Muhammad (570-632)Caravan trader living in MeccaFirst teachings of the Koran revealed by the

Angel Gabriel in 610Koran – the Islamic holy bookRejected by the people of MeccaAccepted by the people of Medina (Medina was

the first Muslim city)Led an army back to Mecca in 632 and

conquered the city without a fightDied in 632Seen as a prophet – the final prophet from God

Islam – submission to AllahMuslim – one who submits to AllahAllah – Arabic word for God (Arabic Christians

and Jews use the same word)

Muslims pray to the same god as Christians and Jews

Muslims see Jesus as a very holy man, but still a man (a prophet from God

Jews and Christians are considered “people of the book”

One god, Allah and Mohammad is the Prophet

Prayer – 5X/day facing MeccaAlms to the poorFasting during RamadanThe Hajj – pilgrimage to Mecca

The Five Pillars

Largely through military conquest Jihad (holy war) Within 100 years,

Muslims conquer territory from Holy Land to the Iberian Peninsula

Displays weakness of Byzantine Empire

Stopped in the West at the Battle of Tours (732)The Dome of the Rock, Jerusalem

–To the West (North Africa and Europe)

Largely through trade Attraction as a

religion of salvation Arab traders control

trade throughout the Indian Ocean

Largest Islamic country is Indonesia

India is 25% Muslim Spices and tea trade

will be important for later units

TheTaj Mahal

–To the East (Asia and India)

Attraction as a religion of salvation

Berber traders cross the Sahara Desert

Timbuktu in Mali becomes a center of Islamic learning with a great library

Islamic proverb states that "Salt comes from the north, gold from the south, but the word of God and the treasures of wisdom come from Timbuktu.“Mosque in Timbuktu

Draws on Greek, Persian, and Indian sources

Mathematics, astronomy and medicine

Idea that learning is a gift from Allah

Algebra, the Zero and Surgery

Developed the first hospitals where the sick could be treated by professionals

Advances become important components of later western culture, although it will take Christian loses in the Crusades to bring many Arab cultural ideas to Europe

Islamic Science and Medicine