There Was No Islam Before the Birth of Muhammad: A Scholarly Examination

By Dr. Maxwell Shimba, Shimba Theological Institute

Abstract

A brief summary of the thesis: Islam did not exist prior to Muhammad. No textual, manuscript, archaeological, or linguistic evidence demonstrates the presence of a religion called Islam before the 7th century CE. The Qur’an itself paradoxically identifies Muhammad as the first Muslim, even while retrospectively labeling Abraham and other prophets as Muslims. This paper critically evaluates the historical, theological, and linguistic claims surrounding Islam’s origins and demonstrates that Islam is a distinct 7th-century Arabian development.

Introduction

State the Islamic theological claim: all prophets were Muslims.
Contrast with historical scholarship: no pre-Muhammad Islam is attested.
Outline methodology: Qur’anic exegesis, historical-critical analysis, manuscript evidence, archaeology, linguistics.
Research question: Did Islam exist before Muhammad, or is it a product of his prophetic career?

Qur’anic Self-Contradiction

Surah al-An‘am 6:14 – Muhammad as the first Muslim.
Surah az-Zumar 39:1–2 – Islam revealed to Muhammad.
Qur’an’s retroactive labeling of Abraham (3:67) and Jesus’ disciples (3:52) as Muslims.
Tafsir tradition (Al-Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir) admits Muhammad is “the first” in his era, raising theological contradictions.

Absence of Manuscript Evidence

Survey of ancient texts: Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint, Targums, Mishnah, early Christian Fathers.
None mention Islam or “Muslims.”
Christian, Jewish, and pagan writers discussing Arabs never describe Islam before 610 CE.
Quranic codification only began after Muhammad’s death (Uthman’s recension c. 650 CE).

Archaeological Silence

Pre-Islamic Arabia dominated by polytheism (Hubal, al-Lat, al-Uzza, Manat).
Kaaba housed 360 idols (Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah).
Petra inscriptions and Nabataean traditions reflect Arab paganism, not Islam.
No inscriptions or coins referencing Islam before Muhammad.

Linguistic Analysis of Islam and Muslim

Root S-L-M existed in Semitic languages (Hebrew shalom, Aramaic shlama).
But as a religious identifier, Islam is novel to the Qur’an.
Comparative linguistics: Christianity (Christianoi) and Judaism (Ioudaios) appear in external sources before their consolidation—Islam does not.
First external references to Islam appear only in Greek and Syriac sources after Muhammad’s death.

Comparative Abrahamic Traditions

Judaism: historically verifiable as a covenantal religion of Israel.
Christianity: rooted in the historical Jesus, early manuscripts from the 1st–2nd century.
Islam: lacks pre-7th century evidence, relies on retroactive theological projection.
The attempt to “Islamize” Abraham, Moses, and Jesus is doctrinal—not historical.

Review of Critical Scholarship

Patricia Crone & Michael Cook (Hagarism): Islam emerged from Arab monotheist reform, not from Abraham.
Fred Donner (Muhammad and the Believers): early movement was broader and only later crystallized as “Islam.”
Robert Hoyland (Seeing Islam as Others Saw It): non-Muslim sources of the 7th century never mention Islam as a religion until decades after Muhammad.
Conclusion from scholarship: Islam originated in Muhammad’s lifetime, not before.

Theological and Historical Implications

Islam’s claim of continuity is theological fiction, not historical fact.
If Muhammad is the first Muslim, then pre-Islamic prophets cannot be Muslims.
Christianity and Judaism maintain historically verifiable roots predating their founders.
Islam stands alone as a 7th-century innovation, contradicting its own claim of eternal continuity.

Conclusion

Restate thesis: Islam did not exist before Muhammad.
Evidence: Qur’anic contradiction, absence of manuscripts, archaeological silence, linguistic novelty, critical scholarship.
Final statement: Islam must be recognized as a uniquely 7th-century Arabian religion, born from Muhammad’s teachings, rather than a timeless Abrahamic faith.

References / Bibliography

Al-Qurtubi. Tafsir al-Qurtubi. Cairo: Dar al-Kutub al-Misriyyah.
Cook, Michael, and Patricia Crone. Hagarism: The Making of the Islamic World. Cambridge University Press, 1977.
Donner, Fred. Muhammad and the Believers: At the Origins of Islam. Harvard University Press, 2010.
Guillaume, A. (trans.). The Life of Muhammad: A Translation of Ibn Ishaq's Sirat Rasul Allah. Oxford University Press, 1955.
Hoyland, Robert. Seeing Islam as Others Saw It: A Survey and Evaluation of Christian, Jewish and Zoroastrian Writings on Early Islam. Darwin Press, 1997.
Peters, F. E. Muhammad and the Origins of Islam. SUNY Press, 1994.
Watt, W. Montgomery. Muhammad at Mecca. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1953.
Watt, W. Montgomery. Muhammad at Medina. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1956.

📌 Dr. Shimba,

Tuesday, December 23, 2025