The Arabs before the mission of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): Are they among the people of the period of ignorance?

Question:
May Allah reward you, Honorable Shaykh. This questioner says: Are the Arabs before the mission of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) among the people of the period of ignorance?

Answer:
They are not among the people of the period of ignorance, because they had the traces of the messengers; they had the traces of the messengers and the religion of Ibrahim (peace be upon him) and Isma'il. So they knew this; they are not among the people of the period of ignorance. Yes, the people of the period of ignorance are those to whom nothing was conveyed. As for those before the mission of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), the call of the messengers had reached them. You find this in their poetry and in their words; you find something of it in them. Among them were ascetics, rabbis, and monks on the religion of the previous prophets. Among them, among them, the call had reached them. Yes.