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Ethan Vukelich

Notes
The Rise and Fall of Islam

The Origins of Islam


The Arabian Peninsula Before Muhammad

Arabs were used to protect the Sasanids and Byzantines from attackers
Southern Arabs were Isolationists
Arabian Peninsula consisted mostly of farmers
Started Caravan Trade: nomads protected merchants during their trade
routes
Caravans traded mostly with Mesopotamia and Syria
Invented camel saddles
Ox carts and wheeled carriages replaced with Pack Camels and Donkeys
Some nomads adopted the culture of the Byzantines and Sasanids, becoming
familiar with Christianity
Mecca: Late blooming caravan city

Muhammad in Mecca

Muhammad was born in Mecca, 570 CE, as an orphan


Involved in trade
Meditated in the mountains around Mecca
Night of Power and Excellence: Night the Quran was received my
Muhammad
Muhammad only shared ideas with Friends and Family
Heard the words of God
Spread by his close friends and family
Muslim: person who submit to the word of God
Islam: to the will of God
Kaba: shrine that is the focus of Muslim prayer, built by Abraham
(considered to be first Muslim)
Kinship is the most important factor of Muslim society

Formation of the Umma

Meccas leaders persecuted Muhammads followers due to fear of being


overthrown
Muhammad + Followers fled Mecca and took home in Medina
o This hijra (immigration or flight) marks the start of the Muslim calendar
Medinan leaders saw Muhammad as a inspired leader who could calm their
feuding
Medinans and Meccan immigrants bound themselves into a single umma

Umma: community defined by acceptance of Islam and of Muhammad as the


Messenger of God
Muslims fought against the nonbelieving Meccans
Expelled or Eliminated all Jews
This war convinced many Meccans that God favored Muslims
630- Meccan surrendered to Muhammad
People traveled to see Muhammad and then passed his word onto others
632- Muhammad Died
Abu Bakr or the Khalifa succeeded him
Five Pillars of Islam
1. Avowal that there is only one god and Muhammad is his messenger
2. Prayer five times a day
3. Fasting during the lunar month of Ramadan
4. Paying alms
5. Making the pilgrimage to Mecca at least once during ones lifetime
Caliphate: office established in succession to the Prophet Muhammad
Collected Muhammads teaching in a book, the Quran
The Third Caliphate Uthman was assassinated
Ali took control
Ali was thought to be Muhammads natural heir
Shiites believed this
Governor of Syria Muawiya became the Caliphate after Alis murder
Umayyad Caliphate: first dynasty of Muslim caliphs
Sunnis: People of Tradition and Community, support first three caliphs
The Rise and Fall of the Caliphate, 632-1258CE
The Islamic Conquest, 634-711

Arab conquest out of Arabia started under Umar


Wrenched Syria and Egypt away from the Byzantines
Then Tunisia
In 711, the conquest of Spain began by Arab led Berbers from North Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa saw the spread of Islam through peaceful trade
Umar prohibited Arabs from owning a conquered territory
Not many people knew the Arabic language
No records of Missionary efforts to spread Islam
The Umayyad and Early Abbasid Caliphates, 661-850 CE

Umayyad Caliphs presided over an Arab realm rather than a religious empire
Ruled from Damascus
Silver dirhams and gold dinars were official coinage of the empire
Ymayyad dynasty fell in 750 after a period of unrest
Shiites and Kharijites launched a rebellion agains Umayyad dynasty
Abbasid Caliphate: descendants of the Prophet Muhammads Uncle,
overthrew the Umayyad Caliphs and ruled from the capital Baghdad

Mongols killed Abbasid Caliphate in 1258


Gradual conversion to Islam among the conquered population accelerated in
the Ninth Century
Social Discrimination against non-Arabs faded away
Political Fragmentation

Conversion to Islam accelerated


Large amounts of Muslim Revolts with little military response
Mamluks: Turkish slaves purchased to be the standing army of the Abbasid
Caliphate
Many groups attacked Arabs and Muslims while the Turks controlled Samarra
by influencing of the selection of their rulers.
Ghana: first known kingdom in sub Saharan West Africa
Ghana was able to gain and prosper from the sub-Saharans improved trading
by trading their own gold via caravan.
Ulama: Muslim religious scholars
Assault from Within and Without, 1050-1258

Turks were now seen as ferocious and unsophisticated


Seljuk family established a Turkish Muslim state based on nomadic power
Attacked Byzantines, took over Anatolia
Baghdad was reduced to ruins after not repairing damage to the city from
natural disasters
Tigris and Euphrates canal systems were destroyed
Mesopotamia underwent large amounts of population loss
The Christian Crusaders reached the Holy Land and Captured Jerusalem
Crusades had little impact on the Islamic states
Muslims unified to face the European enemy in the 12 th century
Islamic Civilization
Law and Dogma

Sharia: Law of Islam, provides foundations for Islamic Civilizations


Hadith: tradition relation the words or deeds of the Prophet Muhammad
Most hadith dealt with ritual matters
Others had answers to legal questions not mentioned in the Quran
Converts and Cities

Few converts spoke Arabic or read the Quran


Conversion meant migrating to a Muslim governing center
Arab military settlements Kufa and Basra evolved into cities and sites of
Muslim cultural activities
By the tenth century, the entire empire was going through an urbanization
phase
Science and technology flourished

Farther ahead of their European counterparts

Women and Slaves

Women seldom traveled


Rural women worked in fields, urban lived in seclusion and didnt leave their
home without covering themselves
Men could have 4 wives at most
More legal rights than Jewish and Christian women
Could inherit money and land
Could remarry if divorced
Islam allowed slavery but not enslaving other Muslims
The Recentering of Islam

The rise of the Ulma as community leaders did not prevent growing
fragmentation
Immigrant scholars were warmly received

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