Download Islamic Empires

Islamic Empires
Homework Assignments
OPTION B
Throughlines:
In order to understand any society during history, one must investigate and understand the following:
 Geography: What role did the geography of the region play in shaping the society?
 Belief Systems: What were the major religions, values, beliefs, and customs of the society?
 Government: What system of government was used to guide the society?
 Economics: What economic system was used to provide for the needs of the society?
 Major Events: What major events occurred in the society that had a lasting impact?
 Important People: Who are the people who impacted and created change in the society?
 Culture: How did people in the society act, how did they express themselves, how were they
organized, and what did they find important?
 Technology and Invention: What technological advancements and inventions changed and
helped shape the society?
Assignments
Directions: Read the pages given with each assignment. Then, read each task very carefully.
Complete the task using all of the given terms. Be sure to underline the terms as you use them.
Also, make sure you use information from the reading and from your notebook and any activity
we did in class.
Assignment 1
(pgs.85-89)
Pretend you are a time traveler who has visited the Arabian Peninsula in the 500’s AD. Write and
illustrate a traveler’s guide for living on the Arabian Peninsula. In it, you need to explain how the
geography of the Arabian Peninsula impacted the way of life of people living there in the 6th century.
Be sure to include:
 An illustration and description of Arabia as a crossroads of trade between Asia, Africa, and
Europe (see pg. 87,88) – (You should draw a map)
 A description of the different environments and adaptations made by the people who lived
in each. (Be creative – don’t just write down your notes from class)
Terms to use: desert, camel, nomad, Bedouin, clans, oases, sedentary, farming, date palm, trade,
towns, merchants, caravans, trade, (goods such as textiles, spices, metals), cultural exchange, coastal
plain, irrigate, farming, port cities, mountains, terraces, isolation.
Assignment 2
(pgs.93-94)
In 2002, Rich-Crest Studios in Burbank, CA released a movie in the Middle East entitled,
“Muhammad: The Last Prophet”. It was a cartoon. There was a major challenge to the makers of the
film in that they could not draw pictures or representations of Muhammad. Pretend that you are a
cartoonist working for the studio and have to solve this problem. What would your solution be? Be
sure to:
 Think of a creative solution
 Create a 10 – 16 frame story board of Muhammad’s life
 Include the major events of Muhammad’s live (and illustrations) but do not draw any
pictures of Muhammad.
Terms to use: Muhammad, angel Gabriel, Islam, Muslims, Mecca, Yathrib (Medina), Hijrah, idols,
Ka’aba, treaties, military skills, Allah, monotheism
Assignment 3
(pgs.94-95)
You are a magazine columnist whose work is published in the culture and religion section of a student
magazine. You decide to highlight what it is like for a Muslim teen living in America and so write a
piece entitled “A Day in the Life of a Muslim Teenager.” The piece will tell how Islamic beliefs and
practices influence one devout Muslim teen. You can write it in paragraph form, as an interview, or as
a journal with times (i.e. 7:00 – wake up and . . . ) Be sure to include:
 The name of your character
 Details about how Islamic beliefs influence your character’s daily life.
 Supporting evidence in the form of anecdotes, descriptions, and examples
Terms to use: monotheism, Qur’an, Sunnah, Five Pillars (Faith, Prayer, Alms, Fasting, Pilgirmage or Hajj),
mosque, Mecca, dietary laws, Shari’ah, jihad
Assignment 4
(pgs. 95-96)
Three of the world’s major religions, Islam, Christianity, and Judaism, were all started in the same
region – the Middle East. Many people do not understand the similarities and differences amongst
the three. Create a triple Venn diagram to do just that. Be sure to:
 Draw three intersecting circles – one for each religion
 Include information about the major beliefs of each religion
 Include the similarities of all three
Bonus: Make connecting lines between information in all of the circles to show the connections
between the three.
Terms to use: Abraham, prophet, Jesus, “people of the book”, heaven, hell, final judgment, religious
tolerance, taxes
Assignment 5
(This assignment will be done incrementally)
After the death of Muhammad, the Islamic Empire expanded greatly. This expansion had a huge
impact on the lands conquered. Create a pamphlet to go with your Islamic Empires map that explains
the expansion of Islam under each ruling group, including the cultural blending within Muslim
civilization and the spread and acceptance of Islam. For each section, be sure to include information
about:
 Expansion: Where did the empire expand? How was it expanded (treaties, military
conquests, both?) and the reason for successes.
 Rulers: Who were the important rulers? When did they rule? Why were they important?
 Government: How was the empire governed? How was order maintained? What were
the major cities? Why were they important?
 Culture: What important cultural events occurred? How was Islamic culture blended
with other cultures? What was the impact of Islam on conquered groups?
 Decline: What led to the decline of the ruling group during each time period?
Page 1: The First Four Caliphs (pgs. 99-103) – Use the above guidelines and the following
terms.
Terms to use: Abu Bakr, caliph, military force, Iraq, Syria, Umar, Uthman, Syria, Egypt, Byzantine Empire,
military victories, disciplined armies, persecution under the Persians and Byzantines, conversion to
Islam, economic benefits, poll tax, Uthman, Ali, Umayyads, hereditary dynasty, Damascus, luxury,
Shi’a, Sunnis, “rightly-guided caliphs”
Page 2: The Umayyads (pgs. 113-116)– Use the above guidelines and the following terms.
Terms to use: Asia, Africa, Europe, Persia, Central Asia, organized campaigns, North Africa, Iberian
Peninsula, Battle of Tours, Spain, bureaucracy, departments, agencies, Damascus, emirs, Abd al-Malik,
Arabic (common language), common coinage, commerce, acceptance of Islam, hajj, Mecca,
cultural blending, bureaucracy, departments, agencies, Damascus, emirs, Abd al-Malik, Arabic,
(common language), common coinage, commerce, acceptance of Islam, hajj, Mecca, cultural
blending, luxury, power, protests, Abbasids, meeting, Abd al-Rahman, Spain
Assignment 5 continued
Page 3: The Abbasids (pgs. 119-120, 124-125) – Use the above guidelines and the following
terms.
Terms to use: standing army, military posts, policy of inclusion, Christians, Jews, Baghdad, valuable
trade goods, irrigation, farming, industry, factions, hurt trade, taxes, Fatimid revolt, North Africa, Seljuk
Turks
Page 4: Al-Andalus (pgs.131-133, 136-137) (Umayyads in Spain) – Use the above guidelines and
the following terms.
Terms to use: Abd al-Rahman, treaties, factions, emir of al-Andalus, Cordoba, Umayyad loyalists,
revolts, Abd al-Rahman III, rebels, Christian armies, standing armies, mercenaries, caliph, Cordoba,
paved streets, water system, gardens, prosperous economy, workshops, trade, merchants, farming,
markets, libraries, Sephardic culture, Samuel ha-Nagid, Maimonides, factions, Muslim kingdoms,
Christians, Cordoba, Seville
Assignment 6
(pgs. 121-123, 134-135)
The Muslims had many achievements that contribute to our society even today. Choose what you
think are the 6 most important achievements (either under the Abbasids or in Al-Andalus) and explain
how we see their influence today. You may want to look on pages 138 and 139 for ideas, but don’t
copy. For each achievement, be sure to include:
 A picture of the achievement (either hand-drawn or off of the internet)
 A description of the achievement
 Any person associated with the achievement
 Where the achievement originated
 How we use that achievement today
Terms will vary based on the achievements you choose