Test 1 Flashcards
Allah
God(Arabic word, used mainly in Islam)
Caliph
A supreme political and religious leader in a Muslim government
Calligraphy
The art of beautiful handwriting
Fatimid
A member of a Muslim dynasty that traced it’s ancestry to Muhammad’s daughter Fatima and that built and Empire in North Africa, Arabis and Syria
Hajj
A pilgrimage to Mecca preformed as a duty by Muslims
Hijrah
Muhammad’s migration from Mecca to Medina (Yathrib) in 622 AD, the first year of the Islamic calendar
House of Wisdom
A center of learning established in Baghdad in the 800s
Islam
A monotheistic religion that developed in Arabia in the seventh century AD
Mosque
An Islamic place of worship
Muslim
A follower of Islam
Qur’an
The holy book of Islam
Shari’a
A body of law governing the lives of Muslims
Shi’a
The branch of Islam whose members acknowledged Ali and his descendants as the rightful successors of Muhammad
Sufi
A Muslim who seeks to achieve direct contact with God through mystical means
Sunna
An Islamic model for living based on the life and teachings of Muhammad
Sunni
The branch of Islam whose members acknowledge the first four caliphs as the rightful successors of Muhammad
Umayyads
A dynasty that ruled the Muslim empire from 661AD to 750AD and later established a kingdom in al-Andalus
Muslims
People who follow Islam
Who was Muhammad
The founder of Islam, the prophet of Allah, the messenger of Allah
What was the night of power?
A sacred event where Muhammad received the call to be gods messenger: The Prophet of Allah
When did Muhammad begin preaching to the people of Mecca?
613 AD
What does Islam mean?
Islam is an Arabic word that means acceptance, submission, surrender or commitment. Related to the Arabic word for peace.
What does Muslim mean?
Someone who makes peace
How many followers does Islam have?
Over a billion, 1/5 of the world’s population
What did Mohammad’s childhood include?
His father dying before he was born and his mom dying before he was 6. He lived with a nomadic tribe.
What was the name of Muhammad’s wife?
Khadija, she was the nomadic tribe leader.
How many kids did Muhammad have?
4 daughters, and 3 sons who died in infancy
What did Muhammad first do when he began preaching?
- Began preaching to the people of Mecca in 613
- Told them to believe in the oneness of Allah: Allah is the only God
- Gathered followers from all classes in Mecca
- Called for the submission to the will of the one true God
- Merchants of Mecca ignored him
What are the five pillars of faith?
Belief in Allah Belief in angels of God Belief in the Quran Belief in judgement day Belief that God is responsible for everything
What are the five pillars of Islam?
Faith: To become a Muslim a person must make a statement to Allah
Prayer: Fives time a day
Alms: To support the less fortunate
Fasting: Not eating food or indulging in pleasure during Ramadan
Pilgrimage: All Muslims who are able to must have to preform the Hajj
Abbasids
A dynasty that ruled ruled much of the Muslim empire from 750 AD to 1258 AD
What were the repercussions of Muhammad first preaching to the Meccans?
Tribe leaders tried to bribe him with offers of wealth
Merchants of Mecca ignored him
He and his followers were persucuted
What occurred 622 when the religion was moved to Medina by Muhammad?
He built the first mosque
Drafted agreements with opposing clans to have mutual respect for each other
The religion flourished in Medina
Jewish leaders denied him as prophet
What does caliph mean?
Successor
Who were the rightly guided caliphs in order?
Muhammad
Abu Bakr
Uthman
Ali
What did Abu-Bakr put in place in order to help Islam survive and expand?
Jihad, holy wars to take over empires
What empires had Islam taken over under Jihad?
Syria, Egypt and parts of the Sassanid empire
By 750 how much land had the muslims conquered?
6,000 square miles
What was the order of higher power in the muslim empire?
Rightly guided caliphs, Ummayads, Abbasids
What did the Ummayads change within the muslim empire?
They focused on wealth and abandoned the life of the past caliphs
Moved the capital of islam to damascus which helped them control the empire
Sufi
A muslim who are very spiritual and believe a life of poverty. They rejected the wealthy life of the ummayads
Shi’a
People who believe the decedents of ali as the true successors to Muhammad.
Sunni
Resisted the rule of the ummayads and believed in the ways of muhammad. Acknowledge the 4 caliphs as the rightful successors.
What did the Abasids do?
The most powerful rebel group that ruthlessly murdered all the members of the ummayad family.
Moved the capital to baghdad
Developed a strong bureaucracy which kept track of the flow of money
They also taxed imports, exports, land and non muslims
What cultures combined to make
Arab, Turkish and Persian
What law do muslims follow?
Sharia Law
How many wives could a muslim have?
Up to 4, he paid a tax for the extras
How could men divorce a wife?
By saying “I dismiss you.”
