Little About Madina Munawwarah

Al-Medina al-Munawwara (the Lighted City) also known as Madina an-Nabi (the city of the Prophet), is located in Hijaz, on the western part of Saudi Arabia, some four hundred kilometers north of Mecca. Medina has a population of about 600 000 inhabitants. Medina is second to Mecca in spiritual importance among Muslims. The presence of the Prophet`s Mosque (masjid al-Nabawi), the burial place of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and many other historical sites in Medina attract millions of visitors every year.

Medina became a city of religious importance with the arrival of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) in it in the year 622 A.D. The Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and his companions (R) were persecuted in Makkah for practising and preaching a monotheistic religion, that is, Islam which is diametrically opposed to the polytheistic religion of the Makkans of the Jahiliya period. As Islam began to have a greater influence among the Arabs of Makkah, the Qureish tribe who were the guardians of the Ka`ba and the 360 idols around it, feared that they would lose their privileged position among the Arabs. They devised all means to stop the spread of Islam which is threatening their social, economic and religious status. They intensified their persecutions on the the Prophet (PBUH) and his companions (R) to such an extent that the latter were compelled to leave their beloved homeland, their dear ones, and their belongings behind and migrated to Medina to be able to practise their religion. This event is such an important one in the history of Islam that during the caliphate of Umar bin Khattab (R), the caliph chose this event to mark the beginning of the Islamic calendar.

Little About Makkah

Mecca (pron: مكة‎, Makkah, pronounced), also transliterated as Makkah, is a city in the Hejaz and the capital of Makkah Province in Saudi Arabia. The city is located 70 km (43 mi) inland from Jeddah in a narrow valley at a height of 277 m (909 ft) above sea level. Its resident population in 2012 was 2 million, although visitors more than triple this number every year during Hajj period held in the twelfth Muslim lunar month of Dhu al-Hijjah.

As the birthplace of Muhammad and a site of the revelation of the Quran, Mecca is regarded as the holiest city in the religion of Islam and a pilgrimage to it known as the Hajj is obligatory for all able Muslims. Mecca was long ruled by Muhammad's descendants, the sharifs, either as independent rulers or as vassals to larger empires. It was absorbed into Saudi Arabia in 1925. In its modern period, Mecca has seen tremendous expansion in size and infrastructure. Because of this, Mecca has lost many thousand-year-old buildings and archaeological sites. Today, more than 15 million Muslims visit Mecca annually, including several million during the few days of the Hajj. As a result, Mecca has become one of the most cosmopolitan and diverse cities in the Muslim world, although non-Muslims are prohibited from entering the city.

from : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mecca