Was the Prophet Shuʿayb, peace be upon him, sent to more than one people, and what are "Madyan" and "Al-Aykah"?

First: "Madyan" was an Arab tribe that lived on the borders of Sham (the Levant), while "Al-Aykah" means a dense grove of trees.

Second: The story of Shu'ayb, peace be upon him, with his people is mentioned in four places in the Holy Quran:

1. In Surah Al-A'raf: Shu'ayb was sent to the people of Madyan, and the earthquake seized them. 2. In Surah Hud: Shu'ayb was sent to the people of Madyan, and the blast seized them. 3. In Surah Al-'Ankabut: Shu'ayb was sent to the people of Madyan, and the earthquake seized them. 4. In Surah Ash-Shu'ara: Shu'ayb was sent to the companions of Al-Aykah, and the torment of the Day of the Shadow seized them.

The sayings of the scholars differ as to whether the people of Madyan were the same as the companions of Al-Aykah or two different peoples:

The First View: They were two distinct peoples. They supported this by the Quran distinguishing between them in naming, and by Shu'ayb not being described as the brother of the companions of Al-Aykah as he was described for the people of Madyan, and by the difference in the type of punishment that befell each of them.

The Second View (the majority of scholars): The people of Madyan were the same as the companions of Al-Aykah. They supported this by the identical nature of Shu'ayb's call to all of them. They responded to the lack of Shu'ayb being described as a brother to the companions of Al-Aykah by stating that it was a reference to their worship of Al-Aykah, and to the difference in punishment by saying that it does not prevent them from being one people, and that the punishment could be multiple and varied.

The most probable view is that the matter is open to interpretation, and Shu'ayb, peace be upon him, might have been sent to two different peoples who were geographically close, one urban and the other nomadic (the companions of Al-Aykah), and both were united in polytheism and corruption.