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■11/16/2016
■Spread and Growth of Islam
■This will be two page
Rightly Guided Caliphs
Sunnis
Division of Islam
Spread of Islam
Shi’ites
Umayyad Dynasty
Abbasid Dynasty
Fatimid Dynasty
Islam After Muhammad
■ When Muhammad
died in 632, the Muslim
community elected a
new leader called a
caliph (“successor”)
■ The first 4 caliphs all
knew Muhammad &
promised to stay true
to the Qur'an &
Muhammad & the
Muhammad’s message Rightly Guided Caliphs
The Expansion of Islam, 632 – 733 CE
The Rightly Guided Caliphs
■ The first caliph was
Muhammad’s friend &
father-in-law, Abu Bakr:
–His goal was to keep
Muslims united under
his gov’t (“caliphate”)
–His used jihad to
control & expand
the Muslim empire
The Rightly Guided Caliphs
■ The empire expanded
under the next caliphs
During the Rightly Guided Caliphates,
the Islamic Empire expanded “Dar-al-Islam”
(the areas where Islam is practiced)
The caliphs used the Shari'ah
(laws of Islam) to govern the empire
The caliphate never forced non-Muslims
to convert, especially “People of the Book”
& allowed religious tolerance as long as
taxes were paid to the empire
Islamic Caliphs
■ As the Arab Empire grew, caliphs
were transformed from modest
Arab chiefs into absolute, allpowerful monarchs
–
–
–
–
Elaborate court rituals
Complex bureaucracy
Standing army
Centralized systems of taxation
and money
■ 2 major ruling dynasties came to
control the Arab Empire during
this time = Umayyad dynasty and
Abbasid dynasty
The Umayyad Empire
■ After Ali’s death in 661
led to a civil war for
control of the empire:
–The clan that came
to power started the
Umayyad Empire
–But the rise of the
Umayyads led to a
division in Islam
Division in Islam
■ After the death of Muhammad, the caliph, or
successor to the prophet was chosen. Abu Bakr
was nominated as the first caliph.
■ Abu Bakr would lead the first caliphate, known as
the Rashidun or Patriarchal Caliphate.
■ The choice of Abu Bakr caused significant dispute
as many believed that Muhammad had chosen Alī
ibn Abī Tālib, the cousin and son-in-law of
Muhammad to succeed him.
■ Served as caliph 656-661 CE, then assassinated
along with most of his followers
Division in Islam
■ Abu Bakr was followed by three more
caliphs, the last of which was Alī ibn Abī
Tālib.
■ Alī’s succession caused a division in Islam to
became more defined.
■ Sunni Muslims believe that Ali was the
fourth caliph, a position chosen based on
ability to lead.
■ The Shi’a (Shiites) believe that Ali is the first
Imam, and that only blood descendants of
Muhammad can lead the Muslim people.
Sunnis vs. Shi’ites
■ Believe the caliph is the
rightful political and
military leader of Islam
■ Believe the caliph should
be chosen by the Islamic
community
■ Believe the caliph can be
any devout Muslim
■ Religious authority comes
from the larger Islamic
community; particularly
ulama = religious scholars
■ Believe that the leader of
the Islamic community
should be a blood
descendant/relative of
Muhammad
■ Religious authority comes
from prayer leaders called
imams
■ Imams = only ones that can
correctly interpret divine
revelations and Islamic law
Spread of Islam
■ Muslim merchants wanted access to profitable trade routes
and wealthy agricultural regions
■ Individuals wanted to gain wealth and social promotion
■ Expansion provided a common task for the Islamic
community (umma) that was on the verge of falling apart
after Muhammad’s death
■ Spread of Muslim faith and righteous government across
the world
Spread of Islam
■ Conversion to Islam not forced on anyone in the Arab
Empire
– In fact: Zoroastrians, Jews, and Christians all considered
“people of the book” and were given the status of dhimmis
(protected subjects)
■ In the 400s years following Muhammad’s death, millions of
individuals and many whole societies with the Arab Empire
adopted Islam
Spread of Islam
■ Not such a dramatic change for many Zoroastrians, Jews,
and Christians
– Already familiar with ideas of: monotheism, heaven, hell,
final judgment, divine revelation, fasting, ritual prayer,
etc.
■ Islam sponsored by a powerful state lead to wealth and
prestige of Arab Empire attracted people
•
•
Successful conquest called into question the power of old
gods; perhaps God really is all-powerful
Many incentives for converting
Ex: Didn’t have to pay jizya = tax on non-Muslims
Ex: Could hold official positions; social mobility
The Sunni-Shi’a Split
Before the Umayyads, caliphs were elected
members of Muhammad’s family
■ Shi’a Muslims
■ Sunni Muslims
rejected the
accepted the rule of
Umayyads
the Umayyads
■ The Shi’a believe ■ The Sunni believe
that caliph must
caliphs should follow
come directly from Muhammad’s
Muhammad’s
example, but don’t
bloodline
have to be relatives
The Umayyad Empire
Following assassination of Ali, Umayyads seize
power, creating first Islamic dynastic system of
rule
Umayyad Dynasty (661 – 750)
■ Caliphs became hereditary rulers
■ Empire’s capital moved from Medina to
Roman/Byzantine city of Damascus in Syria
■ Power of the state was managed through tribal
networks
■ The Umayyads expanded the empire which brought
wealth & new Islamic converts
Adversary Empires
■ Sasanians–Old
Persian Empire
■ ▫Elite were
Zoroastrians and they
persecuted peasants.
■ ▫When Islam attacked
they won the support
of the peasants and
easily beat the elite.
•Byzantine –Eastern
Roman Empire
▫Orthodox Christians
persecuted Copts and
Nestorians in Egypt.
▫Islam gained support of
theses religions and
defeated the Byzantine
in Egypt, Syria, Iraq and
Palestine
Umayyad Dynasty (661 – 750)
■ Used the political systems and structures left
behind by Roman Empire
■ Arabic replaced Greek or Persian as the
language of government
■ Muslim coinage was issued for the first time
■ Ambitious building program showed the
growth of Islamic presence in the Near East
■ The Dome of the Rock
■ Built in Jerusalem in 691 CE
■ Built by Umayyad Caliph Abd al-Malik
Umayyad
Architecture
Umayyad Dynasty (661 – 750)
■ Overthrown because:
– Non-Arabs Muslims resented status as second-class citizens
– Shia Muslims believed Umayyad caliphs were illegitimate
– Many Arabs protested the luxurious living of their rulers
Abbasid Dynasty (750 – 1258)
■ Abbasids took their name and claimed
descent from the uncle of the prophet
Muhammad, a man named Abu al-Abbas
■ Built up a new capital for the empire in Baghdad
■ Non-Arabs now played a prominent role
– Persian culture became the culture of Islamic
elites
The Abbasid Empire
–Muslim
merchants
expanded
wealth by
trading
across Africa,
Indian Ocean,
and
Mediterranean
Sea
The Abbasid Empire
Wealth from
trade led to
a golden age,
a time of great
Muslim
achievements
in science, math,
medicine, &
architecture
Abbasid Dynasty (750 – 1258)
■ Persian legal traditions of rule began to
influence governance practiced by Muslim
caliphs
■ A specifically Islamic culture was nurtured and
began a long and brilliant florescence
■ In the ninth and 10th centuries, Baghdad
became a global center of culture and learning
– A massive library and center of learning called the
bayt al-hikma, or "House of Wisdom," was created
in 830
Abbasid Dynasty (750 – 1258)
And no, we can’t
watch Aladdin OR
Mulan in class.
■ Political unity didn’t last long
■ By the mid-800s many local
governors or military commanders
asserted autonomy over their
regions
– Islamic world fractured into
multiple “sultanates”
■ Dynasty officially ended when
conquered by the Mongols in 1258
Fatimid Dynasty (909–1171)
Fatimid Dynasty (909–1171)
■ Began as a missionary movement whose goal
was the spread of the Shi’ite sect of Islam
■ Initially centered in southern Arabia and then
in North Africa and finally in Egypt
■ Built capital in Egyptian in Cairo
– Became a center of science, commerce,
culture, and intellectual life within the
Islamic world
al-Azhar Mosque
Fatimid Dynasty (909–1171)
■ Promoted a Red Sea trade route and used the profits
to fund religious missionaries and military missions
■ Respected diversity within Islam and other faiths
– even if they did work to persuade Muslims of the
truth of Shiite doctrine
– At the end of the dynasty, the Egyptians were still
largely Sunni, and Christian and Jewish
communities remained strong.
■ Decline began because of fighting between local
tribes and rise of local rulers