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10.1
• Arabian Peninsula: Africa, Europe, Asia. Desert
o few oases. Nomadic Arab leaders lived there
o Arab Nomads = Bedouins -> organized into clans, provided security & support in the
desert
• Bedouin: ideals = courage, loyalty, warrior skills -> Islamic way of life
• Fertile areas = farming communities
o Early 600’s many Arab’s settle in oasis/ market towns
o Larger towns on W. coast are market towns for local/regional/western trade
• Trade routes connect Arabia to Byzantine Empire and Sassanid/Persia and Silk Road
• Mecca: religious pilgrimages to Ka’aba an ancient shrine to Abraham (Monotheistic society-
but later introduced more gods)
• The concept of belief in one God is called ALLAH
• Muhammad’s uncle= powerful Meccan leader
• Muhammad = trader, interested in religion
o One day Angel Gabriel came to him and told him he was Allah’s messenger
Gave him stuff to say
o Becomes a prophet -> taught that Allah was the only god = Islam (submission to the will
of Allah)
o Met with some hostility, accused as a revolutionary
Therefore, left Mecca with his followers = hijrah
Went to Medina (formerly called Yathrib)
Mohammed is a leader of Arab’s and Jews in Medina
o Went back to Mecca (they surrendered under his attack)
And destroyed the Ka’aba
o Many Meccans converted to Islam; joined UMMA a Muslim religious community.
o Although he died early, he had unified most of the Arabian peninsula under Islam
• 5 Pillars of Faith: faith, prayer, alms, fasting, pilgrimage (hajj)
• Even though Islam has no priests/religious authorities, just Allah, they have the Ulama which is
a religious scholar class.
• M.’s followers collected his recitations that he received from Gabriel in the Qur’an – written in
Arabic the language of worship (language helped unite conquered ppl)
• Sunna = Muhammad’s example for living
• Shari’a = Muslim laws
• Islam vs. Judaism and Christianity
o Islam: Jesus is another prophet, Muhammad is the last and greatest prophet
o Christianity: Jesus = son of god
o All religions go back to Abraham: the people that worship them called: ppl of the Book
10.2
• Issue of leadership after M- he didn’t name a successor
• Community elected Abu Bakr as 1st caliph
• 1st four caliphs = rightly guided; they all personally knew M
o their rule called a caliphate
• Chaos after M’s death: Abu Bakr invoked jihad -> to encourage expansion of Islam
• After A.B.’s death Muslim controlled all of Arabia
• 2nd caliph: Umar -> takes over Syria, Lower Egypt and parts of Sassanid empire
• 3rd and 4th Uthman and Ali also expand empire + spread Islam
• Disciplined armies exploit weaknesses of northern empires
• Equality, non-persecution in Islam appealed to foreigners (as well as the no-tax for Muslim’s
rule)
o But conquered ppl were allowed to follow their own religion: religious Tolerance
• Uthman’s muder = civil war