1. Which of the following areas of expertise or learning progressed under the rule of the Abbasid caliphate?
Medicine
Law
Mathematics
All of the above

2. Today 10/11 and 10/15 Practice Question Reading Quiz Reading Guide
Lecture
Exit
Objective:
You will be able to describe the unique aspects of the Islamic Empire and how it compares to what you have already learned

3. Chapter 7
The Abbasid Dynast

4. The Abbasids Moved the Capital from Damascus to Baghdad
Created a very large Bureaucracy
Headed by the Vizier

5. Who are the Abbasids 3rd Abbasid Caliph was al Mahdi
Major love of luxury which caused a lot of corruption
Failed to fix the whole succession problem
Son assassinated
Most Famous Abbasid Caliph was Harun al-Rashid
1000 and 1 Nights
Depended on Persian advisors
How does this cause problems later on
Video

6. Life under the Abbasids
A LOT of luxury
Palace intrigue
Simulation
Caliph, Vizir, wives, girlfriends, sons, slaves

7. How did life for Muslim women decline as Islam developed
Began women were close to being a man’s equal, but when Abbasid Era was ushered in, their influence/role went down severely
Women were very inferior to men, confined to home, forced to wear veils in public places
Upper Class:
Wear veil and robes in public places
Were confined to home
Had some political influence within the home
Lower Class:
Farmed, woven clothing, or raised silkworms to help support their families
Raised to devote their lives to running their household and serving their husband
Married young (legal age of puberty was age 9)

8. Slaves Were purchased in non-muslim regions
prized for beauty and intelligence, greater demand for slaves as empire grew
Women who were slaves were often concubines
confined to a wing of the house (of the Caliph/royal official)
but could go to the market free of a veil
Caliphs would prefer to spend more time with their intelligent concubines than poorly educated slaves.

9. Slow decline Buyids of Persia take Baghdad in 945
By mid-9th century CE Abbasid dynasty had begun to lose control over empire with rebellious governors and new dynasties to challenge them
Buyids of Persia take Baghdad in 945
This is where the word Sultan comes in
These were the true rulers and the Caliph was just a figure head
Seljuk Turks defeat the Buyids in 1055
Purged the Shi’a during this time

10. Trade Urban Expansion linked the revived trading system
Arab dhows: Sailing vessels
Joint Ventures with Christians and Jews
Specialized trade of luxuries for the elites
Growth encouraged handcraft production
Unskilled labor = slaves

11. What cultural achievements did the Abbasid empire make???
New techniques in investigation
New technology
Preserving learning of Ancient civilizations
2 discoveries in chemistry
Creation of objective experiment
Al-razi’s scheme of classifying all material substances into 3 categories
Animal, vegetable, mineral
Best hospitals in world
Telescopes and anatomy advances
Muslim scientists work on optics and bladder ailments
Made world’s best maps
Introduced into Islamic world and Europe many basic machines and techniques
Paper making
Silk weaving
Ceramic firing

12. Who were the Sufi and why were they important?
The Sufi’s were wandering mystics
They hoped for personal union with Allah
There goal was this relationship
They will be responsible for some of the spread of Islam during the Abbasids
Later in the Abbasids the Suffist movement will bring a lot of vitality within Islam
Included both Sunni and Shi’a manifestations in its various guises
Some Sufis gained reputations as great healers and miracle workers
Led militant bands that tried to spread Islam to nonbelievers
Used ascetism or bodily denial to find Allah
Meditation, songs, drugs and ecstatic dancing was also used to find Allah

13. What impact did the Crusades have on the Islamic empire?
The Muslims were not as affected as the Christians culturally by the crusades
The Muslims received Greek learning that was recovered by the Christians
Christians took over small kingdoms temporarily, but Muslims under Saladin reclaimed them
Muslims developed a more negative view of the Christians
Europeans borrowed ideas from the Muslims
Italian merchants stayed after crusades diffusing the Arabian economic system
First crusades was most successful due to elements of surprise and lack of political unity
Much of the holy land was captured and divided into Christian kingdoms
It will change back and forth

14. What influence did India have on Islam?
Hindu scholars introduced Arab scholars to their numeral system
Indian algebra and geometry were translated into Arabic for Islamic use
Indian physicians, brought to Baghdad to run hospitals cured many Islamic officials
Indian statecrafts were translated into Arabic for Islamic use
The Indian game of chess traveled to the Arabic people
Arabs who immigrated Indian areas, adopted Indian dress and hairstyles, and ate Indian food
Arab colonies in India provided staging areas for Islam to spread to parts of Asia

15. How did the Muslim views on conversion change over time?
Originally they didn’t want to convert people, because it would mean they had to share their Booty (Umayyads)
Once the Umayyads fell and the Abbasids rose to power, conversion was encouraged
Merchants traded and spread Islam to southeast Asia
As the Islamic people conquered new lands, the religion was adopted

16. Conversion continued
Muhammad wants loyal followers, unity and influence
Umayyads did not focus on conversion instead they focused on getting riches
Wanted more conversion for more unity. Corrupted the religion
Trying to force conversion on Europe but stopped by Christian Knights
Views on conversion remained consistent, while continuing to spread Islam into Africa
Views on conversion weaken due to corruption/internal conflicts