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The Rise
of Islam
Mr. Ermer
World History
Miami Beach Senior High
The Arabs
 Semitic people (like Hebrews & Assyrians)
from the Arabian Peninsula
 Nomads, moving to find water, organized into
tribes
 Tribes ruled by Sheikh, chosen by elders
 Farmers, sheepherders, traders
 Helped support trade routes between Mediterranean
and China
 Fall of Rome, and problems in Egypt and
Mesopotamia shift from established trade
routes to a route through Makkah (Mecca)
 Communities on this route grew rich
Arabian traders were in
constant contact with
merchants from Europe,
Africa, India and China.
The Arabian Peninsula
becomes the world’s
crossroads, a meeting
place for ideas, wealth
and goods from around
the world.
Religion of the Arabs
 Arabs trace their heritage back to
Abraham (same as Hebrews), and his
son Ishmael
 Believe Abraham and Ishmael founded
Mecca and built the Kaaba—a
polytheistic place of worship
 Kaaba a popular site for Arab pilgrimages
 Arabs were polytheistic, believing in
many gods, but one supreme god named
Al0lah (allah is Arabic for “god”)
The Kaaba
A new faith, a new
prophet of Allah
 Muhammad born in Mecca, orphaned at 5
years old
 Married a rich woman, also his boss
 Troubled by economic inequalities, he took to
meditating in a cave
 Believed Allah’s angel, Gabriel, spoke the
words of God to him
 Believing that Allah had already revealed
himself through Moses & Jesus (Hebrew and
Christian scriptures), the revelation made
through Muhammad would be the last words of
Allah to mankind
The Prophet Muhammad
A new religion is born…
 Muhammad believed he was the last
prophet, in a long line of prophets
 Muhammad’s faith became known as
Islam “peace through submission to the
will of Allah”
 Muhammad wrote what Allah told him in
the Quran (holy book of Islam)
 Followers of the new faith are called
Muslims (those who submit)
Slow spread of Islam:
 Muhammad began preaching in Mecca
 After 3 years of preaching, only 30 followers
 Muslims persecuted in Mecca
 A.D. 622: Muhammad and Muslims leave
Mecca for Yathrib (later renamed
Medina, or “city of the prophet”), this
journey became known as Hijrah
 622 becomes year 1 of the Muslim
calendar
The Hijrah
Medina & the Bedouins
 Islam spreads quickly in Medina, and in
the desert among Bedouins (Arabs in
the desert)
 Muslims saw no separation between
religious and political authority
 Muhammad soon became political leader
of Medina, and raised an army to protect
faithful Muslims
 Medina’s army beats Mecca in battle,
others begin to believe, Islam grows
Mecca & Medina
 630: Muhammad returns to Mecca with
army of 10,000; Mecca surrenders
 Most inhabitants convert to Islam
 Muhammad visits the Kaaba, names it a
holy place of Islam
 Muhammad dies in 632, as Islam soars
 Muslims are required to, if able, make a
pilgrimage to the Kaaba at least once in a
lifetime
Islam Under Muhammad
Islamic Teaching
 Monotheistic: Allah is only God, and
Muhammad is his prophet
 Hinges on salvation, must submit to live
 Believe people rejected earlier prophets
(Moses, Elijah, Jesus, etc) so Allah made a
final revelation through Muhammad
 After Muhammad’s death, scholars issue
shari’ah: a code of law applying the Quran’s
teachings to everyday life
 Dictates family life, busines practices, government
and moral conduct
 Forbidden behavior= gambling, eating pork, drinking
Five Pillars of Islam:
 Belief: “There is no god but Allah, and
Muhammad is his prophet”
 Prayer: Must perform prescribed prayers
five times a day
 Charity: “giving alms” giving part of one’s
wealth to the poor
 Fasting: Refraining from eating or
drinking from dawn to sunset during the
month of Ramadan
 Pilgrimage: Must visit Mecca once in life
The Five Pillars:
Chapter 3, Lesson 1
Review
 On page 49, write and answer questions
1-5