(orTa(izz.
Tecity-statesandthewholeofBilddal-(Arabfunctionedinawaythatwas
tingedwithtribalism-politicalcentresweredominatedbyvarioustribes.In
Meccathedominantpositionwasheldbytheuraysh,whileinMedinapower
wasdispersedbetweensomeJewishfamiliesandtwoArabclans:al-Awsand
al-Khazradj,whichofenprovokedconflict.Bythetimeunderconsideration,
MeccahadalreadyrisentothepositionofthemaincentreoftheoldArabpoly-
theisticreligion.ItwasalsoahomeatthetempleAl-Ka(ba,recognizedlateras
28Ph.K.Hitti,DziejeArabów…,p.74[=London1970,p.86].
29J.Zdanowski,Znaczeniekategorii(aabiyya.Uwagidopolemikiwokółteoriiwładzy
IbnChalduna,[in:]ZMekkidoPoznania.Materiały5.OgólnopolskiejKonferencjiArabistycznej,
Poznań,9-10VI1997r.,ed.H.Jankowski,Poznań1998,pp.285-290;F.Gabrieli,
ʽAabiyya,[in:]EI,vol.I,p.681.
30E.Meyer,DerhistorischeGehaltderAiydmal-(Arab,Wiesbaden1970;M.M.Dz-
iekan,DniArabów(Ajjamal-Arab):międzyhistoriąalegendą,RTNW66,2003,pp.183-187.