The Rise
of the
Islamic World
Abū al-Qāsim Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib ibn Hāshim
c. 570 – 8 June 632
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Born in Mecca.
Raised by his uncle.
A merchant.
Would periodically retreat to a cave to pray:
– c. 610 Visited by the angle Gabriel who gave him his first
revelation.
– Began preaching of submission to a single supreme being.
• Forced to flee to Medina in 622.
– Marks the beginning of the Islamic calendar.
“Year One” ?
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Islamic Calendar
– Anno Hegirae 1435
– System created in 638 CE by Caliph Umar
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Hebrew Calendar, calculated by Maimonides in 1178 CE:
– Year One = 7 October 3761 BC/BCE, c. 1 year before creation
– This year is Anno Mundi 5775
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“Christian Calendar,” based on the Roman calendar.
– No “Year One” Anno Domini 2014
– Devised by Dionysius Exiguus in 525 CE
• Chinese Calendar
– Invented by the Emperor Huangdi in 2637 BCE.
– 2014 = 4712 The Year of the Horse
• Unites the tribes around Medina with the
“Constitution of Medina.”
• Raises an army of 10,000
• Conquers Mecca,
11 January 630 CE
– Cleanses the Kaaba
– Pagan idols destroyed
Quran (Qur'an, Koran)
• Verbal revelations to Muḥammad, 609 – 632.
• Muhammad’s verbal recounting of the
revelations written down by his followers.
• Compilations produced after his death.
• Standardized c. 650.
The Five Pillars of Islam
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Profession of faith
Prayer
Fasting
Alms giving
Pilgrimage to Mecca
• Shair’a
– “The entirety of Islamic morality and law,
revealed in the Quran and the tradition”
• Jihad
– “According to Islamic tradition, war against
unbelievers or pagans.”
– Used 41 times in the Quran
– “striving in the way of God”
“al-jihad fi sabil Allah"
The Constitution (charter) of Medina
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“To the Jew who follows us belong help and equality. He shall not be wronged nor
shall his enemies be aided.”
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“The Jews must bear their expenses and the Muslims their expenses. Each must
help the other against anyone who attacks the people of this document. They
must seek mutual advice and consultation, and loyalty is a protection against
treachery. A man is not liable for his ally’s misdeeds. The wronged must be
helped.”
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The Jews of the B‘Auf are one community with the believers (the Jews have their
religion and the Muslims have theirs) . . .
Shura
‫شورى‬
"Those who hearken to their Lord, and establish
regular Prayer; who (conduct) their affairs by
mutual consultation among themselves; who
spend out of what We bestow on them for
Sustenance" [are praised].”
38th verse, 42nd Sura
Shura
‫شورى‬
“Thus it is due to mercy from God that you deal
with them gently, and had you been rough, hard
hearted, they would certainly have dispersed
from around you; pardon them therefore and
ask pardon for them, and take counsel with
them in the affair; so when you have decided,
then place your trust in God; surely God loves
those who trust.”
159th verse, 3rd Sura
630
732
Mecca
Poiters
Why?
• Byzantine Empire and Sassanid Persia exhausted.
• Minority groups often welcomed Moslem armies as
liberators.
• Constantinople unsuccessfully besieged
– 674–678
– 717–718
• France unsuccessfully invaded
– 721 - defeated at Toulouse
– 732 - defeated at Tours (aka Poitiers)
Rashidun Caliphate - 632-661
• “Caliph” = successor
• Abu Bakr, Muhammad's oldest and longest friend
• Ali, Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law
• Abu Bakr chosen as first Caliph
• Umar Ibn Khattab (634-644)
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Organizes the Islamic state
Allows local language, religion, and customs
Established the Islamic calendar
• lunar calendar
• year 1 = 622, the year of the Hijra
– Assassinated
• Uthman Ibn Affan (644-656)
– Formed the committee that compiled the Q’ran
– Seen as too powerful and assassinated
• Ali ibn Abi Talib (656-661)
– Replaced governors
– Moved capitol from Medina to Kufa
– Assassinated
• The First Fitna, 656–661
(Sha-Sunni split)
• End of the Rashidun Caliphate
Branches of Islam
• Sunni Islam
– Muhammad did not appoint a successor
– The caliph can be democratically selected
• Shia Islam
– Rightful leadership comes from the Prophet’s family
• Sufism
• Umayyad Caliphate (661–750)
– Fell because of rapid expansion (?)
• Abbasid Caliphate (750–1258)
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Initially support Shia faction of Islam
Move capitol to Baghdad
Umayyad’s remain in power in Spain (al-Andalus)
Mongols capture Baghdad in 1258
– The “Golden Age of Islam”
– Development of an Islamic identity based on Arabic
“The Golden Age”
• “House of Wisdom” (813-833)
– Variety of works translated into Arabic
– Roman law provides basis for Islamic law
• Reconciliation of Plato and Aristotle with Islam
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Abu Yusuf al-Kindi (801-873)
Muhammad al-Farabi (“Abunaser”) (870-950)
Abu Ali al-Husayn Ibn Sina (“Avicenna”) (980-1037)
Abu al-Walid Muhammad Ibn Rushd (“Averröes”) (1126-1198)
Abd al-Rahman Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406)
Mouhammad Ibn Musa al-Khwārizmī (780-850)
• “Arabic” numerals and decimal system adopted from
India
• Invents algebra
– The Compendious Book on Calculation by Completion and
Balancing
• Also wrote on
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arithmetic
astronomy
trigonometry
geography (revised Ptolemy)
Islamic Medicine
• Understanding of the basic Greek work
• Continued observation and development
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ophthalmology
obstetrics and pediatrics
pharmacology
pharmacology
Mosque at Cordoba
600-987 (780)
"Sacred for lovers of art, you are the glory of faith,
You have made Andalusia pure as a holy land!“
- Muhammad Iqbal
Alcázar, Seville, 12th century
13th century
968
c. 900
1632–1653