The Jewish tribes of Arabia were ethnic groups professing the Jewish faith that inhabited the Arabian Peninsula before and during the advent of Islam. In Islamic tradition the Jewish tribes of the Hejaz were seen as the offspring of the ancient Hebrews. According to Muslim sources, they spoke a language other than Arabic, which Al-Tabari claims was Persian. This implies they were connected to the major Jewish center in Babylon. Certain Jewish traditions record the existence of nomadic tribes such as the Rechabites that converted to Judaism in antiquity.