Concepts Flashcards
Five pillars of Islam
- Professing of the faith (Shahada)
- Pilgrimage to Mecca (Hadj)
- Five daily prayers (salat)
- Fasting during Ramadan (sawm)
- Charity to the needy (Zaqat)
Shahada
The professing of the faith
Hadj
The pilgrimage to Mecca
Zaqat
Charity to the needy
Hijra
Muhammad’s emigration to Medina in 622
Medina
First named “City of the Prophet”, previously Yathrib
Location: Saudi Arabia
Qur’an
“Recitation”; literally the word of God in text form
Caliph
Successor of Muhammad; new leader of the Muslim community
Not a prophet
Emirate
Political territory that is ruled by a dynastic Islamic monarch styled emir.
An emirate is usually within a caliphate.
Caliphate
Territory under the leadership of an Islamic steward known as a caliph
Minaret
a tall slender tower, typically part of a mosque, with a balcony from which a muezzin calls Muslims to prayer.
Also a symbol of the presence of Islam
Image: Minaret in Samarra
Muezzin
person who calls Muslims to prayer from the minaret of a mosque
Qibla
The direction (towards the Ka’aba) faced during prayer.
Masjid
Pre-Islamic word meaning mosque. Means “the place where one bowns before God”.
Plural masajid.
Imam
Leader of prayer
Minbar
a short flight of steps used as a platform by a preacher in a mosque for the Friday sermon.
Can also be seen as a symbol of authority
Mihrab
niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the qibla
Image: Mihrab of the Great Mosque of Córdoba, c. 768
Sahn
- Courtyard of the mosque
- In many mosques, the large prayer hall is adjoined to an open courtyard
- In the courtyard there’s often a fountain fountain, important for the ablutions (ritual cleansing) before prayer.
Umma
Islamic community, term appears in 7th century
Hypostyle Mosque
- Mosque in which the prayer hall is formed of rows of vertical supports, or columns, that can multiply indefinitely.
- Large courtyard is surrounded by long rooms supported by columns
Image: Sahn and minaret of the Great Mosque of Kairouan, Tunisia, c. 836-75
Qubba
Dome. Most mosques have one or more qubba.
Iwan
Vaulted space that opens to a courtyard
Developed in pre-Islamic Iran
Image: Iwan in Ctesiphon, Iraq, c. 560
Four-iwan mosque
- Mosque in which each wall of the courtyard is punctuated with a vaulted hall (an iwan)
- Qibla iwan is often the largest and most decorated one
- Developed in 11th century and became widespread in the 12th century
Image: Plan of the Great Mosque of Isfahan, Iran, 11-17th centuries.
What does calligraphy in Islamic art state?
Qur’anic verses and often the name of the patron and artist.
Indicate the relation between patronage and zaqat.
- The commissioning of a mosque would be seen as a pious act on the part of a ruler or other wealthy patron because of the zaqat.
- But patronage also emphasized the power of the ruler
What are the two types of mosque?
- Common oratory mosque for daily rituals like the salat
- Congregational mosque for the Friday prayers (masjid al-Jami)
What are the functions of the mosque?
- A meeting place for prayers, ritual ablutions, reading of sacred texts, and discussions on theology and all issues related to the Muslim community life.
- Originally, the mosque was altogether a council chamber, courtroom, treasury, military quarter and asylum.
What are the three main holy sites of Islam?
- The Ka’aba
- Medina, where Muhammad built the first mosque
- Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock (on the site of Solomon’s Temple) in Jerusalem, associated with Muhammad’s isra and miraj
Which conquests occurred in 633-40?
Syria, Palestine (Byzantine territories) and Iraq (Sasanian)
642
Conquest of Egypt
651
Conquest of western Iran
710
Muslim army reaches Indus river
711
Conquest of (most of) Spain
751
Muslims reach Tachkent (Uzbekistan)
Who were the Berbers?
Indigenous people from North Africa who helped the Muslim Arab army with some conquests, like the 711 conquest of Spain (except Galicia and Asturias)
Source: The Met
Haram al-Sharif
The Temple Mount.
Location of the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque
