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The first centuries of the Islamic Hijri calendar, starting in the CE year 622, were the formative years of the religion. Between the first and third Islamic centuries the Qur'an was written down and codified, the prophet lived and died, the great hadith collections were gathered, the sira of the prophet was committed to writing, the great schools of Sunni jurisprudence came to be, and the theology of Islam attained its familiar form. The end of the Abassid period saw the "crystallization" of the Islamic tradition around the Sunnah of the prophet and the Qur'an placed in creation before all time and space after the defeat of the Mu'atazilite heresy. These years thus can be said to cover the formation of the religion of Islam as we know it today.

Islam arose in 7th century Arabia, and as such its appearance bears the markings of its ancient Arab and Near East milieu.

Islamic law, or the Shariah, is held to comprise the specific rulings intended by Allah for all of mankind in all times and places and delivered through Islamic scriptures (namely, the Quran and hadith). Fiqh, or Islamic jurisprudence, comprises the legal and interpretive theories through which these rulings are derived from the Quran and hadith. Norms observed and prescribed by Muhammad in these scriptures are, as a rule, taken literally and considered binding.

The idea of scripture is central to Islam; above all else, Islam's own scriptures tell of how Allah has periodically given his followers books throughout the ages, and refers to Islam's co-abrahamic religionists as People of the Book. The central scripture of Islam is above all the Qur'an, which orthodox Sunni and Shi'i Islam see as the literal word of Allah through his messenger Muhammad.

Islamic law, or the Shariah, is held to comprise the specific rulings intended by Allah for all of mankind in all times and places and delivered through Islamic scriptures (namely, the Quran and hadith). Fiqh, or Islamic jurisprudence, comprises the legal and interpretive theories through which these rulings are derived from the Quran and hadith. Norms observed and prescribed by Muhammad in these scriptures are, as a rule, taken literally and considered binding.

There is much in Islamic scripture that is not of direct legal relevance and which can be understood as constituting doctrine. The Arabic word aqeedah, or creed, has generally been understood to encompass a more limited range of ideas than what, to a modern person, would appear as Islamic doctrine.

Among the many and diverse matters discussed in or touched upon by Islamic scriptures are topics of direct or indirect scientific interest. These topics include reproductive science, embryology, cosmology, and medicine, among others.

While some modern Islamic scholars have struggled to reconcile Islamic law and modern, largely Western notions of human rights, the majority of traditional Islamic scholars today have defied what they perceive as an attempt at intellectual colonialism.

Muhammad, the founder of Islam, is one of the most vigorously revered men to have ever lived. His legacy has meant many different things to many different people throughout history. Information on his life comes almost exclusively through oral reports (hadiths) compiled, for the most part, more than a hundred and fifty years after his death.

The wives of the prophet are described as "أمهات المؤمنين" or "mothers of the believers." As such the prophetic example is considered instructive for all Muslim households. How the prophet interacted with his wives, and how they obeyed him, is a framework for how Muslim husbands and wives ought to interact, as well as how men should interact with their own female slaves.

Muhammad's contemporaries, companions, and successors play an elevated role in the lore of Islam. It is against many of his contemporaries that Muhammad defined his movement, it is through his companions that his tradition was passed forth, and it is by his immediate successors that his legacy was interpreted and formalized.

The Qur'an makes constant reference to the stories of the Judeao-Christian tradition. The references are familiar and sometimes in passing, and assume a great deal of familiarity on the part of the listeners. The audience for these chapters was clearly one well-acquainted with the stories themselves and the Qur'an itself says that it is a "reminder" (73:19) of the message which has come before