Islam Flashcards
Bedouins (nomadic herders)
These people spread Islam everywhere they moved
Learned to survive in the Arabian Peninsula
First Islam converts
Living conditions in the middle east-
In the middle east, there were few resources (desert) – dog eat dog world – people had to be good warriors to survive, and the Bedouins were.
Mecca’s geographical significance-
Crossroad for trade between Africa, Asia, and Europe – in modern day Saudi Arabia**
Kaaba-
Center for pilgrimages- people came to pray at the Kaaba (Holy Muslim Shrine 🕋)
Only Islamic people are allowed to go near the Kaaba
4 key Facts about Muhammad
He was an orphan raised by an uncle
He was an illiterate merchant (some success)
Tired of all the idol worship, he went to pray & meditate
He was told to proclaim the one true god (Allah)
Islam is an ——— religion
Abrahamic (Judaism, Christianity, Islam)
Who told Muhammad to proclaim Allah as the one true god?
The angel Gabriel (same one who told Mary she would bear Jesus Christ) told Muhammad to proclaim the one true god
Muslim means-
“one who submits” [to Allah], Islam means “submission”
Islam=
Muslims=
a religion
people who practice Islam
The religion that existed before Muhammad’s proclamation had Allah as a god, but-
was a polytheistic animistic religion
First convert to Islam-
Muhammad’s wife believed him & became the first convert to Islam
What happened to Muhammad when he started preaching Allah was the one true god?
Hijra
Muhammad was forced to flee by the angry merchants of Mecca
These merchants had shops set up near the Kaaba
Muhammad stood at the entrance to the Kaaba and screamed for days, telling people not to enter it – to him
the many idols of the gods were not correct
This scared people away and the merchants lost business, becoming angry
Muhammad escaped to a city called ——
Medina
Medina was called ——- at the time
Yathrib
Medina means-
“city of the prophet”
Muhammad’s “escape” was called the —–
When did this happen?
Hijra
622 A.D (an important date for test)
Islam calendar is centered around the-
Hijra
The Hijra starting the calendar
The Islamic calendar is now in 1403, in what we call 2025
Hajj=
Hijira=
The migration to Mecca
Is an event
Muhammed was welcomed in Yathrib and became-
a powerful leader
What went down in 630 A.D?
Muhammed returned to Mecca & destroyed the idols in the Kaaba
What was the complication after Muhammed’s death?
Muhummad never named a successor
Abu Bakr-
Became the first Caliph (successor to Muhammad)
Caliphate vs. Caliph
A caliphate is ruled by a caliph; a caliph is like the pope. A caliphate is like a bishopric
Five Pillars of Islam
Shahada
Salat
Zakat
Sawm
Hajj
Shahada-
The first of the Five Pillars of Islam: “There is no god but God, and Muhammad is the Messenger of God”.
Salat-
Prayer: is the second of the five pillars of Islam, a fundamental act of worship where Muslims perform five daily prayers at specific times, facing the direction of Mecca.
Zakat-
Third pillar of Islam: Alms; an obligatory act where Muslims donate a portion of their wealth to those in need, serving as a form of purification and social responsibility.
Sawm-
Fourth pillar of Islam: requiring Muslims to abstain from food, drink, and other physical needs from dawn until sunset during the month of Ramadan, focusing on spiritual reflection and acts of charity.
Hajj-
Fifth pillar of Islam: a pilgrimage to Mecca that every Muslim who is physically and financially able is expected to make at least once in their lifetime.
Sharia-
Islamic law, interpreting the Quran
Was written because the Quran is written in poetry, hard to understand/interpret
The Quran supersedes (is “above”) the Sharia – if there is a conflict between the two, the Quran is always correct
The Sharia regulates-
all aspects of Muslim life
Most Muslims respected which religions over others?
Christians & Jews
Christians and Jews are “the people of the book” – they are all monotheistic, and they all share the old testament
They were overall a very tolerant religion
Women in Early Muslim Society
Women were given many freedoms like collecting inheritance, working, marriage, and divorce
Women in Modern Muslim Society
However, women lost rights and status as time went on
Instead of changing Arabic societal norms such as strict limitations on the rights of women, these values blended with Islam; this is an example of negative cultural diffusion.
Abu Bakr needed to reunite Islam because-
Many followers left after Muhammad died
Many were following Muhammad, not necessarily the religion – when he died, they had no reason to stay
Abu Bakr reunited the people by giving them an enemy to fight against
Arab Muslims conquered-
Persia, Egypt, across Northern Africa and into Spain (attacked Constantinople)
The once great Byzantine and Persian Empires became weak with age; (they attacked weakened empires)
(However, Byzantine didn’t fall until around 700 years after the start of their conquest)
Sometimes, Muslims were welcomed by native peoples and tribes due to-
the philosophies of their faith
Muslims led a cavalry of-
horses & camels
Camels were extremely effective in war as well as horses
Islamic faith made Muslims strong and unified in war since they-
all fought for Allah
Treatment of conquered people
Tax on non-Muslims
Allowed Christians & Jews to practice own faith, as long as they paid money
If they had no money, they were forced to convert; if they didn’t they were killed
No social hierarchy (everyone was equal)
(Many people from lower social classes joined because it promised a better life)
Islam was accepted by many because-
power was a sign that Muslims had God’s favor.
In other words, Islam was winning, which meant their God must be the right one
Muslims in Europe
Spain (700)
Muslims from Africa (Moors) had conquered Spain (Castile)
They were not unified and Spain was able to reclaim some of its land, and fully reclaimed it in 1492
It was an important part of the Muslim world
Muslims in Europe
Sicily
Briefly controlled by Muslims, but retained some Muslim culture even after Europe reclaimed it
Sunni
Caliphs should be chosen by the Muslim community (Umma)
He’d would be a leader, but not a religious leader
90% of Muslims are Sunni
Shiah (Shiites)
Caliph had to be a descendant of Muhammad’s daughter, Fatima, or his son in law, Ali
Ali was killed and so was his son
Live in Iran, Iraq, Yemen and tend to be more conservative
What did the Sunnis do to Muhammad’s descendants and why?
Ali was killed and so was his son
And the rest of his family tree
The Sunni Muslims did this when they realized that the Shiite Caliph must be a
descendant of Muhammad
Sufi
Muslims who tried to achieve communion with God through meditation, fasting and other ritual.
Sufi are not side exclusive, one can be of any part of Islam and be Sufi
They helped spread the religion (like monks)
Rabiah al-Adawiya
An early Sufi, and respected as a woman
Shayks
Tribe leaders in bedouin society; usually men with many wives, livestock, and children.
Mecca
City located in the Hijaz Asir mountains, founded by the Umayyads; the site of the Kaaba; the birthplace of Muhammad; chief pilgrimage point of Islam
Umayyad
Clan of Quraysh that was the driving commercial and political force in Mecca; ruled Islam from 661 to 750
Quraysh
Tribe of bedouin that controlled Mecca during the 7th century (c. 600 CE); the overarching tribe that contained the Umayyads.
Soon the Umayyads branched off into the Umayyad Dynasty.
Medina
Formerly Yathrib, located northeast of Mecca; grew dates and sold them; became muhammad’s place of refuge during his Hijrah
Farming town, access to oasis springs — access to transcontinental trade routes
Early Bedouin Geography
Infertile land — roughly habitable areas were coasts in the far south — by coasts, cities, kingdoms and agriculture flourished.
Bedouin were highly mobile
True or False
True
(however, they were sparse and far between)
Large tribes were often sub grouped into hostile —–
Survival meant loyalty to one’s —-
clans (clans only unified for war)
clan
What were tribe leaders called?
Shayiks (elected by elders)
Clan Social Order:
Shayks → Warrior (enforced shayiks ideas) → Slaves (conquered clans)
Inside tribes were many rivalries to control ——– & —–
pastures and water
What caused interclan wars?
Triggered easily by overstepping bounds or damaged pride
What did interclan wars lead to?
Wars often lead to great hungers for vengeance
Constant wars weakened bedouins from the inside — allowed manipulation
Largely influential cities like Mecca and Medina were just extensions of-
Bedouin life
Bedouin herders at one point settled along the-
Hijaz Asir and Hadhramaut, as well as on the coast in between
(Due to constant invasion and erasure, we know little about these civilizations)
Mecca forced interclan —— for prayer
truces
What clans controlled Medina?
Controlled by 5 competing clans, two bedouin and three Jewish — led to the survival of muhammad and the Islamic Faith
Lineage in pre-Islamic Arabia traced-
matrilineally; polygamy prevalent — men paid dowry to woman’s family instead of vice versa
Women were required to be secluded in pre-Islamic Arabia
True or False
False
Women were not required to be secluded (advice highly regarded)
What were women’s poems regarded as?
Women’s poems were early forms of Arabic art, high reverence
Why were men still better in Arabic society?
glory to warriors, women not allowed to be warriors — women’s status varied clan to clan
How did art spread in Arabia?
Art did not propagate in Arabia, sparse resources — verbal tradition flourished instead (poetry) — poetry sung of heroes, love, wars and passion
Bedouins were ———— ——–before Islam **
polytheistic animists
Quraysh recognised Allah, the supreme god, but prayer was-
sparse — instead prayed to vassal spirits
What were the spirits that the Quraysh prayed to associated with?
Spirits associate with moon not sun, dewy cool nights opposed to blazing dry days — gods were often associated with shelter from heat
What did religion control for the Bedouins?
Religion didn’t control ethics — bedouins were very loose with gods, “messages” from oracles weren’t taken seriously
Khadijah
First wife of Muhammad; originally Muhammad’s boss
Why were nomads in 500 CE causing change?
500 CE still had nomads despite cities — mounting change — Byzantine and Sasanian Empires struggled to maintain force over nomads
Cultural diffusion north introduced-
Abrahamic religions — several prophets before Muhammad preaching monotheism
Muhammads solution responded to-
exterior influence and social tensions
Muhammad was born into the-
venerated and powerful Banu Hashim clan
Muhammad’s father’s influence on him-
His dad died before he was born (mother soon after — raised by relatives)
Who guided Muhammad? What did this lead to
Abu Talib (Muhammad uncle) and Muhammad’s grandfather guided him — taught ways of merchant
This lead to an expedition in Syria, introducing Muhammad to Abrahamic religion
At 20, Muhammad lived in —– under Khadijah who he later ——-.
What was he introduced to here?
Mecca
married
Introduced to clan rivalry, class discrepancy, alternative ways of growth (commerce – Umayyads), monotheistic religions
Introduced to growing dissent to idol/polytheistic religions — more monotheistic prophets
Muhammad’s revelations recorded in the-
Quran — basis of Islam
Umayyads claim he is new caliph from Jerusalem in 660. Who is he?
Mu’awiya
Umayyad nobles saw Muhammad as-
a threat
The Umayyads set up a dynasty after — was killed. What was the capital?
Ali
The capital was Damascus, Syria
(It was hard for them to rule a such a large empire)
How did The Umayyads handle such a large empire?
They often had local officials help them, but were CENTRALIZED
As the money stopped coming into the empire, problems arose, leading to-
distrust between citizen and empire
How did the The Umayyads economy determine citizen happines?
When the economy was functioning well, even some Shiites could tolerate Sunni rule because it made them prosperous
When the economy deteriorated, Shiites had every reason to hate the Umayyads
Why were The Umayyads hated by the Shiah and some other Muslims?
This is because they stopped following the Quran, and directly contradicted Quranic decrees
They were invited to dinner by a rival family and were all killed
Who started the Abbasid Dynasty?
Started by Abu Al Abbas, the person responsible for the killing of the Umayyads.
Where was the capital moved to in the Abbasid Dynasty?
Then moved the capital to Baghdad, Iraq
Abbasid Dynasty was the golden age of Islam
True or False
True
Were in the golden age of Islam, ushered in by Harun Al-Rashid
Algebra and compasses were contributed by Muslims
