Download I. Pre-Islamic Arabia

I.
Pre-Islamic Arabia
A. Geography: The Arabian Peninsula
1. Largely deserts with mountains, oases
2. Fertile areas in the southern mountains around
Yemen
3. Nomadic Bedouin: Lived in the desert-covered
peninsula for millennia. Kept herds of sheep, goats,
and camels. Organized in family and clan groups.
Importance of kinship and loyalty to the clan. Many
tribes seem to have been matrilineal with some rights
for women
II.
Post-classical Arabia
A. Romans (Byzantines) and Persians had client
kingdoms in area
B. Active in long-distance over land trade. Trade
from Damascus to Mecca/Medina to Yemen.
Trade across desert to Persian Gulf and along
coast. Part of Red Sea trade system; links
between Yemen and Abyssinia. Trade includes
gold, frankincense and myrrh
C. Religion was polytheist.
D. Groups of Jews in Arabia; Monophysite
Christians in cities
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III. Islam
A. Muhammad ibn Abdullah
1. Born in a Mecca merchant family, 570 C.E.
2. Difficult early life: orphaned, lived with uncle
3. Married a wealthy widow, Khadija, in 595
4. Became a merchant at age 30, exposed to various faiths
B. Muhammad's spiritual transformation
1. At age 40, he experienced visions
2. There was only one true god, Allah ("the god")
3. Allah would soon bring judgment on the world
4. The archangel Gabriel delivered these revelations to
Muhammad
5. Did not intend to found a new religion, but his message
became appealing
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C. The Quran
1. Followers compiled Muhammad's actual revelations after
his death
2. Quran ("recitation"), became the holy book of Islam
3. Suras are chapters; organized from longest to shortest
4. A work of magnificent poetry
D. The Hadith
1. Sayings attributed to Muhammad; not included in Quran
2. Three levels from most accurate/likely to highly suspect
E. Conflict at Mecca
1. His teachings offended others, especially ruling elite of
Mecca
2. Attacks on greed offended wealthy merchants
3. Attacks on idolatry threatened shrines, especially the
Kaa'ba
F. The hijra
1. Under persecution, Muhammad, followers fled to Medina,
622 A.C.E.
2. The move, known as hijra, was starting point of Islamic
calendar
G. The umma
1. Organized a cohesive community called umma in Medina
2. Led commercial adventure
3. Sometimes launched raids against Mecca caravans
4. Helped the poor and needy
H. The "seal of the prophets"
1. Referred himself as "seal of the prophets," - final prophet
of Allah
2. Held Hebrew scriptures and New Testament in high esteem
3. Referred to followers as “Peoples of the Book”
4. If they did not threaten umma, were to be protected
5. Determined to spread Allah's wish to all humankind
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IV. Conquest of Arabia
A. Muhammad's return to Mecca
1. Conquered Mecca, 630
2. Imposed a theocratic government dedicated to Allah
3. Destroyed pagan shrines and built mosques
B. The Kaa'ba
1. The Kaa'ba shrine was not destroyed
2. In 632, Muhammad led the first Islamic pilgrimage to the
Ka'ba
C. The Five Pillars of Islam
1. Obligations taught by Muhammad, known as the Five
Pillars
2. The Five Pillars bound the umma into a cohesive
community of faith
3. Profession of faith, prayer, tithing, pilgrimage, fasting
at Ramadan
D. Islamic law: the sharia
1. Emerged during the centuries after Muhammad
2. Detailed guidance on proper behavior in almost every
aspect of life
3. Drew laws, precepts from the Quran
4. Drew traditions from Arabic culture, Hadith
5. Through the sharia, Islam became a religion and a way of
life
V. Expansion of Islam
A. •The caliph
1. Upon Muhammad's death, Abu Bakr served as caliph
("deputy")
2. Became head of state, chief judge, religious leader, military
commander
3. First four called Orthodox caliphs because they were
original followers
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B. The expansion of Islam
1. 633-637, seized Byzantine Syria, Palestine, Mesopotamia
2. 640's, conquered Egypt and North Africa
3. 651, toppled Sassanid dynasty
4. 711, conquered the Hindu kingdom of Sind
5. 711-718, conquered northwest Africa, most of Iberia
6. Success due to weakness of enemies, vigor of Islam
7. Referred to Islamic world as Dar al Islam
C. The Shia and Sunnis
1. The Shia sect supported Ali (last caliph and son in law of
Muhammad) A refuge for non-Arab converts, poor;
followers in Iraq, Iran. Felt caliphs should be directly
related to Muhammad
2. The Sunnis ("traditionalists") accepted legitimacy of early
caliphs. Were Arab as opposed to Islamic. Did not feel
caliphs had to be related to Muhammad.
3.
Two sects struggled over succession; produced a civil
war, murder of Ali (Son-in-law of Muhammad).
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VI. The Umayyad dynasty (661-750 C.E.)
A. New caliph won civil war; murdered Ali; established dynasty
1. Established capital city at Damascus in Syria
2. Ruled for the interests of Arabian military aristocracy
B. Policy toward conquered peoples
1. Dhimmis were the conquered Christians, Jews, and
Zoroastrians
2. Levied jizya (head tax) on those who did not convert to
Islam
3. Even the converts did not enjoy wealth, position of
authority
C. Umayyad decline
1. Caliphs became alienated from Arabs by early 8th century
2. By the mid-century, faced strong resistance of the Shia
faction
3. The discontent of conquered peoples also increased
4. Umayyad family slaughtered; only one son escaped to
Spain
5. Formed breakaway Umayyad Dynasty in Spain
VII. Abbasid Dynasty
A. Abu al-Abbas
1. A descendant of Muhammad's uncle; allied with Shias and
non-Arab Muslims
2. Seized control of Persia and Mesopotamia during 740's
3. Shattered Umayyad forces at a battle in 750; annihilated
the Umayyad clan
B. The Abbasid dynasty (750-1258 C.E.)
1. Showed no special favor to Arab military aristocracy
2. Empire still growing, but not initiated by the central
government
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C. Abbasid administration
1. Relied heavily on Persians, Persian techniques of
statecraft
2. Central authority ruled from the court at Baghdad, newly
built city
3. Governors ruled provinces; Ulama, qadis (judges) ruled
local areas
D. Harun al-Rashid (786-809 C.E.)
1. Represented the high point of the dynasty
2. Baghdad became metropolis, center for commerce,
industry, and culture
E. Abbasid decline
1. Struggle for succession between Harun's sons led to civil
war
2. Governors built their own power bases, regional dynasties
3. Local military commanders took title of Sultan
4. Popular uprisings and peasant rebellions weakened the
dynasty
5. A Persian noble seized control of Baghdad in 945
6. Later, the Seljuk Turks controlled the imperial family
VIII. An Urban Society
A. Rise of the Islamic Urban Society
1. Pre-Islamic Arabs were both urban, bedouin
2. Mecca, Medina, Yemeni cities, cities of Palmyra, Arab
Petropolis
3. Center of the city was a market place often shared with
religious center
4. Cities designed with human-environment interaction in
mind
5. Nomads came to city to trade, city often settled by whole
tribes
6. Arabs had settled in cities in Syria, Iraq, Jordan
7. Arabic cities linked to wider world through merchants,
trade
8. Arab cities exposed to Jews, Persians, Monophysites,
Sabeans
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B. Arabic Empire and Urban Growth
1. Islam as a culture requires mosque, merchant: very urban
in outlook
2. Capital moved from Mecca to Damascus by Umayyads
3. Arabs founded military cities on edges of desert to rule
empire
4. As empire grew, needed something more permanent
5. Abbasids moved capital from Damascus, Kufa to Baghdad
6. Other designed for purpose cities include Fez, Cairo, Tunis
7. Increasing agricultural production contributed to growth of
cities
8. Cities: centers for administration, industry, trade,
education, faith
9. Many different ethnic minorities settled in Muslim cities
(quarters)
10.Mosque at center surrounded by suk, square, in
decreasing social order
IX. Changed Economics
A. Trade Zones and Goods
1. Merchants, pilgrims, travelers exchanged foods across
empire
2. The exchange and spread of food and industrial crops.
Indian plants traveled to other lands of the empire. Staple
crops: sugarcane, rice, new varieties of sorghum and
wheat. Vegetables: spinach, artichokes, eggplants. Fruits:
oranges, lemons, limes, bananas, coconuts, watermelons,
mangoes. Industrial crops: cotton, indigo, henna.
B. Effects of new crops
1. Increased varieties and quantities of food
2. Industrial crops became the basis for a thriving textile
industry
3. Foodstuffs increased health, populations of cities
C. Agricultural experimentation
1. Numerous agricultural manuals
2. Agricultural methods and techniques improved
3. Improved irrigation
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X. A Vast Trade Zone
A. Camels and caravans
1. Overland desert trade traveled mostly by camel caravan
2. Caravanserais (motel, corrals) in Islamic cities
3. Trading goods usually luxury in nature
B. Sea Trade
1. Maritime trade based on technological borrowing.
2. Arab, Persian mariners borrowed: Compass from the
Chinese. Lateen sail from Southeast Asian, Indian
mariners. Astrolabe from the Hellenistic mariners.
C. Organization and dominance of trade
1. In North Africa across Sahara, down Nile, SW Asia, to India
2. Eastern Mediterranean, Red Sea, Persian Gulf, Arabia Gulf
down coasts
3. Many cities grew rich from trade
4. Entrepreneurs often pooled their resources in group
investments
5. Different kinds of joint endeavors
D. Banks
1. Operated on large scale and provided extensive services
2. Letters of credit, or sakk, functioned as bank checks
E. Key Ideas
1. Exchange of Ideas included Islam, technology, culture
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XI. Other Islamic Regions
A. •Al-Andalus
1. Islamic Spain, conquered by Muslim Berbers
2. Claimed independence from the Abbasid dynasty
3. Participated in commercial life of the larger Islamic world
4. Products of al-Andalus enjoyed a reputation for
excellence
5. Cordoba was a center of learning, commerce, architecture
6. After death of Abd al Rahman III broke up into petty
kingdoms
7. A unique blended culture: Arab, Latin, German, Islamic,
Christian, Jewish
8. Very tolerant and integrated society
9. Warred for 700 years with Christian kingdoms in north
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B. North Africa
1. Strong followers of Shia, broke with Abbassids
2. Berbers followed many puritanical Shia like movements
3. Eventually Fatimids conquered Egypt, formed rival
caliphate
C. Central Asia
1. Largely Turkish, Persian and Islamic but not Arabic
2. Tended to be distant from Baghdad and more tolerant
3. Integrated into trans-Eurasian trade network
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XII. Women’s Changing Status
A. Pre-Islamic Arab Women
1. Arabs as nomads allowed women many rights
2. Women often poets, tribe leaders
3. Some evidence of matrilineal tribes
B. The Quran and women
1. Quran enhanced rights, security of women
2. Forced husbands to honor contracts, love women
3. Allowed women to own property, protected from
exploitation
C. What produced the change?
1. Foreign Contacts changed the perspective
2. Adopted veiling from Mesopotamia, Persia
3. Isolation from India through purdah, harem
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D. Muslim rights for women
1. Often weaken through Hadith, traditions
2. Often reduced, ignored
3. Patriarch beliefs reinforced by conquest
4. Yet Quran, sharia also reinforced male domination
5. Role of Hadith, Arab traditions reinforced male domination
XIII. Islamic Cultural Traditions
A. Quran, sharia were main sources to formulate moral
guidelines
B. Constant struggle between what is Arabic and what is
Islamic
i. Use of Arabic script as only language of Islam
strengthened trend
ii. Persians, Turks, Indians, and Africans struggled
for acceptance
C. Promotion of Islamic values
i. Ulama, qadis, and missionaries were main
agents
ii. Education also promoted Islamic values
D. Sufis
i. Islamic mystics, effective missionaries
ii. Encouraged devotion by singing, dancing
iii. Led ascetic, holy lives, won respect
iv. Encouraged followers to revere Allah in own
ways
v. Tolerated those who associated Allah with other
beliefs
E. The hajj
i. The Kaa'ba became the symbol of Islamic
cultural unity
ii. Pilgrims helped to spread Islamic beliefs and
values
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XIV. Islam and Other Contacts
A. •Persian influence on Islam
1. After Arabs most prominent of Muslims, resisted
Arabization
2. Cultural traditions often borrowed heavily by Islam
3. Became early followers of Shia
B. Government and regionalism
1. Many advisors (vizer is Persian word) to Caliphs were
Persian
2. Cultured, diplomatic language of Abbassid court became
Persian
C. Literary achievements
1. Omar Khayyam was greatest of Medieval Muslim poets
a. The Arabian Nights largely in a Persian style
D. Turkish influences
1. Central Asian nomads converted to Islam, developed
literary culture
2. Invaded SW Asia and made caliphate dependent on
Turkish nomads
3. Formed military might, leadership of late Abbassid state
E. Indian Influences
1. Purdah and harem borrowed from Hindus
2. "Hindi numerals," which Europeans called "Arabic
numerals"
F. Greek Influences
1. Muslims philosophers especially liked Plato and Aristotle;
Greek math
2. Effort of harmonizing two traditions met resistance from
Sufis
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