Bilal ibn Rabah: The Story of an African Slave Who Became Islam’s First Muezzin   Bilal ibn Rabah, also known as Bilal al-Habashi (Bilal the Ethiopian), originated from Abyssinia (present-day Ethiopia or Eritrea). He was born into slavery in Mecca and was a first-generation Muslim, one of the earliest converts to Islam. He is noted for being the first muezzin (caller to prayer) in Islam. Origin Bilal was of Habashi (Ethiopian) descent and was born into slavery in Mecca. He was enslaved by Umayyah ibn Khalaf, a powerful Quraysh elite and opponent of Islam. His...