Hijrah, also spelled Hejira or Hijra, is the migration of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his followers from Mecca to Medina in 622 CE in order to escape persecution. The term "Hijrah" means primarily "a severing of ties of kinship or association". The Hijrah is a significant event in Islamic history as it marks the beginning of the Islamic calendar. After arriving in Medina, Muhammad negotiated the Constitution of Medina with the local clans, thereby establishing the Muslim community as a sociopolitical entity for the first time. The Hijrah not only reshaped the Arab Peninsula socially and politically but also had its impact on worldwide civilizations. In Islam, Hijrah means to leave ones homeland and settle in another place, not just a matter of moving from one place to another, and it is meant to be undertaken for the sake of Allah. The Hijrah has always had, and still has, a great role to play in the process of dawah (Islamic outreach) .