What am I?Camels- “ships” of the desert; made trade in the Middle East possible

What does each camel tell you about the environment that they live in? What can you infer about each climate?

• Bedouins- tribes of nomadic herders – Traveled desert with no permanent home– Raised sheep, camels, and goats– Guides for trade caravans

• Caravans- helped keep traders safe• Bedouins were/are Arabs

– Lived on Arabian Peninsula– Spoke Arabic

• Knew way through desert & location of oases:• Guides for surviving trade in the desert!

Early Inhabitants: People called Bedouins

Trade • Cities Mecca

and Medina– trading

centers– located at

crossroads of trade

- traded elephant tusks, perfume, spices, cloth and gold

Early Religion: Before Islam• Before Islam, most Arabs were polytheistic• Kaaba- Sacred shrine in Mecca• Muslims believe it was built by Abraham

and Ishmael– Important prophets to Jews and

Christians• Many Arab gods worshipped there(before Islam)-worshipped idols orFalse gods

Kabba- ancient stone building located at the

Grand Mosque in Mecca • Black Stone

– Eastern corner of Kabba

– From time of Adam and Eve

– Pilgrims touch and kiss the stone as they circle the Kabba

TRADITION OF ARABS• Made a pilgrimage (religious

journey) once a year to Mecca • Worshipped at the Kaaba• Trade goods-

– A lot of trade went on – Mecca was a rich city – This pilgrimage brought mucho money

into the city

WHO WAS MUHAMMAD?

• Prophet of Islam• Prophet- someone who others believe has

talked to God – Born in Mecca in 572 became an orphan– Job: led trade caravans across the desert to

Palestine and Syria– Married a wealthy widow – Khadija

• Angel Gabriel told him that he was a prophet of God

• Arabic for God= Allah• Muhammad decided to spread the word of

Islam

The Hijra: 622 C.E. • Merchants and traders of Arab tribes

rejected the idea of one God– Did not want idols of the Kaaba destroyed – Wanted to kill him- thought Islam would

ruin trade• Hijra – migration of Muhammad and

followers from Mecca to Medina, also known as “Night Flight”

• Medina meaning “city of the prophet”• 622- start of the Muslim calendar

RETURN TO MECCA• 630 C.E. – Muhammad returned to Mecca

and recaptured the city with an army• Dedicated the Black Stone & Kaaba to God

(Allah)• Banned many Arab idols (false gods)• Mecca became Islamic religious center

and stayed a powerful center of trade

Similarities• Muslims are strict monotheists• They believe in same the Judeo- Christian God, which they call Allah.• Muslims believe that the Torah and the Bible, like the Qur’an, is the word of God.

Peoples of the BookPeoples of the Book

Mosque- Muslim house of worship

Remember, the Turks turned Hagia Sophia into a mosque

DOME

MINARETS

Some typical features of

mosques are domes and minarets

Quran or Koran Quran

– Holy book of Islam– Contains messages

God gave to Muhammad

– Similar to the Bible (Christian holy book) and the Torah (Jewish holy book)

– “People of the Book”

The Five Pillars of IslamDeclaration of Faith

Declare there is only 1 God Allah & Muhammad is his messenger

Prayer 5 times per day; facing Mecca

Almsgiving

Must give alms; money that goes to the needy

Fasting Fast during daylight hours during month of Ramadan

Pilgrimage or hajj

Must travel to Mecca at least once in life if able

The Hajj- 2015• Over 2 million

participants – Mina where the

ritual called “stoning of the devil” takes place

– 2 miles from Mecca– 717 people died,

900 injured due to a stampede

The SchismG. A Split Among Muslims

1. After Muhammad’s death…2. Shiites- smaller group argued leader

should be, direct descendant of Muhammad

3. Sunni- larger group, argued any true Muslim could become leader and a group of scholars should interpret the Koran

Think about it….how is this like the schism we studied in Christianity?

Role of Women• Quran taught men

and women are spiritually equal

• Were given more rights by Quran- right to inherit property

- right to education - right to divorce

The Taliban imposed strict laws limiting what women

in Afghanistan were allowed

to do.

`

Many New Converts• Islam spreads two ways:

1.Arab Merchants trading in parts of Asia and North Africa

2.Arab armies conquered neighboring regions

Battle of Tours• In Present-Day France- This stopped the Muslimadvance into ChristianEurope

Reasons for Success• Weakness of the Roman, Byzantine,

and Persian Empire

• United Arab community- made them stronger

Under Muslim Rule• Muslims Tolerated other Faiths a. allowed Jews and Christians to

practice their own religion b. Jews and Christians could pursue

their own business affairs- Non-Muslims a. Fewer rights- could not own a

weapon or fight in military b. Paid special tax to help government

The Age of Caliphs- The Golden Age

• Caliph- a Muslim ruler, considered Muhammed’s successor

• Wealth– Came from lands it controlled– Trade

Harun ar-Rashid: A Powerful Caliph 1. wealthy leader 2. supported arts such as writing, music,

dancers

Achievements of the Golden Age

• Math and Science– Contributions to algebra (comes from

Arabic word al-jabr)– Ibn Sina- organized medical knowledge

of Greeks and Arabs into the Canon of Medicine

• Literature– Poetry was important in Islamic world– Sufis: mystics who believed that they

could draw close to God through prayer, fasting and a simple life• Helped spread Islam to Central Asia, India,

and Africa