Origins and history
Souq Okaz is an archaeological site in Taif, Makkah Region. It began around 501 CE, about a century before Islam, as a meeting place for trade, ideas and literature among the Arab tribes. [1]
It remained a trading centre in the Islamic era and a station on the pilgrimage road from Yemen until the sixth century AH, despite being sacked by the Haruri Kharijites in 129 AH/747 CE. [1]
Season and poetry
The market opened on the first of Dhu al-Qadah and ran until the twentieth, after which people moved on to the markets of Majannah and Dhu al-Majaz before the Hajj. Goods came from Hajar, Iraq, Syria, Persia and Yemen. [1]
Its name comes from mu'akazah, the contest of poets reciting boasts, and alliances, truces and protections were announced there because so many Arabs gathered. [1]
Remains
The Red Saraya plateau carries rock drawings and commemorative Islamic inscriptions in undotted Kufic from the early Islamic centuries, and Wadi Luwan east of the market has two further rock-art sites. [1]