Judaism in pre-Islamic Arabia

Judaism was the first monotheistic religion practiced in pre-Islamic Arabia, predating the Common Era. Arabian Jews were linguistically diverse, and communities spoke Greek, Aramaic, Arabic, and Sabaic. The centers of Arabian Judaism were in the Northwest and South of the Arabian Peninsula, and political leadership by Arabian Jews is attested over South Arabia during the time of the Kingdom of Himyar from the late fourth to the early sixth centuries, and in some Hejazi oasis cities in northwestern Arabia whose populations were largely composed of the Jewish tribes of Arabia.

The origins of Arabian Judaism is not well understood. While no evidence exists to support any theory, some have speculated that these communities arose as a means of fleeing persecution and oppression during Babylonian, Roman, and other periods. The practice and diversity of Arabian Judaism is also not well understood. Pre-Islamic translations of Jewish scriptures into Arabian languages have not yet been found, suggesting that their religious culture was largely oral.