Spread of the Religion ISLAM NOTES PART 2

ISLAM AFTER MUHAMMAD’S DEATH After the death of Muhammad, Islam faced a crisis Muhammad did not leave instructions on how to choose next leader Abu Bakr became the first leader, but some Muslims refused to follow him Muslims split into two groups because they disagreed on how to choose a leader.

DIVISION IN ISLAM Sunni- believe the leader should follow the example of Muhammad and can be chosen by the Muslim community Shiites- believe that the next leader of Islam should be directly related to Muhammad

STOP AND THINK Why do you think a disagreement over who should be leader caused such a large split? Can you think of another example where a minor difference in opinion caused a large split in a group or religion?

SPREAD OF ISLAM Abu Bakr succeeded in uniting Muslims because of their common faith. United Arab armies led many successful military conquests. Arab armies conquered many places from Africa to Europe

THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE After Abu Bakr, there were several successful Islamic Empires The most successful was the Ottoman Empire It grew to become one of the largest land empires ever!

THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE CONT. Several things contributed to the success of the Ottomans They passed down power to one person instead of splitting up control- led to one family ruling the empire for 700 years Government run education system Ruthless when dealing with opposition Very strong military Increased land through jihad Jihad means “struggle”- The struggle to build a good Muslim society Made allies with other religious groups

SULEIMAN THE MAGNIFICENT Under Suleiman’s rule, the Ottoman Empire reached its largest extent He encouraged law and arts and architecture Society flourished under Suleiman and he was a brilliant military leader

STOP AND THINK Islam was able to spread throughout the Middle East and Europe. Why do you think Islam was able to spread so far and so fast? When Muslims conquered a new land, they allowed the people there to continue to follow their old religion if they paid a tax, how do you think this impacted people’s view of the Islamic leaders?

ISLAM’S GOLDEN AGE During the Abbasid Golden Age, Muslims made advances in economics, art, literature, and science ECONOMICS-Muslims built a vast trading network across the Muslim world and beyond. ART- Muslims artists perfected skills in calligraphy and arabesque In Jerusalem, Muslim architects built the Dome of the Rock, a great shrine capped in magnificent dome.

ISLAM’S GOLDEN AGE Arab writers wrote poetry, fables and told tales Muslims made advances in Mathematics, Astronomy and Medicine The greatest Muslim mathematician is al- Khwarizmi, who pioneered the study of Algebra. Muhammad al-Razi was a famous Muslim Physician, who wrote many medical books and studies small pox and measles

STOP AND THINK POINT: Islam made many influential contributions during the Middle Ages. Using your notes, support this statement by giving 3 supporting details or evidence that prove this statement to be correct