The Making of an Arab Empire & Women in Early Islam The worlds of Islam The Making of an Arab Empire & Women in Early Islam

The Making of an Arab Empire In the centuries that followed the transformation of Arabia (8th century & beyond), the new Arab state became an empire encompassing all or part of: Egypt Roman Empire/Byzantium Persia Mesopotamia India Within & outside of that empire the Islamic faith spread along with the culture and language of Arabia

The Making of an Arab Empire 3rd wave civilization of Islam Emerged from the mixing and blending of these many civilizations United through a common faith Divided by Culture Class Politics Gender Religious understanding

Why were Arabs able to construct such a huge empire so quickly? Arabs were newly organized into a single state and were able to mobilize the military power of the entire population The Byzantine & Persian empires were weakened by decades of war with each other Byzantium & Persia were also dealing with internal revolts They did not respect the new Arab state as a true threat, just a mere nuisance

Why were Arabs able to construct such a huge empire so quickly? By 644 the Sassanid Empire of Persia was defeated Soon after southern Byzantium was lost Spain was conquered in the early 700’s Reached the Indus River by 750 751 Chinese forces were defeated at the Talas river Stopped further Chinese expansion west Central Asia’s Turkic speaking people converted to Islam

Motivations for Creating an Empire Merchant leaders of the Islamic community wanted to control the best trade routes & most productive agricultural regions Individual Arabs saw military expansion as the way to personal wealth & social promotion External expansion gave the members of the new Arab state a common task purpose to stay united around after the death of Muhammad

Early Spread of Islam

Early Spread of Islam

Religious Tolerance Imposing Islam on newly conquered people was not a part of the Arab Empire “Believers” included Muslims, Christians, and Jews This religious acceptance made it easier for newly conquered people to accept the new political order & be incorporated into the new growing empire Familiarity with the core ideas & practices Prayer Fasting Pilgrimage Divine revelation prophets

Religious Tolerance Formal agreements recognized Jews, Christians, and Zoroastrians as “people of the book” Gave them status as protected 2nd class citizens Served in the highest offices in Muslim kingdoms Served in their armies as well Permitted to freely practice their religion as long as they paid a special tax

Limiting the Disruption of Conquest Muslim armies stayed in separate garrison towns, segregated from conquered peoples Prevent indiscriminate destruction and exploitation of native people Local elites and bureaucratic structures were incorporated into the Arab Empire

Conversion In the ~400 years after the death of Muhammad millions of individuals & societies within the Arab Empire became Muslim Major elements of Islam were familiar to many Monotheism Ritual prayer Cleansing ceremonies Fasting Divine revelation Heaven, hell, final judgement From its beginning Islam was associated with the sponsorship of a powerful state Conquest called the power of older gods into question Prestige of the Arab Empire attracted many to Allah

Incentives for Conversion Deliberately forced conversion was rare Living in an Islamic governed state provided incentives for claiming Muslim identity Slaves and POWs were early converts Converts could avoid the tax on non-Muslims Merchants found a religion friendly to commerce Arab Empire provided a huge & secure area for trade Those aspiring to official positions found conversion an aid to their social mobility

Difficulties in Conversion Strong resistance by the Berbers in North Africa delayed conversion for centuries Zealous Spanish Christians insulted the Prophet leading to their own martyrdom Some Persian Zoroastrians fled

Differences in Conversion In Iraq, Syria, Egypt, and North Africa converts to Islam abandoned their native languages, adopted Arabic, and came to view themselves as Arabs In Persia (Iran) the vast majority of people had become Muslim, but Farsi remained the language, though enriched by Arabic words A distinct Persian identity remained in Iran

Implications of Persian Identity Many ideas of Persian Zoroastrianism found their way into Islam In Iran, Central Asia, India, and the Ottoman Empire Islam was accompanied by Persian influences Administrative & bureaucratic techniques Court practices – palaces, gardens, garments Architecture Poetry, music, painting

Women & Men in Early Islam The impact of the rise of Islam & the creation of an Arab state on the daily lives of women & their relationship to men still remains debated & highly controversial to this day At the spiritual level of life, the Quran is clear: men & women are equal! In social terms, especially within a marriage, the Quran views women as inferior & subordinate

How did the rise of Islam change the lives of women? The Quran provided rights, restrictions, and protections for women Female infanticide was prohibited Given control of their own property Granted rights of inheritance At ½ the rate of men Marriage was considered a contract between two consenting parties Multiple husbands was prohibited Polygyny was permitted, but men could have no more than 4 wives & must treat them all equally

How did the rise of Islam change the lives of women? Prescriptions of the Quran were only one factor shaping the lives of women Other factors: Long established practices of the societies into which Islam spread The growing sophistication, prosperity, & urbanization of Islamic civilization

How did the rise of Islam change the lives of women? Upper class women were more restricted as Islamic civilization grew & flourished culturally & economically Women were asked to offer prayers at home Veiling and seclusion became standard practices among the upper & ruling classes Wealthy women were given separate quarters in their homes from which they could only emerge totally veiled Such seclusion wasn’t possible for lower class women who didn’t have servants & had to leave home for shopping & work

How did the rise of Islam change the lives of women? These practices originated more so from the established traditions of Middle Eastern culture than from the Quran Other signs of a tightening patriarchy were derived from local cultures, not from the Quran or Islamic law Ex. Honor killings Other negative views of women emerged from the Hadiths, which became an important source of Islamic law Traditions about the sayings or actions of Muhammad Presenting women as weak, deficient, a sexually charged threat to men & social stability

How did the rise of Islam change the lives of women? Islam offered women new outlets in religious life Sufis Some Sufi orders had parallel groups for women A few welcomed women as equal members The spiritual equality ascribed to men & women in the Quran allowed women to aspire to union with God

How did the rise of Islam change the lives of women? Islam offered women new outlets in religious life Shia Islam Women teachers of the faith were called mullahs, like men Islamic education allowed women to become literate & for a few to achieve higher education Visits to sacred sites, ritual prayer, and public baths provided the opportunity for women to interact with women outside of their family circle.