The Rise of Muslim States Copy the notes as they appear.

Expansion under the Umayyads  By 661, the Umayyads took over Islam.  In less than 100 years, they had expanded the empire into Asia, Africa, and Europe.

The Golden Age of Islam  Islam entered a golden age in around 800 AD.

Advancements in art and design  Muslims did not use the human form in art. They thought it took away from their worship of God.  Arabic script began being used for art.  Arabic is the language of the Qur’an.  Artists became skilled at calligraphy.  Calligraphy is the art of handwriting.  Calligraphers decorated many things, including buildings.

Literature  Muslims also produced great works of literature.  The most famous were stories of great adventure and fantasy called The Thousand and One Nights.  Other famous stories like Sinbad the Sailor and Aladdin came out of this period of Muslim history.

A Thousand and One Nights

Sinbad the Sailor and Aladdin

Mathematics  Muslims invented a new numbering system, It was called, Hisab al-abr: “the addition of one thing to another.  Al-jabr is the origin of the word…  algebra

Medicine  Muslim doctors were the first to identify and describe diseases such as smallpox and measles.  They were the first to create public hospitals.  Muslim doctors wrote an encyclopedia of drugs that was used for 600 years.  They also created the first pharmacy schools.