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What is the reason for naming Safa and Marwa by these names, what is their historical significance before and after Islam, and did they have a religious status before Islam?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The reason for naming Safa and Marwah is attributed to linguistic derivation. Safa's stones are hard and smooth, while Marwah's stones are white and soft. It was mentioned that Adam stood on Safa and it was named after him, and Eve stood on Marwah and it was named after her. Their importance lies in being among the sacred rituals immortalized by Islam, where performing Sa'i (ritualistic walking) between them is obligatory, commemorating Adam and Eve, and as an act of gratitude to Allah Almighty for the wellspring of Zamzam that appeared for Hagar and her son Ishmael after her seven-time endeavor between them.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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