Catherine Muir Sep 29, 2011:

semantics and perspective maybe I took the phrase from Wikipedia. I am not an expert on Islam so I don't know. However, semantically, one man's 'flight' would be another man's 'migration'. When we leave one place for another, there is usually a 'push' and a 'pull'. The important point is that Hijriah is an Arabic term, based on an event in the life of Muhammad.

Catherine Muir Sep 27, 2011:

derivation of the words 'Masehi' and 'Hijriah' 'Masehi' comes from 'Messiah' and refers to dating starting with the birth of Christ. In Latin, 'anno domini' or AD. These days, usually referred to as CE ('Common Era, sometimes 'Current Era' or 'Christian Era').
Hijriah is Arabic, meaning 'related to the hijrah', Muhammad's flight from Mecca to Medina (circa A.D. 622).