The Constitution of Medina, negotiated by Muhammad and accepted by the Mala [Senate] of Medina, explicitly refers to Jewish and pagan citizens of Medina as members of the Ummah or nation .
Some modern Islamists use the term "Islamic Ummah" or "Muslim Ummah" to refer to all the people in the lands and countries where predominantly Muslims reside, and which were once under the control of the Islamic Caliphate. They thus include non-Muslim minorities as members of the ummah. When they talk of unifying the "Islamic Ummah" they would include these non-Muslims, as citizens of the Islamic Ummah, living peacefully with their own respective religions, subject to certain specific conditions. See Dhimmi for a full discussion of this concept. Other Islamists accept the full equality of all citizens in a putative future Islamic state, regardless of their religion. In either case, shariah (Islamic law) would apply to the citizens of the state. Non-Muslim citizens would be free to settle their private disputes in their own courts, although all disputes that involve a Muslim would have to be settled in a Muslim court.
In many respects, Ummah is a direct parallel to Christendom.
The Ummah