Transcript Muslim culture 10.3

Muslim Achievement
Chapter 10 Section 3
Page 242
Muslim Society
Riches were flowing into empire from
Africa, Asia and Europe
 This allowed Muslim rulers to build
luxurious cities
 There, scholars preserved existing
knowledge and produced enormous
amounts of learning
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Urban centers symbolized the
strength of the dynasty
 The centers were very impressive
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Sophisticated Culture
Centers of learning were located
throughout the Muslim empire in
Syria, Persia, Spain, and Egypt
 Many cultural traditions combined
with Arabic culture to create an
international flavor
 Muslim society was one of the most
sophisticated society in the world
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Baghdad
Baghdad had a circular design
formed by 3 protective walls
 The caliph’s palace was made of
stone and marble and was in the
center circle along with a grand
mosque
 A market place was outside the walls
 Population was 1 million at its peak
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The Round City of Baghdad
4 Social Classes
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Upper class- born Muslim
2nd class- Converts to Islam
-paid higher tax than upper
class, but lower than nonMuslim
3rd class- “protected” people like
Jews and Christians
Lowest class- slaves who were prisoners
of war or non-Muslims
Women
According to the Qur’an, “men are
the managers of the affairs of
women”
 Also declares that men and women
who are believers are equal
 Muslim women had more rights than
European women in ancient times
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Power of Knowledge
Rulers wanted the best doctors
treating their sick and injured
 Relied on mathematicians and
astronomers to calculate times for
prayer and direction of Mecca
 Had a desire for truth and knowledge
 Muhammad himself believed in the
power of learning
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House of Wisdom
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After the fall of Rome, Europe had a
period where scholarship suffered
Muslim leaders preserved and expanded
scientific knowledge
In the 800s a combination library,
academy and translation center opened in
Baghdad
Was called the House of Wisdom where
scholars would translate Greek, Indian and
Persian texts in Arabic
Remains of House of Wisdom
Arts and Sciences in Muslim World
Scholars at House of Wisdom
included researchers, editors,
linguists and technical advisors
 Developed standards for research
that exist even today
 Muslim contributions most
recognizable in medicine, math and
astronomy
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Medical Advances
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Persian scholar al-Razi (Rhazes) was the
greatest physician of Muslim world
Wrote several books including Treatise on
Smallpox and Measles
Al-Razi believed that patients would
recover more quickly if breathing in clean
air
Based theory on experiment of hanging
shreds of meat around Baghdad and
observed which ones spoiled slowly due to
clean air
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An ancient diagram of the human muscle system
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An illustration indicating where scalp incisions
should be made
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Muslim scientists preferred to solve
problems by conducting experiments
in laboratories
Muslim Mathematicians
Believed mathematics was the basis
of all knowledge
 Mathematician Al- Khwarizmi wrote
textbook in the 800s explaining ‘art
of bringing together unknowns to
match an unknown quantity” calling
this technique al-jabr….or algebra
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Astronomy
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Muslim observatories
charted stars, comets
and planets
This is an armillary
sphere
By aligning the top
rings with various
stars, astronomers
could calculate the
time of day or year
Philosophy
Scholars translated works of Aristotle
and Plato at the House of Wisdom
into Arabic
 Muslim philosopher Ibn Rushd
argued that Greek philosophy and
Islam both had the same goal: to
find the truth, but was attacked for
many of his ideas
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Literature
Literature was a strong tradition in
Arabia before Islam
 Bedouin poets composed poems
celebrating ideals such as bravery,
love, generosity, and hospitality
 Popular literature included A
Thousand and One Nights, a
collection of fairy tales and legends
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A Thousand and One Nights
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The premise of the collection is that a king
who has killed his unfaithful wife and is
determined to marry and kill a new wife
everyday
A daughter of the king’s vizier
(government official) has a plan to end his
madness
She marries the king and begins telling a
story every evening
Hoping to hear the end of the story the
next day, the king keeps delaying her
execution and finally gives up his
murderous ways
Art
Art styles were appreciated but
tweaked because it was not ok to
draw living beings
 Based this idea that only Allah
creates life
 Many artists turned to calligraphy,
the art of beautiful handwriting
 Much of the Muslim calligraphy
incorporates verses from the Qur’an
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Architecture
Greatest example of cultural
blending of the Muslim world
 Location of the building reflected the
culture of the people there
 Used features popular to each area
like arches, domes and heating
systems
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Lasting Effects
Though the unified Muslim state
broke up, Muslim culture continued
 Three Muslim empires, The Ottoman,
the Safavid, and the Mughal would
emerge and reflect the blended
culture of this time
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