The Pact of Umar

The Pact of Umar, attributed to Caliph Umar I (634-644) deals with the status of non-Muslims, the “People of the Book”, and the measures they were obligated to abide by while living under Muslim control (Barnavi, 2002). The earliest version that was preserved dates from the tenth century (College Course History of the Jewish People). Though the Pact of Umar makes provisions regarding Christians living under Muslim territories in particular, it was extended to refer to Jews as well as to any other religious minority. The non-Muslims living under the protection of Arabs were now referred as the “dhimma” or “protected person”, while before the Pact, they were referred as “tolerated person” (Barnavi, 2002). The dhimmis were required to pay a special poll tax and a land tax in exchange for protection, and they were required to follow the rules imposed by Muslims in order to maintain their status as protected people. This Covenant deals with the relations between the Muslims and non-Muslims living under Arab territories, as it defines the behavior expected of non-Muslims living under territories dominated by Muslims, and it reflects as well the attitude of Islam towards Judaism, Christianity, and other religious movements.

The Pact is believed to have originated with the surrender of the Christians of Jerusalem in 637-638, and it continued to regulate the relations between Muslims and Non-Muslims until the nineteenth century (Barnavi, 2002). Written in the form of a letter, the Pact is addressed to Umar, the Caliph, which is described as “Allah’s servant”. Within the specific time period in which it was developed, this Covenant shows an improvement in the legal status of Non-Muslims living under Arab control, given the previous harsh attitude of Persians, Byzantines, and Visigoths (Barnavi, 2002).  The tone with which the Covenant was written indicates that the non-Muslims who wrote the document were required to show extreme reverence to the Caliph, who is described as divinely ordained in exercising his political function. Apparently, those who wrote this document belong to a “sect”— the “infidels”, extraneous to Islam. This document is written using the first person, plural pronoun “we”, as it is the “infidels” who are collectively taking upon themselves certain limitations in exchange for the privilege of being allowed to live under Muslim rule (Hallo, 1984).

The provisions of the Pact of Umar begin with listing the restrictions required of dhimmis (Hallo, 1984). As such, the document states that any constructions or renovations of houses of worship affiliated with a religion other than Islam are outlawed. The non-Muslim inhabitants are obligating themselves to provide food and lodging to Muslims who are in need of temporary residence while on the road. They cannot teach the Koran to their non-Muslim children, and they cannot perform public religious celebrations and rituals. The non-Muslims must adopt signs to differentiate their status as dhimmis as not to be confused with Muslims. Moreover, the dhimmis must stand when Muslims sit down.  They must wear distinct garments. They cannot use the Arabic language on their inscriptions, and they cannot wear weapons or sell wine. They must also clip the forelocks of their heads. The pact also imposes limitations on religious observance, such as outlawing the displaying of religious symbols in public or performing religious rituals in the presence of Muslims. In addition, non-Muslims could not own slaves pertaining to Muslims. In order to prevent non-Muslim religions from spreading, proselytizing was also forbidden, while no measures could be taken to prevent those wishing to convert to Islam. A later clause allegedly added by the Caliph himself was that non-Muslims could not strike Muslims. In terms of communal organization, the homes of the dhimmis could not be built higher than those of Muslims. 

While examining the Pact of Umar, it is evident that the variety of signs non-Muslims were required to have in order to make evident their status as dhimmis can be divided into two categories: signs that were meant to keep boundaries clear and signs that were meant to segregate, humiliate, and exclude. The purpose was to make evident to the “infidels” the superiority of Islam. The security and stability of the dhimmi status was dependent upon paying the required poll tax. There was also a land tax imposed, which dhimmis would avoid paying by engaging in commerce (Barnavi, 2002).

According to the perspective of this document, dhimmis were granted the right to live in apparently relative peace with their Muslim neighbors as long as they took upon themselves to live according to the restrictions established by the Pact. Since the document is apparently written by non-Muslims and addressed to the Caliph, in appearance at least it sounds as if it was the non-Muslims who voluntarily offered themselves to abide by these rules. Yet, due to the restrictive and humiliating nature of some of the provisions, the ability of the dhimmis to decide if these stipulations were fully acceptable willingly becomes questionable as due to the historical conditions of this time period, their choices were limited.
Moreover, it is noteworthy to remember that the dhimmis were not considered equal citizens with their Muslim neighbors, and they were only second-class citizens living under Muslim rule and subjugated to humiliating conditions (Rabbi Telushkin, 1991). Certainly, Dhimmis were permitted to practice their religion in an apparently more liberal way that Jews living under Christian rule, where they feared mass conversion, persecutions, and expulsion. However, Rabbi Telushkin notes that the way dhimmis acknowledged their subservience to the Muslims by standing up in their presence is reminiscent of the black population living in the South under the “Jim Crow” laws. Furthermore, it was rather a cruel restriction to forbid non-Muslims from riding horses or mules.  In assessing the provisions of the Pact of Umar, the point of view can be extended to incorporate its impact for the future relations between Muslims and non-Muslims. According to Rabbi Telushkin, The Pact of Umar marked only the beginning of anti-dhimmi legislation, as Jews and Christians throughout the centuries were ordered to wear ridiculous outfits, in order to be easily recognized by their silly outfit. Most scholars agree that the restrictive and humiliating natures of the Pact’s provisions originated and were enforced during the reign of Omar II (717-720) (Bernavi, 2002), and continued in various ways during the subsequent time periods. For example, in Baghdad in the eleventh century, Jewish women wore a black and a red shoe, with a brass bell attached to their shoe or neck. In eleventh century Egypt, Christians had to wear a cross with arms two feet long while Jews had to wear a five pound ball around their neck as to remember the Biblical account of the Golden calf (Rabbi Telushkin, 1991). Likewise, Yemenite Jews, until their departure in 1948, were obligated to dress as beggars to reflect their low status as beggars.  Albert Memmi, a French Jewish novelist, raised in North Africa, described the Arab-Jewish condition as “Roughly speaking and in the best of cases, the Jew is protected like a dog which is part of a man’s property, but if he raises his head or acts like a man, then he must be beaten, so that he will always remember his status.”

While examining the Pact of Umar, it is evident that the document though makes provisions of security, it also requires from non-Muslims to assume an inferior role towards Muslims and the religion of Islam. The validity of other religions besides Islam is never placed on equal footing. As such, forcing the non-Muslim to behave this way may have two effects. The non-Muslim seeing his liberty restricted and the required reverence he must show to the Muslim, may just as well desire better treatment and the way he may be able to achieve a higher status is though conversion to Islam. Islam, though it did not outwardly impose conversion, it readily embraced converts. As such, the Pact of Umar although it allowed the practice of other religions and did not directly require conversion, it may in some way make Islam more appealing as to escape the dhimmi status. On the other hand, the Muslim, being that he expected such reverence from the dhimmi, will take more pride in being a Muslim since he lives in a society that provides a lower status to those of other religions.  For the time period in which it was given, the Pact of Umar provided non-Muslims with a means of protection from other more threatening factors, though the perspective encountered in this Pact continued to influence the greater framework of Muslim and non-Muslim relations, until present times.

References:
Eli Barnavi ed. A Historical Atlas of the Jewish People. From the Time of the Patriarchs of the Present, Schocken: New York 1992

College Course in History of the Jewish People

Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, Jewish Literacy: The Most Important Things to Know about The Jewish Religion, its People, and its History, William Morrow, Inc: New York 1991

William Hallo et al., Heritage. Civilization and the Jews: Source Reader, Praeger: New York 1984