The Rise of Islam The religion of Islam appeared in the early years of the 7 th century A.D. Began in the cities of Mecca and Medina The word Islam means “submission” or “surrender” A Muslim is a person who surrenders to the will of God and tries to live according to the principles set down by God in the Muslim holy book, the Koran

Muhammad Muhammad, the founder of Islam, known as the Prophet, was born around 570 A.D. in Mecca He taught that the worship of many gods was wrong and that people should believe in the one God – in Arabic, Allah – the God of the Jews and Christians Muhammad was to be the last in line of prophets, which included Abraham, Moses, and Jesus, sent by God to guide humankind

Politics Muhammad felt that the religion he preached should govern not only spiritual life but also political life Battle of Badr – Islam’s first decisive military victory Those who converted to Islam paid zakat Those who were non-Muslims paid a tax called jizya These taxes helped the expanding empire & finance its conquests

Early Conquests Bedouin tribes The Siege of Damascus Muslim armies invaded Syria, Jerusalem, Egypt, North Africa, and Spain In the east: Persia, to the border of India Central Asia

Muhammad’s Successors Abu Bakr was chosen caliph, or successor The issue of succession will be the basis for a major split among Muslims Abu Bakr ( ) Umar ( ) Uthman ( ) – set the stage for a power struggle The Umayyad Dynasty ( ) The Abbasid Dynasty (until 1258)

The Sunni-Shiite Split Ali was an important figure in early Islam The caliph was also an imam, a religious leader Shiat Ali = “The party of Ali” or the Shiites Sunni Muslims = Those who accepted the 4 caliphs who followed Muhammad & the caliphs of the Umayyad & Abbasid dynasties

Islamic Art The art of the Islamic Empire was unique, beautiful, and functional Much of early Islamic art was created to beautify religious or everyday items As a key force in all aspects of life in the Islamic Empire, religion had a strong influence in art As in so many things, the Arabs were influenced by the other cultures conquered

This is a representation of the wedding ceremony of Muhammad and his first wife, Khadija The painter has crowned the bride and bridegroom with flamelike halos and covered their faces with veils Muslim artist were wary of painting the faces of the Prophet and his family, lest the portraits be inaccurate or sacrilegious

This a miniature painting of the 16 th century It depicts Muhammad with an angel at his side He is preaching to some of the early converts to Islam Muhammad’s face is veiled

Islam was successful in Africa As early as the 7 th century, on the edges of the Sahara Desert and in North Africa Muslim traders came to dominate commerce in salt, gold, and slaves Muslims soon commanded the trans-Saharan network that linked West Africa to Cairo and continued to China’s Silk Road

Art in Manuscript These miniature pictures were commonly used to illustrate non religious manuscripts Used in Arabic translations of Greek works, and included pictures of plants, herbs, and animals from fables

Calligraphy, which is the art of elegant, ornamental writing, was the most respected of all Islamic art form Illumination is the art of creating brightly- colored miniature pictures The Muslims also adopted the use of decorative mosaics, carpet making

Many calligraphers protected their reed pens in metal boxes, though few would have been as elegant as the brass box in this picture The circular containers held ink and sand for use as a blotting agent