Society and Culture Preview Main Idea / Reading Focus Muslim Society Muslim Scholarship Faces of History: al-Khwarizmi Arts and Literature Visual Study Guide / Quick Facts Video: The Impact of Islam throughout the World

Society and Culture Main Idea Reading Focus For the first Muslims, Islam was more than a religion. It was a guide to political, social and cultural life. The early Muslims responded with spectacular achievement in many fields. Reading Focus What were some key features of Muslim society? What were some of the accomplishments of Muslim scholarship? What were some of the contributions to the arts made by Muslim artists?

Muslim Society The Family Women Islam affected almost all aspects of daily life, providing guidance on how Muslims should deal with many issues. Islam set forth roles within family Man head of family Men could have several wives Husbands supposed to treat all wives equally Rights of women, children protected The Family Rights of women varied from clan to clan prior to Islam According to Qur’an, women equal to men before Allah Women could inherit property, seek divorce in some cases Played vital roles Went into battle Influenced politics Lost status in Abbasid dynasty Women

Slavery Islamic texts also addressed slavery, common in Muslim Empire Qur’an did not condemn slavery, required slaves be treated fairly Freeing slaves praised as religious act Treatment of slaves improved, but remained part of society, economy Economy Economic life of Muslim community built largely on commerce Merchants followed trade routes east, west across Arabian Peninsula Traders developed practical business methods, spread use of coinage, standardized weights, measures, extended credit Trade provided much of wealth to maintain empire, spread faith

What are three aspects of life that are addressed in Islamic texts? Identify What are three aspects of life that are addressed in Islamic texts? Answer(s): family life, slavery, and trade relationships

Muslim Scholarship Learning added to Muslim cultural unity. Scholars made essential contributions in several fields. Many later European intellectual achievements grew out of the work of Muslim scholars. Scholarship thrived in the Muslim world Islam commanded followers to examine their world, seek evidence of Allah in its wonders A Culture of Learning Caliphate vast, included many different cultures Particularly influential were Greek, Persian, Indian civilizations Vastness of Caliphate Translation into Arabic of works of ancient Greece Much work took place at House of Wisdom, maintained by government at Baghdad Contributions

Valuable Contributions Through translations from Greek, texts from Hippocrates, Euclid, Galen, Ptolemy made available to new audiences Texts stimulated further study throughout Muslim world Influence of texts extended to Europe; eventually translated into Latin, made available to European scholars Translations Exchange point for much of knowledge Muslim scholar of Cordoba, Ibn Rushd wrote commentaries on Aristotle His work on relationship between reason, faith influenced not just Muslim but also Jewish, Christian thinking into the 1400s Muslim Spain

Astronomy Discoveries Almagest Astronomers Muslim scholars explored astronomy, some stars still bear names given by Muslim discoverers Astronomy came to Muslim world through texts from Persia, India Almagest Most important influence on astronomy, Ptolemy’s work, first translated into Arabic 800s Described movements of heavenly bodies, gave tables for predicting paths Astronomers Muslim astronomers built observatories; helped create calendar still in use Muslims needed to predict phases of moon to plan religious festivals Perfected astrolabe, used in navigation to plot positions of stars, planets

Muslims also made advances in mathematics From India, adopted symbols 0 through 9 Making its way to Europe, this system became known as Arabic numerals Algebra and trigonometry also came from Muslim thinkers

Medicine and Beyond Other Fields of Study History Medicine highly developed in the Muslim world Doctors in Baghdad had to pass rigorous tests in order to practice Baghdad had world’s first school of pharmacy Muslim doctors developed many skills, including eye surgery Scores of different instruments invented, perfected Ibn Sina most well-known medical scholar of time Geographers made many strides Empire included many different lands, people Pilgrims needed to find way to Mecca, travel guides written One geographer measured earth’s circumference with much accuracy Other Fields of Study 1300s, Ibn Khaldun wrote history of world Historians still interested in comments Warned against basic errors like bias, praising rulers too highly in order to gain favor History

What were some of the fields in which Muslim scholars excelled? Summarize What were some of the fields in which Muslim scholars excelled? Answer(s): astronomy, medicine, mathematics, philosophy, history

Arts and Literature Artistic Expression Islamic Art Idolatry Like scholarly life, Muslim artistic expression rich, varied Developed distinctive features, influenced by many cultures in vast empire Islamic Art Muslim artists worked in range of materials, wood, metal, ceramics, textiles Religious art does not contain human, animal figures Idolatry Believed portraying people, animals could tempt worship Worshipping anyone, anything besides Allah the worst possible sin Patterns, Designs Avoidance of figures led to use of geometric patterns, floral designs Intricate design known as an arabesque

Calligraphy Another distinctive feature of Islamic art, calligraphy—beautifully styled writing Artists who produced copies of Qur’an sought perfection in reproduction of word of Allah Artful representation of words became central part of Islamic art Calligraphy appears on walls of mosques, adorns many household objects

Architecture in Muslim world also developed distinctive features Muslim Architecture Architecture in Muslim world also developed distinctive features Several forms, plans for building mosques developed All have features in common Minarets, tall towers from which faithful called to prayer Domes Some show Persian, Turkish influence in designs

Literature Qur’an Nonreligious works Poets Most significant written work in Islam is Qur’an itself Clear style, message have won millions of converts to the faith Influenced later development of Arabic language Nonreligious works Arabian Nights tells how beautiful young woman saved herself and other women from murderous caliph The tales were collected over time, include contributions from many countries Poets Produced works in several different languages Jalal ad-Din Rumi’s Persian language poems of 1200s still recited today Omar Khayyam’s The Rubaiyat celebrates simple pleasures

Identify Supporting Details What are some features that identify Islamic art? Answer(s): use of geometric patterns and floral designs, calligraphy

Video The Impact of Islam throughout the World Click above to play the video.