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<blockquote>Virtually all accounts of the early development of Islam take it as axiomatic that it is possible to elicit at least the outlines of the process from the Islamic sources. It is however well-known that these sources are not demonstrably early. There is no hard evidence for the existence of the Koran in any form before the last decade of the seventh century, and the tradition which places this rather opaque revelation in its historical context is not attested before the middle of the eighth. The historicity of the Islamic tradition is thus to some degree problematic: while there are no cogent internal grounds for rejecting it, there are equally no cogent external grounds for accepting it. In the circumstances it is not unreasonable to proceed in the usual fashion by presenting a sensibly edited version of the tradition as historical fact. But equally, it makes some sense to regard the tradition as without determinate historical content, and to insist that what purport to be accounts of religious events in the seventh century are utilizable only for the study of religious ideas in the eighth. The Islamic sources provide plenty of scope for the implementation of these different approaches, but offer little that can be used in any decisive way to arbitrate between them. The only way out of the dilemma is thus to step outside the Islamic tradition altogether and start again.<ref>P. Crone and M. Cook, ''Hagarism: The Making Of The Islamic World'', 1977, Cambridge University Press, p. 3</ref></blockquote>

<blockquote>Virtually all accounts of the early development of Islam take it as axiomatic that it is possible to elicit at least the outlines of the process from the Islamic sources. It is however well-known that these sources are not demonstrably early. There is no hard evidence for the existence of the Koran in any form before the last decade of the seventh century, and the tradition which places this rather opaque revelation in its historical context is not attested before the middle of the eighth. The historicity of the Islamic tradition is thus to some degree problematic: while there are no cogent internal grounds for rejecting it, there are equally no cogent external grounds for accepting it. In the circumstances it is not unreasonable to proceed in the usual fashion by presenting a sensibly edited version of the tradition as historical fact. But equally, it makes some sense to regard the tradition as without determinate historical content, and to insist that what purport to be accounts of religious events in the seventh century are utilizable only for the study of religious ideas in the eighth. The Islamic sources provide plenty of scope for the implementation of these different approaches, but offer little that can be used in any decisive way to arbitrate between them. The only way out of the dilemma is thus to step outside the Islamic tradition altogether and start again.<ref>P. Crone and M. Cook, ''Hagarism: The Making Of The Islamic World'', 1977, Cambridge University Press, p. 3</ref></blockquote>

According to the authors, Hagarism was a heretical branch of Judaism followed by the Hagarenes or [[Arabs]] in the early part of the 7th century. To the authors, the surviving records of the period describe the followers of [[Muhammad]] as Hagarenes, because of the way Muhammad invoked the Jewish  god in order to introduce an alien [[monotheism|monotheistic]] faith to the [[Arab]]s. He is reported as doing this by claiming biological descent from [[Abraham]] through his slave wife [[Hagar]] for the Arabs in the same way as the Jews who claimed descent from Abraham through [[Sarah]] and thus as their ancestral faith. During this early period the Jews and the Hagarenes united, into a faith the authors loosely describe as Judeo-Hagarism, in order to recover the [[holy land]] from  the [[Christian]] [[Byzantines]]. In their analysis, the early manuscripts from eye witnesses suggest that Muhammad was the leader of a military expedition to conquer Jerusalem, and that the original [[hijra]] actually referred to a journey from northern Arabia to that city.  

According to the authors, Hagarism was a heretical branch of Judaism followed by the Hagarenes or [[Arabs]] in the early part of the 7th century. To the authors, the surviving records of the period describe the followers of [[Muhammad]] as Hagarenes, because of the way Muhammad invoked the Jewish  god in order to introduce an alien [[monotheism|monotheistic]] faith to the [[Arab]]s. He is reported as doing this by claiming biological descent from [[Abraham]] through his slave wife [[Hagar]] for the Arabs in the same way as the Jews who claimed descent from Abraham through [[Sarah]] and thus as their ancestral faith. During this early period the Jews and the Hagarenes united, into a faith the authors loosely describe as Judeo-Hagarism, in order to recover the [[holy land]] from  the [[Christian]] [[Byzantines]]. In their analysis, the early manuscripts from eyewitnesses suggest that Muhammad was the leader of a military expedition to conquer Jerusalem, and that the original [[hijra]] actually referred to a journey from northern Arabia to that city.  

As time went on, the Hagarenes concluded that the adoption of [[Judaism]] and [[Messianism|Christian Messianism]] did not provide them with the unique religious identity that they aspired for. They also feared that leaning on [[Judaism]] too much, might result in outright conversion and assimilation. Thus the hagarenes contrived to create a religion of their own and decided to splinter off from their [[Judaic]] practices and beliefs. Driven by a quest for theological legitimacy they devised a version  of [[Abraham]]ic [[monotheism]], that evolved from a blend of [[Judaism]], [[Samaritanism]] and [[Christianity]], which became what is now Islam. The authors propose that Islam was thus born and fashioned from Judaic mythology and symbology, that is; the creation of a sacred scripture similar to the Jewish [[Torah]] - (the [[Qur'an]]), and a [[Moses]]-like prophet; along with a sacred city of [[Mecca]] modeled on the Jewish holy city of [[Jerusalem]] adjacent to a holy mountain.

As time went on, the Hagarenes concluded that the adoption of [[Judaism]] and [[Messianism|Christian Messianism]] did not provide them with the unique religious identity that they aspired for. They also feared that leaning on [[Judaism]] too much, might result in outright conversion and assimilation. Thus the hagarenes contrived to create a religion of their own and decided to splinter off from their [[Judaic]] practices and beliefs. Driven by a quest for theological legitimacy they devised a version  of [[Abraham]]ic [[monotheism]], that evolved from a blend of [[Judaism]], [[Samaritanism]] and [[Christianity]], which became what is now Islam. The authors propose that Islam was thus born and fashioned from Judaic mythology and symbology, that is; the creation of a sacred scripture similar to the Jewish [[Torah]] - (the [[Qur'an]]), and a [[Moses]]-like prophet; along with a sacred city of [[Mecca]] modeled on the Jewish holy city of [[Jerusalem]] adjacent to a holy mountain.