the ruling class, the aristocracy, the nobility and royal families.

the ruling class, the aristocracy, the nobility and royal families. This situation was more evident in countries whose system of government was based on the class system. The Arab peoples especially, and the inhabitants of the Arabian peninsula, were further behind other countries as regards civilisation and culture, so that at the time of the advent of Islam, in the Hejaz itself, those who were literate (i.e. those who could merely read and write) could be counted on the fingers.