1. Muhammad

2. Arabia During Muhammad’s Time  Mecca  Trading town only; no agriculture  Popular stopping point for caravans  By 6 th century, Mecca very prosperous  Merchants became wealthy  Handful of families started ruling the city.  Did not share wealth with poorer clans..

3. Arabia During Muhammad’s Time  Mecca  Religious center  Ka’ba said to have been built by Abraham for God centuries before  Most people polytheistic  Ka’ba housed statues of hundreds of gods.  People came to worship them.

4. Arabia During Muhammads’s Time  Government  Most people lived in desert  No central government  Loyalty pledged to clans (small groups) or tribes (large groups)  Much fighting, tribe against tribe  Capture territory, animals, goods, oases, and wives  When someone killed, his family was honor bound to avenge death.

5. Arabia During Muhammad’s Time  Bound together  Shared ties of culture, especially language  Poetry celebrated history of people, beauty of land, and way of life.  Poets and singers competed at gatherings in markets and during pilgrimages.. Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi

6. Early Life  Muhammad  Born in 570 CE  Became an orphan at a young age, raised by uncle and aunt  Was a trader and herder  Well known in trade cities for honesty  Attributed to his strong character, morality, courage and compassion…as well as teachings..

7. Prophecy Muhammad as a prophet  610 CE went to hills to pray  Saw an angel that told him he was prophet of God  Worship one god, everyone was equal, take care of poor, improve women’s status  New teachings were met with resistance.  Few people converted to Islam  622 Moved with his followers to Medina  Converts started to increase  Battles over Mecca began

8. Death  Muhammad the prophet  630 CE went back to Mecca and won battle, destroyed idols, took over the Ka’ba  632 Muhammad dies suddenly. Shrine of Muhammad

9. Next Rulers  Caliph  Title taken by Muslim rulers who claim religious authority to rule.  First 4 caliphs after Muhammad’s death  Known as the “rightfully guided” caliphs  Islam expanded greatly under their rule