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| | | | | The Earth and Its Peoples: A Global History, Second Edition
Richard W. Bulliet, Pamela Kyle Crossley, Daniel R. Headrick, Steven W. Hirsch, Lyman L. Johnson, David Northrup
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Chapter 9: The Sasanid Empire and the
Rise of Islam, 200-1200
Maps
The
Sasanid
Empire
The Roman
Empire, 500
C.E.
Europe,
West Asia, and
Arabia, 600 C.E.
Maps
Relating to
Islam's Historical Development
Images
Images
from
World History: Sasanid Empire
These images provide
insight
into this important, but often forgotten, Iranian
Kingdom. Many of
the images reveal the influence of
Zoroastrianism and other aspects of Sasanid
culture on other
Mediterranean civilizations.
Islamic
History:
Images
Seven contemporary images of the ruins of important
sites
in the development of Islam.
The
Islamic
World to 1600: An Online Tutorial
This comprehensive
site
contains many contemporary and historical images relating to
Islam's historical
development. It also includes many relevant
Maps.
Islamic
Art
An
excellent introduction into Islamic art by period.
This
comprehensive site contains numerous images as well as textual
analysis.
Detroit
Institute
of Art: Islamic Images
A brief introduction to artwork
during
the Mamluk rule in Egypt and Seljuk Turk rule in the Middle
East.
Art
Images
for College Teaching: Islamic Art
View nine images of
Islamic
architecture in Spain.
Alhambra
and
Generalife
Click on the "camera" buttons for images of these
classic
examples of medieval Islamic architecture in
Spain.
THE NOBLE
SANCTUARY: The
Online Guide to Al-Aqsa Mosque
This virtual tour
offers
numerous images of this holy shrine in Jerusalem. The
Al-Aqsa Mosque
is the third holiest site in the Islamic
religion.
Activity One:
Many historians have referred to Islam
as
the first "world civilization" in global history. Go
to Map of the
Muslim
World, 1500. The areas within the green border
either were predominantly
Muslim or had strong Muslim majorities by
the year 1500. What previous
civilizations had existed in these
areas? In other words, what previous
"large traditions" did
Islam replace in this part of the world? You
might want to
review Maps from previous chapters to refresh your memory.
Now
read the essay at Islam:
A
World Civilization and define "world civilization." How
did
Islam unite people of different traditions and outlooks?
How
did this development create a world civilization? Can you
think of
any antecedents for this development? For example, had
other large
traditions emerged, perhaps on a smaller geographical
scale, in these areas
in previous periods?
Activity Two:
One reason Islam was able to expand
and
attract converts relatively quickly was that it built on other
large traditions
in the Middle East. Go to The
Islamic
World to 1600 and click on "Islamic Beginnings" in the right-hand
column.
Complete this tutorial, making sure to review the
hyperlinks
buried within the essay. While exploring this site,
keep two tasks
in mind. First, analyze how Islam built upon the
legacies of both
Roman and Persian influence in the Middle
East. Second, search for,
in general terms, the overarching
principles of an Islamic view of the
world and the roles of men and
women in it. Pay special attention to the
role of Muhammad, the
Five Pillars of Islam, the Qur'an, and the Hadith.
When
finished, explain the Islamic outlook, how it incorporated older
large
traditions in the Middle East, and why it was able to expand
among many
people within and outside the Middle East. You
might want to
review the essay Islam:
A
World Civilization from Activity One and Old
World
Contacts: Cultural Conversion from Chapter 8, Activity 4 for
additional information.
Activity
Three:
The growth and expansion of Islam
not only blended many
cultures, it also brought together many
intellectual
traditions. The result was quite often
fascinating. Read the
essay relating to Abu
Ja'far
Muhammad ibn Musa Al-Khwarizmi, a highly influential
Islamic
mathematician who lived in the eighth and ninth
centuries. While you
might not comprehend all the math
discussed in this essay, pay attention
to the process by which
Al-Khwarizmi developed algebra. What older
mathematical
approaches did he expand? What role did Indian scholarship
play
in his work? Visting the hyperlinks of other
mathematicians
mentioned in this essay will help you answer these
questions. The
integration of many intellectual traditions was
profound in the Islamic
world between the seventh and fifteenth
centuries. For further explanation,
see Islam,
Science,
and Knowledge. While reviewing this essay, make a list
of
Islamic scientific achievements that built upon the foundations
laid
by other intellectual traditions.
Activity Four:
The last section of Chapter 9,
"The
Recentering of Islam," on pages 245-246 of The Earth
and Its
Peoples (Second Edition), deals with an important development
in
Islamic history. The Abbasid Caliphate (see Map 9.2 in your
textbook)
although still theoretically in place, disintegrated into
smaller political
units after the tenth century. See the Maps
of Almoravid
Dynasty,
1117 and 1200, the Eastward
shift
of the Fatimid Caliphate, 960-1060, and The
Seljuk
Turks (you will need to scroll down to view these Maps
at each
site). Nevertheless, Islamic civilization continued to grow
and
flourish without one strong central government. One
source of
this continued resilience was the role of non-government
institutions
that developed over previous centuries. Go to Britannica.com:
Sufism.
For information on one Sufi tradition and several
early
practicioners, see The
Naqshbandi
Sufi Way and explain how this institution developed
over
time. From what traditions did it borrow? How did
this
institution promote both the continued expansion and vitality of
Islam
after 1000? For another important institution, see Encyclopaedia
of
the Orient: Ulama. How did this institution promote the
continued
expansion and vitality of Islam after 1000? You might
also want to review
page 245 of your textbook for some context.
After exploring these
institutions, analyze the role of sufism and
the ulama in Islamic civilization
after the disintegration of
political unity around
1000.
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