JEDDAH: The tradition of serving Zamzam water to pilgrims is among the oldest professions linked to the Two Holy Mosques, dating back thousands of years to the rediscovery of the Zamzam Well by Abdul-Muttalib bin Hashim, the grandfather of Prophet Muhammad.
The responsibility for caring for the well and serving visitors later passed to his son Al-Abbas, establishing a service that became central to the Hajj and Umrah experience for centuries, according to the Saudi Press Agency.
Historically, Zamzam water was distributed by dedicated carriers who transported it throughout the Grand Mosque in Makkah and the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah.
The water was stored in large clay jars, often perfumed with mastic and Taif rosewater to preserve freshness and add fragrance. Carriers moved through mosque courtyards with portable containers, serving worshippers by hand and delivering water to pilgrim accommodations across the holy cities.
As pilgrim numbers grew, the service evolved into a more organized system. According to the King Abdulaziz Foundation for Research and Archives, the Saudi state formally regulated Zamzam distribution under Hajj management regulations issued in 1926 during the reign of King Abdulaziz.
