Transcript The Early Islamic World

The Early Islamic
World
600-1258
Pre-Islamic Arabia, c. 600
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Bedouin clans
Camel herders and town dwellers
Frequent feuds over pasturing/water
resources
Trade network
Place of women
Role of religion < tribal customs
Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam
Merchant, travels introduced him to
monotheism
 Revelations 610-632, later written into the
Qur’an (=recitation)
 Escape from Mecca, 622
 Return in triumph, 628
 Death left no clear successor
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The Appeal of Islam
Uncompromising monotheism in a land
that had known only insignificant gods
 Belonged to no single tribe or clan –
possibility of unity
 Arab in origin (alternative to foreign faiths
of Judaism and Christianity)
 Ethical system to heal social divisions
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Five Pillars of Islam
 Statement
of faith: “There is
no god but Allah, and
Muhammad is his prophet.”
In Arabic: http://www.islam-guide.com/frm-ch3-16-1.htm
Prayer
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5 times a day,
facing Mecca
How to pray:
http://english.islamway.com/pr
ayer/BegSound.htm
Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca)
Final two pillars:
 Fasting
during Ramadan
 Zakat (tithe for charity)
After Muhammad – Division Within…
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4 caliphs, though disagreements about
whether the caliph should be a direct
relative of the prophet
Ali, 4th caliph and Muhammad’s cousin and
brother-in-law, was rejected and
assassinated by the Umayyads
Continued split between Sunni and Shi’ites
Muslims
…but also great success
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Under caliphs, Arabia was reunited
following brief breaking away after
Muhammad’s death
Sassanid (Persian) empire conquered and
much Byzantine territory seized
Strength of Arab armies combined with
weakness of neighbors
Motives for expansion?
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Release of martial energy?
Payback for centuries of contempt?
Not a motivation at least at first:
conversion. Qur’an: “There is no
compulsion in religion.” Also: did not want
to share booty of conquest or give up right
to tax non-Muslims.
Umayyad Empire, 660-750
Treatment of
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Women
Dhimmis
Mawali
Shi’ite
Merchants
Ayan
Small farmers
Umayyads alienated many
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Placed capital at Damascus
Soldiers, especially on frontiers, unhappy
with distant, corrupt, unfair rulers
Abbasid rebellion started in eastern part of
empire (Iran) but spread, drawing support
from dissident groups, among them Shi’ite
ans and mawali
Abbasid Empire
750-850:
unified, center at Baghdad
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Treatment of
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Women
Dhimmis
Mawali
Shi’ite
Merchants
Ayan
Small farmers
Abbasid Empire, cont.
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850-1050: breakup into regional dynasties:
Umayyads in Spain, Fatimids in Cairo (ruled
Egypt & Syria), Turkish tribes swept into Middle
East from Central Asia, converted to Islam and
controlled the Islamic heartland
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Authority of caliph became more religious than political
Regional sultans sought confirmation of their power from the
caliph
Abbasid Empire, cont.
 11th-13th
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c.: new external threats
Christian Crusades
Mongols – threatened entire Middle East,
remained in power in Iran & Iraq, where they
converted to Islam
Invasions helped cause the fall of the old
states & slow creation of 3 new states
3 New states emerge, 1258-1600
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Safavid (Shi’ite) dynasty in Iran
Moghul dynasty in India
Ottoman Empire centered in Asia Minor
(which will conquer Byzantines in 1453)
Credits
Slide 6 photo: (Uzbek Muslims paying)
http://www.helsinki-hs.net/picpage.asp?IsoID=4B7WRDh8w
Slide 7 photo: http://lexicorient.com/e.o/index.htm (search for Hajj)
Slide 8 photo: http://lexicorient.com/e.o/index.htm (search for Ka’ba)
Slide 13 map: http://socrates.berkeley.edu/~davidyag/map6-a.jpg
Slide 14 map: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/maps/islam2map.gif
Slide 19 map: http://socrates.berkeley.edu/~davidyag/map6-b.jpg