The Rise of Islam

• Muhammad, a merchant, preached monotheism and Arab unity in a region that was mostly polytheistic and politically fragmented during the early 600s.

• Muhammad’s visons and teachings were recorded in the Qur’an

The Quran and Its Teachings• Holy Book of Islam• Ethical guideline for life• Obey the will of Allah through practice of the

Five Pillars• Honesty• Provide for the family• Avoid vices (gambling, drinking, smoking,

etc)• Achieve an afterlife

• Muhammad was not divine• LATER: Basis of the shari’ah• Law code that does not separate religious

and civil matters

• Accepted the validity of Christianity and Judaism; teachings were refinement

The Five Pillars• Shahaadatayn• “Belief”• No other god but

Allah, and Muhammad is his prophet

• Salaah• “Prayer”• Performing the

prayers five times a day

• Zakaah• “Charity”• Giving to the poor

• Siyaam• “Fasting”• Not eating during

Ramadan (holy Month)

• Hajj• “Pilgrimage” to the

Ka’ba in Mecca once in a lifetime

Jihad• The concept of jihad, or struggle for the faith,

inspired Muslim armies to conquer the lands of nonbelievers in SW Asia and across North Africa.

• Not all Muslims shared this aggressive view of jihad. Instead they considered jihad to be an inward struggle for faith.

The Arabs and Islam• Initially popular among town dwellers and Bedouin

directly influenced by Muhammad• The “ummah”, community of the faithful, offered

distinct monotheism that helped supplant clan division; unifying force

• The zakat (tax) was much higher for non-believers. This economic factor led many to convert to Islam.

• From the Arabian Peninsula Islamic armies, missionaries, and merchants rapidly spread the faith eastward and westward – so rapidly that 100 years after Muhammad’s death, Muslims and Christians fought for control of France at the Battle of Tours in 732CE.

• By 732CE Islam was dominant in N.Africa and Spain

• Islamic influence in Spain continues until the late 15th century

• Muhammad left no heirs when he died – left no procedure to appoint one• Tribes of Bedouin broke away• Succession issues –Umayyads emerge as

leadership• Abu Bakr

• Named caliph by Muhammad’s followers

The Split in Islam• Assassination of Utman (3rd Caliph – unpopular

because had once been an enemy of Muhammad) caused another succession struggle

• Support rises for Ali (Muhammad’s SIL), but Umayads rejected him as unfavorable – select Mu’awiya instead (660)

• Ali assassinated in 661, son Hussein, lead Revolt680 – Contested Umayyad rule, killed in battle

• Permanent split – • Shi’a Muslims

Believe that only the decedents of Ali are acceptable rulers of Islam • Sunni Muslims

Disapproved of Umayyad rule but accepted it.Modern Majority

The Umayyad Caliphate

• Power held by Arabs• Great period of Islamic

expansion• Very little to stop them• Islam expands throughout

northern Africa, Mesopotamia, Persia, Eastern and Southern Europe (Spain)

• Originally based in Damascus, Syria, but focus shifts to Cordoba, Spain after conflict with Abbasids

Converts under the Umayyad• Interaction, intermarriage, and conversion not

taboo in Islamic society• Dhimmis – people of the book…Christians, Jews,

Zoroastrians, and Hindus• Had to pay taxes, but were permitted to retain social

and religious identities.

Societal Shifts in Favor of Women• Elevated status prevailed over seclusion in

conquered areas.• Emphasis on marriage• Adultery on either side forbidden• Female infanticide outlawed• Women one husband, husbands four wives

• Strengthened legal rights in inheritance and divorce• Trend in urbanization – less urban, more

freedoms

The Rise of the Abbasid Caliphate• Excess of Umayyad became looked upon as

unfavorable by many – revolts (Merv)• Growing Resentment from mawali (non-Arab

converts) and Shi’a• Abu al-Abbas• Overthrows Umayyads in 750, establishes Abbasid

Dynasty (stays in power until 1258)• Baghdad, capital

Abbasid Changes• Government• Increased bureaucracy overseen by

wazir• Absolutism under the caliphs• Power evident in presence of executioner

• Focus on civil development as opposed to military – especially conversion• All Muslims, regardless of ethnicity, fully

integrated• Could hold government positions• Malawi status gone, all converts tax

exempt

• The Abbasids participated in a great deal of cultural borrowing. The adapted cultural traits from neighbors and made them their own.• Examples:

• Persians served in the government• Persian art, language, literature were

prominent among the Abbasids (“Aladin” and “Sinbad the Sailor” for 1001 Nights (The Arabian Nights)

• The Abbasid era (750CE – 1250CE) is often called the Islamic Golden Age

• Advances in astronomy, medicine, and mathematics (algebra comes from the Arabic “al-jabr”