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funcultivatable valley', although it has some oases and springs
such as 'al-Talif and al-Madinah. There is also the northern region
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(present day Jordan. Syria and Lebanon) which is the region of fertile
plains called the region of Al-Hilal al-Khaj: -Tb.
The southern region which consists of fertile lower slopes and ,ý
mountains rich in water and permeated by valleys was known as
al-Yaman-al-Sala7id, ( Arabia Felix. ). The Arabian Peninsula is
dividedýinto two parts. The first one which is rich in-water : the :., t
northern. southern-and western regions. The other partýwhich is the
barren dry region in which water and rain are scarce, is the larger.
The topography and the climate helped shape the social, political
and the economic conditions in the Peninsula. People were either
nomads or, town dwellers. Communities developed in the areas which
were rich in water such as al-Yaman and Hiial al Khaý Tb. while
Bedouin communities developed in the middle areas because of the
scarcity of water. The former worked in agricultural trade (such
as Mecca, and Talif). These people were more highly. civilised than
the Nomads. who roamed the spacious desert, moving from one oasis to
another. looking for water and sustenance. These Nomads were,
forced by the climate to struggle for existence. -
The co-operation of all, the members of the tribe was therefore
essential in the constant search for water and pasture. These
essentials were obtainable either by wandering from one place to
another looking for an oasis or fertile valley. or by taking possession
of other tribes' water and pasture by force. -So'bthe aims of the tribe
were common to all its members. and hence. the tribal system
developed. Thus, the tribe became the-basis of political system in
that society.
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