Abbas (properly Abd-el-Mottalib), the paternal uncle of Mohammed and progenitor of the Mohammedan dynasty of the Abbassides (q.v.), was born at Mecca about A.D. 566. He was but four years the senior of Mohammed, and was still a pagan when the prophet began his public career, and long remained his open enemy. He fought against Mohammed in the battle of Bedr, and was taken prisoner; but as soon as the cause of the prophet seemed to succeed he gave in his adhesion to the new faith, and defended it zealously. When Mecca surrendered to Mohammed, the holy well Zemzem was retained, although a monument of paganism, in deference to Abbas, its keeper. He was the chief mourner at Mohammed's funeral, and his presence and memory were treated with great respect by the caliphs.
The Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature was edited by John McClintock and James Strong. It contains nearly 50,000 articles pertaining to Biblical and other religious literature, people, creeds, etc. It is a fantastic research tool for broad Christian study.
John McClintock was born October 27, 1814 in Philadelphia to Irish immigrants, John and Martha McClintock. He began as a clerk in his father's store, and then became a bookkeeper in the Methodist Book Concern in New York. Here he converted to Methodism and considered joining the ministry. McClintock entered the University of Pennsylvania in 1832 and graduated with high honors three years later. Subsequently, he was awarded a doctorate of divinity degree from the same institution in 1848.WikipediaRead More