Unit 4: Early Global InteractionTopics:– The Rise of Islam in Arabia, Muslim conquest of North

Africa and Spain, and the influence of Muslim traders in West and East Africa

– The kingdoms of Ghana, Mali and Songhay in West Africa

– The vibrant trade and interaction between Persians, Arabs, Indians, and Africans on the Swahili Coast as well as Great Zimbabwe.

The Rise of Islam in Arabia

MohammedBorn about 570 in Mecca

About 610, claims to receive visions and messages.

These collected and written down about 650 as the Qur’an.

Flees to Medina, 622 (hegira) Return to Mecca, 630 Unified Arabia by the time of his death

in 632

Mohammed’s teachings had similarities to Judaism and Christianity, but they also

presented new ideas.Mohammed taught that there was only one God, Allah, which means “the God” in Arabic. This is similar to Christianity and Judaism.

Muslims also recognize many of the same prophets as Christians and Jews.

Muslims don’t believe that Jesus was the son of God.

Arabs were used to worshipping many gods, so many of them rejected Mohammed’s teachings.

Mohammed said the rich and poor should be equal. Many wealthy merchants did not like this idea.

Islam spread in Arabia after being rejected at first.

Islam spread from Mecca to Medina.

– Rulers of Mecca began to threaten Muhammad and his followers with violence as Islam started to influence more people.

– Muhammad left Mecca and went to Medina.

– This departure became known in Muslim history as the hegira, or journey.

– Islam thrived in Medina, and other Arab tribes in the region accepted Islam.

The Qur’an guides Muslims’ lives.

The world has a definite end, and on that final day, God will judge all people.

The Qur’an sets out guidelines for moral behavior, acts of worship, and rules for social life

– Muslims were encouraged to free slaves.

– Women could own property, earn money, and receive an education.

The Qur’an discusses Jihad, which means to make an effort, or to struggle. Jihad refers to the inner struggle people go through in their effort to obey God and behave according to Islamic ways.

– Jihad can also mean the struggle to defend the Muslim community, or historically, to convert people to Islam. The word has also been translated as “holy war.”

The Five Pillars of Islam1. Saying “There is no god but God, and Muhammad is

his prophet”

2. Praying five times a day

3. Giving to the poor and needy

4. Fasting during the holy month of Ramadan

5. Traveling to Mecca at least once on a hajj

7.2.47.2.5

Early Expansion

The Big Idea

Conquest and trade led to the spread of Islam, the blending of cultures, and the growth of cities.

Main Ideas

• Muslim armies conquered many lands into which Islam slowly spread.

• Trade helped Islam spread into new areas.

• A mix of cultures was one result of Islam’s spread.

• Islamic influence encouraged the growth of cities.

Trade helped Islam spread into new areas.

Along with their trade goods, Arab merchants took Islamic beliefs to new lands.

Islam spread to India, Africa, Malaysia, and Indonesia.

Trade also brought new products to Muslim lands and made many people rich.

– Travelers learned how to make paper from the Chinese.

– Merchants brought crops of cotton, rice, and oranges from India, China, and Southeast Asia.

– Muslim merchants set up trade businesses in Africa.

The spread of Islam

After Mohammed’s death, Growth of the Empire

Muslim armies battled tribes that did not follow Muhammad’s teachings.

The Muslim armies united Arabia, then defeated the Persian and Byzantine empires.

After years of fighting Muslim armies, many Berbers, a native people of North Africa, converted to Islam and joined forces with the Arabs.

A combined Berber and Arab army invaded Spain and conquered it in AD 711.

Islam Penetrates Europe

A mix of cultures was one result of Islam’s spread.

As Islam spread through trade, warfare, and treaties, Arabs came into contact with people who had different beliefs and lifestyles.

Language and religion helped unify many groups that became part of the Islamic world.

Muslims generally practiced tolerance, or acceptance, with regard to these people.

Jews and Christians in particular could keep their beliefs. If convert, no longer pay higher taxes. Conversion incentive.

Great Islamic Cities of the Period

Baghdad

Capital of Islamic Empire

Located near land and water trade routes

Walled city

Built hospitals, observatories, and a library that was used as a university

Cordoba

Capital of what is now Spain

Strong economy based on agriculture and trade

By the AD 900s, was the largest and most advanced city in Europe

Great center of learning

Also a center of Jewish culture

http://www.hp.uab.edu/image_archive/um/painting06.jpg

West Africa: Ghana, Mali and Songhay

Animism

Traditional African religious beliefs:– One God above a host of lesser gods

or sem-divine figures– Ancestral spirits– Sacrifice to ensure divine protection

and generosity– Rites of passage to move from child

to adult, life to death

Christianity

Legend:– Christianity brought from Jerusalem to Alexandria

(Egypt) by evangelist Mark in 60 BCE. (About the same time or possibly before Christianity spread to N. Europe.)

Spread – slowly west from Alexandria and east to Ethiopia.

• Around 300 B.C.E. Ethiopian King Ezana made Christianity the kingdom's official religion.

Impact of Islam – 7th century: Christianity retreated with rise of Islam.

Remained chosen religion of the Ethiopian Empire and persisted in pockets in North Africa.

Islam

Islam arrived in North Africa in 646 (seven years after Prophet Mohammed’s death).– 4,000 strong Arab invading forces came from Mecca– Also linked to trade routes

Islam arrived on East African coast around 700 or so through traders from the Persian Gulf and Oman.

It is said Islam more attractive than Christianity because tolerated traditional values, including polygamy.

Islam in Africa had a dynamic and turbulent history, with reforming movements and dynasties clashing and succeeding each other (e.g., Almoravids and Almohads).

In the last quarter of the 11th century, Islam dominated the Mediterranean world.

Northern African Kingdoms

Cannot understand Western African kingdoms without Northern African kingdoms Impact of Islam reforming movements– Some argue Almoravids conquered Ghana.

Regardless, it is around the time of the Kingdom of Ghana that Islam introduced to Western kingdoms.Two most famous groups were Almoravids and Almohads– Both were reforming movements, launching jihads

(Holy Wars) and becoming government.

Almoravids

Kingdom developed in western Sahara, as pressure from nearby trading kingdoms (Berbers and Ghana) grew. Movement to reform: increase Islamic knowledge and practiceShifted from promoting religious reform to military conquest after 1054– Marrakesh: capital– Conquered Morocco, part of Algeria and Spain

Not peaceful, but economic and cultural achievements– Muslim Spain: artistic and intellectual achievements

Almoravids

Almoravids

Site: Almoravid Koubba; Koubba Ba'adiynOldest building in Marrakesh Only Almoravid building remaining in Morocco

Almohads

Spiritual leader sought to reform Almoravid decadence.– Purity to Islam – Rejected in Marrakech and other cities, centered in

Atlas Mountains – They emphasized the unity of God (unitarians, or

Almohads).

Almohad rebellion began in 1125 with attacks on Moroccan cities, including Sus and Marrakech.

Andalusian amirs invited Almohads into Spain, who had risen against the Almoravids there.– They took over and reestablished caliphate of

Córdoba, giving sultan supreme religious and political authority

Almohads

Took control of Morocco in 1146 and captured Algiers around 1151

At peak, awesome handcrafts and agriculture and efficient bureaucracy supported by taxes.

In 1212, Almohad army defeated in Spain

In 1229, Almohad court liberalized and hosted greatest thinkers of Andalus.

In Morocco, Almohads lost power to another dynasty, which took Marrakech in 1269.

Andalusiyyin Mosque, Fez, Morocco1900 and today

Almohad architecture

Hasan Mosque, Rabat, Morocco

Western African Kingdoms

Important developments:– long distance trade– introduction of Islam

Led to:-- kingdoms and empires flourishing in 5th –

16th century -- each had extensive trade with North through

Trans-Saharan Trade Route, large standing armies, and an effective system of taxation

Current Day Location

Not in modern Ghana

about four hundred miles northwest in Northern Senegal and

Southern Mauritania

Ghana developed in West Africa between the Niger and the Gambia Rivers (from 300- 1100). The rivers helped Ghana to grow rich because they were used to transport goods and develop trade. Ghana also collected taxes from traders who passed through the kingdom.

http://www.nevadasurveyor.com/africa/web/pages/niger_river.htm

Several clans of the Soninke people of west Africa came together under the leadership of a great king named Dinga Cisse

Few natural resources: salt and gold.

Adept at making things from iron.

Warriors used iron tipped spears to subdue their neighbors, who fought w/ weapons made of stone, bone, and wood.

http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/center/mm/eng/mm_rs_01.htm

"The King . . .(wears). . . necklaces round his neck and bracelets on his forearms and he puts on a high cap decorated with gold and wrapped in a turban of fine cotton. He (meets people) in a domed pavilion around which stand ten horses covered with gold-embroidered materials…and on his right, are the sons of the (lesser) kings of his country, wearing splendid garments and their hair plaited with gold.

At the door of the pavilion are dogs of excellent pedigree. Round their necks they wear collars of gold and silver, studded with a number of balls of the same metals."

10th century geographer Al-Bakri, quoted in Corpus of Early Arabic Sources for West African History.

Ghana became a rich and powerful nation, especially when the camel began to be used as a source of transport. Ghana relied on trade and trade was made faster and bigger with the use of the camel.

http://es.encarta.msn.com/media_461532998_761558787_-1_1/Caravana_de_camellos.html

news.nationalgeographic.com/. ../salt/photo6.html

Muslim warriors came into Ghana and fought with the non-Islamic people there. This weakened the great

civilization of Ghana. Local warriors then decided to break away from the power of Ghana and form their own local kingdoms. This ended many of the trade

networks. This eventually weakened the civilization of Ancient Ghana.

Islamic Mosque in Ghana

blankbluesky.com/ travel/ghana/

http://www.btsadventures.com/img/mosque.jpg

Sundiata In 1235, at the battle of Kirina,Sundiata and Sumanguru met inbattle. According to legend, bothwere sorcerers, and their magicwould determine the outcome.Sundiata roared at the troopsof King Sumanguru, who wereterrified and ran for cover.Sumanguru retaliated, and theheads of eight spirits magicallyappeared above his own. Unfortunately for Sumanguru,Sundiata had the stronger magic,and the spirits were defeated.Sundiata then aimed an arrow atSumaguru, and although it onlygrazed Sumanguru's shoulder, itdrained him of all magic, andSumanguru was defeated.

Mansa Musa (1312-1337), king of Mali, developed the gold and salt trade of Mali. The kingdom became very powerful and rich.

Mansu Musa: Lord of the Negroes of Guinea. (Photo courtesy of History of Africa)

Mansa Musa made a pilgrimage to Mecca, a holy city in Arabia, in 1324.

• 60,000 servants and followers

• 80 camels carrying

• 4,000 + pounds of gold

• 500 of his servants carried a staff of pure gold

http://bseleck.bei.t-online.de/timbuktu/img_tim/mansamusag.gif

Mansa Musa also built many beautiful mosques

in western Africa.

http://travel.u.nu/pic/ml/djenne.jpg

When Mansa Musa died, no kings as powerful as he followed. So, Mali weakened. Eventually, Berbers and

others came into the area to claim kingdom’s territory. Although Mali fell, the kingdom of Songhay

would rise in its place.

http://www.uchicago.edu/docs/mp-site/plaisanceplan/graphics/berbers.jpg

Berbers (1893)

http://www.exzooberance.com

http://www.sfusd.k12.ca.us/schwww/sch618/Travelers/Catal_AtlasAfrica.jpg

This map was created in 1375. The same trade routes were used by the merchants of the Songhay kingdom.

Check out the various pictures.

The picture above is one artist’s idea of what the great Songhay leader, Sunni Ali might have looked like. Sunni Ali saw that the kingdom of Mali was weakening and he led his soldiers to conquer the area. He began the kingdom of Songhay. He also set up a complex government to rule all the lands he had conquered.

http://www.abcorpaffairs.com/gallery/

Sunni Ali died in 1492 CE. His son took over the rule of Songhay but he did not accept Islam as a religion. Islam was accepted as a religion by many people in northern Africa. One of Sunni Ali’s generals, named Muhammad Ture, overthrew the new king and made himself king of Songhay. Ture was a follower of Islam (Muslim) and so he made Islam the religion of his kingdom. http://www.thewoz.ca/ghana/_larabanga1.jpg

Songhay remained a rich and strong kingdom under Muhammad Ture’s rule. It had a complex government centered in the city of Gao, and great centers of learning. But later rulers were not as powerful. In the late 1500s, Morocco invaded Songhay to take its rich trade routes. Moroccans had a new weapon, the gun, and the army of Songhay did not. This led to the fall of Songhay.

(Photo courtesy of African Origin of Civilization by Cheikh Anta Diop)

All three kingdoms of West Africa relied on trade for their strength and wealth.

Timbuktu Gao

Jenne

Gold, Ivory, Wood, Slaves

Silk, Ceramics, Beads, Islam from Europe and Asia

Coming into West Africa

Coming from Africa and going to Europe and Asia

Salt

Vibrant trade and interaction between Persians, Arabs, Indians,

and Africans

Swahili Coast

Swahili CoastString of cities on coast of East Africa (Somalia, Kenya and Tanzania)– Independent city-states– Linked by trade, common culture and language

Role of merchants from the Arab peninsula, Persia, and India – settled among and intermarried with the Swahili towns' African

founders.

By 12th century, Swahili culture exhibited Arab and Asian cultural influences (e.g., architecture, mixed religion)

Islam: well-established along the Swahili Coast by 12th century, though elements of indigenous African religions remained.

For centuries, Swahili merchants served as middlemen, exporting products from the East African interior in exchange for goods purchased from Indian Ocean merchant ships.

Decorative Arts: Door from S.C.

Great Zimbabwe

Great ZimbabweGreat Zimbabwe– Shona-speaking people– No written records– Most famous stone building in southern

Africa• built out of granite over a long period, beginning

in 1200 and ending in 1450• Arrogant Europeans did not believe Africans built

– Wealthy kingdom due to cattle and gold • No direct control over gold mines, managed gold

trade, bought in exchange for cattle. • In turn, they traded gold to Swahili Coast

Great Zimbabwe

Great Zimbabwe

Decline

– environmental: overgrazing and drought caused the soil on the Zimbabwe Plateau to become exhausted and led to famine.

– OR, moved in order to maximize their exploitation of the gold trade network.

– By 1500, abandoned.