Download Microsoft PowerPoint Presentation

Unit 3
Origins

 Mecca: important trading city along caravan routes;
500 CE
 New religion emerges: “Islam”  “submission”
 Within 100 years, Islam grew to control area larger
than the Roman Empire
 Islam vs. Muslim
Mohammed: The Prophet

 Born 570 CE; worked as a merchant in Mecca
 Had a vision of the angel Gabriel; commanded him to
convert polytheistic Arab tribes to belief in a single God:
Allah
 Allah was the same God worshipped by Jews and
Christians (all began with story of Abraham)
 Mohammed fled to Medina in 622 because many were
growing jealous and resentful of his influence
 This event marks starting point on Muslim calendar
 By the time of his death, most tribes on Arabian peninsula
had converted to Islam
 The Quran (Koran)
Beliefs

 Believed to be the direct words spoken to Mohammed by Allah
(different from Christianity)
 Contains references to Jews, Christians, and Jesus
 The Five Pillars of Islam





Confession of faith
Prayer: 5x per day, facing Mecca
Charity/Alms giving
Fasting: during month of Ramadam
Pilgrimage: to Mecca, once during life if possible
 Jihad
 Sometimes called the sixth pillar
 You must struggle for Allah; some extremists interpret Jihad as
an order to wage a “holy war” against other religions
Rise of the Muslim Empire

 After Muhammed’s death, Arabs begin military
campaigns to take over neighboring areas
 Mid 600s: Arabian Peninsula united under Arabs
 8th century: Muslim forces conquer



Sassanid Empire (present day Iran and Iraq)
Northern Africa
Southern Asia
Present-day Spain
 Attempt to take Byzantine capitol of Constantinople, but
are successfully repelled
 Islam and teachings of Muhammed become popular in
many parts of new Arab empire
Islamic Empire ca. 750 CE

The Arab Caliphate

 New central government developed to administer growing
Arab empire
 Caliphate = head caliph and officials directly under him
 Political and religious leader of Empire; Mohammed is
considered original Caliph
 Following Mohammed’s death, dispute between who
would be the next Caliph
 One group believed the Caliph should be the most highly
qualified, spiritual individual regardless of birth  Sunni
Muslims
 Another group believed that Caliphs should only be direct
descendents of Mohammed  Shi’ite Muslims
The Arab Caliphate

 Reasons for success
 Muslims did NOT force a new way of life upon subjects
 Relay network established throughout empire to facilitate
communication
 As empire grew and changed, new departments of
government were established to deal with problems
 2 Major Caliphates
 Umayyad (661-750)
 Abbassid (750-1258)
 Know about these for test
Islamic Society

 Trade & Commerce
 Huge opportunities for trade as empire expanded
 Muslim Empire eventually gained control of most of the
world’s major trade routes
 Believed to have introduced economic concepts such as
joint-stock companies
 Cultural Achievements





Navigation
Education
Mathematics
Medicine
Literature