Sahifat al-Madina

E169420

Sahifat al-Madina is an early Islamic charter attributed to the Prophet Muhammad that organized relations and mutual obligations among the diverse communities of Medina, often regarded as one of the first written constitutions in history.

All labels observed (2)

Label Occurrences
Sahifa of Medina 1
Sahifat al-Madina canonical 1

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (49)

Predicate Object
instanceOf Islamic legal document
constitutional document
historical document
political charter
addresses internal justice and dispute settlement
rules of warfare and peace within the community
status and protection of minorities
tribal solidarity and inter-tribal conflict resolution
alsoKnownAs Constitution of Medina
Constitution of Medina
surface form: Medina Charter

Sahifat al-Madina
surface form: Sahifa of Medina
approximateDate circa 622 CE
attributedTo Muhammad
surface form: Prophet Muhammad
definesCommunityAs ummah
describedAs one of the earliest written constitutions in history
governs relations among various clans of Yathrib/Medina
relations between Muslim emigrants (Muhajirun) and helpers (Ansar)
relations between Muslims and Jewish tribes in Medina
historicalContext Hijrah of Prophet Muhammad
surface form: Hijra to Medina
includesProvision collective security of the community
mutual defense obligations
obligation to support the oppressed
prohibition of aiding enemies of the community
provisions for arbitration by the Prophet Muhammad
regulation of blood-money and ransoms
religious freedom for Jewish tribes within the political community
influences contemporary Muslim political thought
modern discussions of Islamic constitutionalism
language Arabic
legalNature agreement among tribes and groups of Medina
social contract
originalMedium oral and written transmission in early Islamic period
placeOfOrigin Medina
politicalConcept ummah as a single community
politicalRole foundational document for the first Muslim polity
framework for governance in Medina
preservedIn early Islamic historical sources
purpose to define mutual obligations of Muslim and non-Muslim groups in Medina
to establish political and social order in Medina
to regulate relations among the inhabitants of Medina
recognizedBy Islamic historians as an early constitutional text
region Hejaz
religiousContext Islam
scholarlyDebate exact wording and compilation history
extent of later editorial additions
sourceFor studies of Islamic political thought
studies of early Islamic law
studies of interfaith relations in early Islam
timePeriod early 7th century

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (2)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Constitution of Medina alsoKnownAs Sahifat al-Madina
Sahifat al-Madina alsoKnownAs Sahifat al-Madina
this entity surface form: Sahifa of Medina