UNIT 3 -CHAPTER 9: THE ISLAMIC WORLD

AND AFRICA
INTRODUCTION

 In this chapter you will learn about

developments in the Middle East and Africa
during the post-classical era.
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

 What are the major beliefs of Islam?

 What were the political, economic, and social
effects of the spread of Islamic culture?
 What were the major civilizations of Africa in
this period?
KEY VOCABULARY

 Islam  Savanna
 Arabian Peninsula  Gold-Salt Trade
 Mohammed  Ghana, Mali, Songhai
 Quran (Koran)  Mansa Musa
 Five Pillars of Islam  Timbuktu
 Sunni/Shiite Muslims  Ibn Battuta
IMPORTANT IDEAS
A. Mohammed founded Islam on the Arabian Peninsula in
the seventh century.
B. The Quran (Koran) is the sacred book of Islam. It
records the teachings of Mohammed.
C. Muslims follow the Five Pillars of Islam: faith in one
God, prayer, charity, fasting, and making a pilgrimage
to Mecca.
D. Islam rapidly spread through the Middle East, North
Africa, and Spain. Islamic Culture flourished under the
caliphates. Islamic scholars made important
contributions to mathematics, science, and
architecture.
IMPORTANT IDEAS
E. The gold-salt trade exchanged salt from the
Sahara Desert with gold found in West Africa.
F. The gold-salt trade encouraged the growth of a
series of prosperous kingdoms in West Africa:
Ghana, Mali, and Songhai.
G. Other civilizations also flourished in Africa,
including Ife, Benin, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, and the
cities of East Africa.
H. The use of captives as slaves, a practice common
in the ancient world, encouraged later
development of the slave trade.
 1. THE RISE OF ISLAM
 In the fifth century, warfare between the Byzantine
and Persian Empires interrupted overland trade
routes from East Asia. Trade in spices, Chinese silks,
and Indian cottons shifted to the sea routes
connecting India with Arabia and the Red Sea.
Overland caravans carried goods up the western
coast of the Arabian Peninsula. Cities and towns
developed near wells along these caravan routes.
Mecca was one of the most important of these cities.
In the seventh century, a new religion emerged:
Islam. “Islam” is Arabic for “submission.” Within a
hundred years, Islam grew to control an area larger
than the Roman Empire.
MOHAMMED: THE PROPHET OF ISLAM
 Islam was founded by
Mohammed. Born in
570, he worked in
Mecca as a merchant
and a shepherd. He
had a religious nature
and often meditated
in a nearby cave. One
day, Mohammed had
a vision that the
Angel Gabriel
commanded him to
convert the Arab
tribes, who then
believed in many
gods, to believe in a
single God, known in
Arabic as “Allah.”
MOHAMMED: THE PROPHET OF ISLAM

 This Allah was the same God worshipped by

Jews and Christians. After this vision,
Mohammed started to preach belief in Allah to
his neighbors in Mecca.
MOHAMMED: THE PROPHET OF ISLAM
 Some merchants in Mecca grew envious of Mohammed’s growing
influence. Fearing for his life, Mohammed fled to the city of Medina
in 622. This event, known as the Hegira, marks the starting point of
the Muslim calendar. In Medina, Mohammed became a popular
religious leader. He gathered an army to retake Mecca in a jihad or
“holy war.” In 632, two years after recapturing Mecca, Mohammed
became ill and died. By the time of his death, most of the tribes of
the Arabian Peninsula had united and converted to Islam.
 THE QURAN (KORAN)
 The Quran (Koran) is the sacred
text of Islam. Muslims believe it
records the words revealed to
Mohammed by God. Mohammed
memorized these words and
taught them to his followers. Then
scribes wrote these words down in
the Quran. The Quran contains
many references to both Jews and
Christians. Its 114 chapters also
discuss forms of worship, proper
conduct, and the treatment of
women, along with many other
matters. The fundamental
doctrine of the Quran is contained
in two articles of belief: “there is
no God but Allah; and Mohammed
is his prophet.”
THE FIVE PILLARS OF ISLAM
 In contrast to some religions, Muslims worship God directly without the
intercession of a priest or clergy. The Five Pillars of Islam – faith in one
God (monotheism), prayer, charity, fasting, and pilgrimage – make up
the basic religious duties that all Muslims must fulfill. In doing so,
Muslims strengthen their faith in and service to Allah, whom they see as
the supreme, all-powerful and all-knowing God.
THE ISLAMIC RELIGION SPREADS
 Islam united the various Arab tribes with a common language
(Arabic) and religion. Strengthened by their newfound unity, they
set out on a “holy war” against non-believers. The Arabs were
experienced desert fighters who fought with enthusiasm to gain
entry into Heaven.
THE ISLAMIC RELIGION SPREADS

 In contrast, by this time the Byzantines and

Persians were both weakened from centuries of
fighting each other. Over the next century, Arab
Muslims succeeded in creating a vast empire
that extended from the Indus valley into Europe
as far west as Spain. Muslim expansion in
Europe was only halted at the Battle of Tours.
THE CALIPHATES
 When Mohammed died, a group of Muslim leaders chose a new
leader, whom they called the caliph, or “successor to Mohammed.”
Two of the early caliphs were murdered. A new caliph then founded
the Umayyad Caliphate. Most Muslims, known as Sunnis, followed
the new caliph. A small group of Shiite Muslims decided that only
Mohammed’s descendants could be caliphs. The division between
Sunnis and Shiites remains to this day.
THE CALIPHATES
 Under the Umayyad caliphs, the capital of the Arab Empire was
moved to Damascus (in present-day Syria). After 750, a new family,
the Abbasids, took over the caliphate. The Abbasids focused on
trade rather than war, and built a new capital at Baghdad (in present-
day Iraq). The Abbasid caliph governed as an absolute ruler and
surrounded himself with a rich court.
THE CALIPHATES
 As Islam expanded, the caliphs converted or
enslaved other peoples they found worshipping
many gods. At first, non-Arabs converts to Islam
had less rights than Arabs, but eventually all
Muslims were treated equally. Muslim rulers
treated Jews and Christians with respect since
they were believed to worship the same God. They
were permitted to have self-governing
communities. However, Jews and Christians had
to pay a special tax and could not hold some
public offices.
THE GOLDEN AGE OF MUSLIM CULTURE
 While learning was in decline in Western Europe, a Golden Age of Muslim
Culture flourished – a period of great advances in culture and technology.
Arab Muslims absorbed the cultural achievements of the Greeks, Persians,
Romans, Jews and Byzantines. They also controlled a vast trading area –
larger than the ancient Roman Empire had been. The new Arab Empire, like
the Byzantine Empire before it, served as a crossroads for trade. Goods
from India, China, Africa, Spain and the eastern Mediterranean entered
through Arab territories. This period also saw Arabic, the language of the
Quran, achieve standardized use throughout the empire and become the
language of literature, philosophy, and art.
The Golden Age of Muslim Culture
 THE GOLDEN AGE OF MUSLIM CULTURE
 The prosperous
Islamic Empire
attracted invaders
from Central Asia. In
the 11th century,
Baghdad was
captured by the
Seljuk Turks – a
Turkish tribe from
Central Asia.
Although
conquerors, the
Seljuk Turks
converted to Islam.
Baghdad remained
the capital of their
new empire.
THE GOLDEN AGE OF MUSLIM CULTURE
 In the 12th century, Muslims
became engaged in a war
with Christians over control
of the Holy Land, known as
the Crusades. Christians
captured Jerusalem in 1099,
but the city later retaken by
the Muslim leader and
warrior, Saladin (1137-
1193). Until this day, he
remains a hero to the
Islamic world for uniting the
Arabs and defeating the
Crusaders in battle.
 2. THE KINGDOMS OF AFRICA
 Anthropologists believe
humanity first arose in
East Africa. In ancient
times, the rise of
Egyptian civilization
affected African cultures
along the upper Nile,
such as Kush and Axum.
Kush was an early iron-
producing center, which
grew rich from selling
iron wares, ivory, ebony,
wood, and slaves. Later,
the Kingdom of Ethiopia
in East Africa adopted its
own form of Christianity.
THE GOLD-SALT TRADE

 The dry Sahara Desert

occupies much of North
Africa. Just below this
desert is a wide band of
grasslands with some
trees known as the
savanna. The savanna
stretches across almost
the entire width of
Africa, from the Atlantic
to the Indian Ocean.
 THE GOLD-SALT TRADE
 It was home to a
large number of
pastoral peoples
herding cattle and
sheep. These people
also learned to smelt
iron and grow crops,
and had complex
communities with
craftspersons,
warriors and traders.
Below the savanna
lay the tropical
rainforests of
equatorial Africa.
THE GOLD-SALT TRADE
 The Sahara Desert acted as a barrier that
separated the peoples of Sub-Saharan Africa from
the Mediterranean world and the rest of Eurasia.
Despite this separation, trade across the Sahara
was never cut off completely. The Sahara contains
oases with underground springs that supply fresh
water. Because camels are able to go several days
without water, merchants could cross the desert
once they knew where these oases were located.
By the 7th century, Muslim merchants from the
Mediterranean were making this challenging
journey.
 THE GOLD-SALT TRADE
 These merchants were especially motivated to cross the Sahara
because of the gold and other riches they could obtain from trade with
West Africa. At the same time, part of West Africa lacked salt – vital to
human survival. Merchants, moving in camel caravans across the
desert, picked up large blocks of salt on their journey, to exchange for
gold. A thriving trade developed, based on this gold-salt trade. Ideas
were exchanged, such as Islamic beliefs, as well as goods.
RISE OF THE WEST AFRICA KINGDOMS

 Around the fifth century, West Africa saw the

rise of a series of powerful kingdoms based on
their control of trade routes and the cavalries.
For the next thousand years, their civilizations
dominated West Africa – leading to an
exchange of ideas, the rise of cities, and
increasing wealth.
 KINGDOM OF GHANA (750-1200)
 The first of these, the Kingdom
of Ghana, was founded about
750. It developed in the region
between the Senegal and Niger
Rivers. The people of Ghana
used their ability to make iron
swords, spears, and lances to
subdue neighboring peoples
and to gain control over West
Africa’s major trade routes.
Caravans brought salt south to
Ghana, and returned north with
gold from forest areas
southwest of Ghana. The power
of the kings of Ghana rested on
their ability to tax all trade
passing through the region,
especially the salt and gold
trade. With these revenues,
they were able to raise an army
with a large cavalry.
KINGDOM OF GHANA (750-1200)
 The rulers of Ghana built a capital city and
governed a wide area through the use of officials
and nobles. The king appointed nobles to govern
the provinces in return for paying taxes to the
central government. This system had some
similarities with European feudalism. Rulers and
nobles were further enriched by using captives of
war as slaves. However, in 1076, the Ghanaians
were invaded by Muslims from North Africa. The
Muslims brought Islam to West Africa. Ghana
never fully recovered from this invasion and
eventually dissolved into several smaller states.
KINGDOM OF MALI (1240-1400)
 In 1240, the people of
Mali conquered the old
capital of Ghana and
established a new
empire. Their rulers
brought both gold and
salt mines under their
direct control. Mali’s
rulers converted to
Islam, although most of
their people did not
adopt the Islamic faith
and stayed loyal to
traditional beliefs.
 KINGDOM OF MALI (1240-1400)
 Mali’s most
famous ruler,
Mansa Musa,
expanded the
kingdom greatly.
He made a
religious
pilgrimage to
Mecca in 1324,
also visiting
Cairo in Egypt.
Observers were
impressed with
his wealth.
Mansa Musa
brought Muslim
scholars and
architects back
with him to Mali.
 KINGDOM OF MALI (1240-1400)
 Mansa Musa commissioned
a palace and a giant
mosque to be built in
Timbuktu, a thriving trading
center on the Niger River.
Under Musa’s support,
Muslim scholarship
flourished. Timbuktu
became an important center
of several important
universities and attracted
students from Europe, Asia,
and Africa. Because of the
importance of studying the
Quran, many of his subjects
learned to read and write.
 KINGDOM OF MALI
(1240-1400)
 Arab travelers like Ibn
Battuta were
impressed by Mali’s
wealth, respect for law
and the power of its
ruler. It is through the
extensive travels of Ibn
Battuta during this
time period that
scholars know much
about life in Africa and
the Middle East. Later
rulers of Mali proved
less capable than
Mansa Musa, and the
empire collapsed in
the 1400s.
THE KINGDOM OF SONGHAI (1464-1600)

 In 1464, Sultan Sunni Ali, ruler of

the Songhai people, captured
Timbuktu and brought the upper
Niger under his control. The
Kingdom of Songhai became the
largest of west Africa’s three
trading kingdoms. Like Ghana and
Mali, Songhai grew rich from trade
across the Sahara Desert. Songhai
expanded its trading networks as
far as Europe and Asia. The
Songhai established an elaborate
system of taxation and
communications. Timbuktu
continued to flourish as a center of
Muslim scholarship, and many
subjects were Muslim.
THE KINGDOM OF SONGHAI (1464-1600)
 Despite its riches and power, the Kingdom of
Songhai lasted only 130 years. In 1591, the ruler
of Morocco, hearing of Songhai’s wealth, invaded
West Africa. Although the Songhai army was
larger, the Moroccans used gunpowder and
muskets to defeat the Songhai, who fought with
arrows and spears. Despite their military success,
the Moroccans were unable to govern Songhai
from such a great distance. West Africa again split
apart into a large number of independent areas.
The fall of Songhai marked the end of the great
West African Kingdoms.
OTHER AFRICAN STATES
 The growth of trading kingdoms in West African savanna,
like Ghana, Mali, and Songhai, was matched by the rise
of trading kingdoms in other parts of Africa.
OTHER AFRICAN STATES

 Ife and Benin. These kingdoms developed in

the rainforests of West Africa. They became
famous for their copper and bronze sculptures,
which were among the finest of all African
artwork. By the 16th century, Benin became
involved in the slave trade. It traded captured
persons from other tribes and exchanged them
with Europeans for guns and iron goods.
OTHER AFRICAN STATES

 Zimbabwe. Furth to the south, Zimbabwe was

one of the best known of Africa’s trading
kingdoms. The existence of gold deposits near
Zimbabwe was crucial to its rise. It traded gold,
copper, and ivory from Africa’s interior with
Muslim traders along Africa’s east coast.
OTHER AFRICAN STATES

 Coastal Cities of East Africa. Along the east

coast of Africa, a number of independent city-
states arose around the 10th century. Gold
from the African interior was sent down the
Zambia River to these cities, where it was sold
to merchants from Arabia and India.
FAMILY ROLES AFRICA
 In many traditional African societies, both boys
and girls were separated from the community and
underwent special ceremonies at puberty.
Marriages were arranged by families, and the
groom paid a dowry to his bride’s family. Under
Islam, women were limited to running the
household while their husbands represented the
family outside it. Their roles were summed up by a
traditional Ghanaian proverb: “A woman is a flower
in a garden; her husband is the fence around it.”