Download Rise and spread of Muslim Empires Sam Miyashita • 620 CE

Rise and spread of Muslim Empires Sam Miyashita
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620 C.E. – The Angel Gabriel appeared to Muhammad, who was a Caravan trader. He told him
to recite the word of God. He received the Qur’an (or Koran), 5 Pillars of Islam. He was a
Prophet and Muslims believe him to be the final Prophet, in order to bring people to the one
true religion. The worship of and submission to the one true God.
Islam also recognizes Moses and Jesus as Prophets as well.
The Qur’an is written as the actual word of God himself and every word is considered to be holy.
5 Pillars of Islam:
1). Shahada- This is the procession of faith. “There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is Allah’s
Prophet.” ‘Allah’ is the Arabic word for God. He is the same God as in Judaism and Christianity, the God
of Abraham, hence the three ‘Abrahamic’ Religions.
2). Salat- Ritual prayer 5 times per day. Dawn, noon, Afternoon, Sunset, late evening. Unless you
haven’t hit puberty yet, are sick, or menstruating.
3). Sawm- Month long fast during Ramadan where there is no eating, drinking, or smoking cigarettes
during the day. Held in the winter when days are shorter and longer.
4). Zakat- Alms giving. All Muslims who are not poor are required to give a percentage of their earnings
to the poor. (4%)
5). Hajj- Pilgrimage to the Holy city of Mecca. All Muslims should do this once in their lifetime unless
you are sick or you don’t have enough money.
Hadith- Supplementary sacred texts to the Qur’an, just like the Talmud in Judaism and the lives of Saints
and teachings of Church Fathers in Christianity. Some Hadiths are actually inaccurate and are not
respected or treated as scripture. Most Muslims believe that the misconception of the 72 virgins when
you go to heaven is actually not true.
Islam means ‘Submission.’ A Muslim is one who Submits.
Ummah: The community or nation. Refers to the whole Muslim world.
*Quraysh Tribe- Tribe that Muhammad was born into, controlled Mecca. They were polytheists while
Islam is strictly monotheistic.
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They forced Muhammad and his followers out of Mecca in 622. They fled to Medina and this
exodus marks the year 0 on the Islamic calendar.
While in Medina, he severed ties with Judaism, taking the emphasis away from Jerusalem and
towards Mecca.
Muhammad was also an exemplary general, as well as prophet. In 630 he recaptured Mecca
and destroyed the polytheist idols and it became predominantly Muslim.
Calif (Khalifa): Political leader. The first calif was Abu Bakr, who was Muhammad’s father in law, the
father of his favorite wife. The fourth was his own son Ali.
Sunni-Shiite Split: One of the main reasons for the split between the two dominant sects was because of
the issue of who should be the rightful Calif.
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Sunni Muslims believe that Abu Bakr should have been the Calif.
Shiite Muslims believe that Ali, Muhammad’s son should have been the Calif.
Territory- Expanded from Spain, Sub-Saharan Africa, Afghanistan(Above)
Two Empires:
1) Umayyad Caliphate (661- 750)
 Made Arabic the official language of the Muslim world
 Taxed non-Muslims more in order to convert them to Islam
 Many rebellions caused their decline
2) Abbasid Caliphate (750 – 1258)
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The “Golden Age” of Classical Islamic culture
The capital was Baghdad
*Trade networks formed here linked the Middle East with Europe, Africa, and Asia.
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Decline: The empire eventually became so big (see map) that it became hard to rule
over it all and the millions of people and all the diversity and ethnicities located inside of
it. The Sunni/Shiite split also contributed to it’s decline.
The last straw was the invasion of the Turks in 1258. The last Abbasid Caliphate was
killed. The middle east was split off into different states until the Ottomans came later
and reunified some of them.
*Islam was spread to Africa through slave traders and relatively peacefully.
Islam spread mostly without any military campaigns, as Islam directly states that it shall not be spread
by force.