Why did communities on Arabian peninsula prosper economically?

Answer 1

The Arabian peninsula is strategically located between Eastern Africa (by sea) on the western side, India (by sea) on the Eastern side, Persia (by land or sea) on the Northeast side and Greater Syria on the North side. Before the advent of oil, the Arabian peninsula had little in the way of natural resources. However, both pre-Islamic Arabs and Muslim Arabs benefited from the pilgrimage to Mecca as an economic boon to the region. Pre-Islamic Arabs used riches from the pilgrimage and idol-making industry to trade along caravan routes headed to Greater Syria (Israel, Palestine, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan today) as well as trade by sea with East Africa. Indian trade occurred during the pilgrimage as well as in the markets of Greater Syria. Raiding of trading caravans were common in pre-Islamic times.

Under the reign of Caliph Umar ibn Al-Khattab, the Muslim empire of Arabia expanded from North Africa and Spain in the West to Persia in the East. Riches gained from jizya (protection tax), conquest and zakat (charity tax) were kept in the bayt-al-mal (Treasury) in the Arabian peninsula as well as with those who participated in the expansion. The pilgrimage grew in scope as the Muslim community grew.