Aric 246 Midterm 1 Study Guide When does Arab history begin?

Beginning of Islamic calendar is year 622, the year of the Hijra, which was the foundation of the political community that governs itself At the time Arabia was not very civilized, there were no big cities and no standardized writing system; they were organized in tribes and clans At this time Baghdad emerged as the first great city of Arabia

Pre-Islamic Arabia Antiquity period 3200 BCE to 200 CE, shift from polytheism (believing in multiple gods) to monotheism (belief in one god). From 300-700 the entire Middle East becomes monotheistic o The three major civilizations of this time period were the Greco-Romans, The faraonic Egyptians, and Mesopotamia Before Islam southern Arabic (Yemen/Oman) developed a language around 400 BCE and built big structures like dams o The south have mountains which provide them with land rich for agriculture

Hellenistic Period (Late Antiquity) (250 CE-600 CE) Alexander the Great died 323 BCE o During his time he had joined Egypt, Iraq, Syria, and Iran o After his death the empire begins to split apart and his generals take control

Rome Rome absorbs the Greek empire Rome, Italy (300 150 bce) o By 150 they had built a fairly strong republic o Julius Caesar brought the shift from a republic (operating under group of senators who have say in decision making) to an empire (no senate, emperor in full control) Rome expands eastward and absorbs Greece, Syria, Palestine, and Egypt by the year 0 Military conquest into Arabia ends due to lack of food and water in the Arabian Deserts o Their attack on Yemen to try and control the trade routes for incense/spices/agriculture fails but they manage to maintain trade with them 330 CE Emperor Constantine takes control of Rome o Converts and makes Christianity the official religion (Orthodox church) o Moves capitol from Rome to Constantinople which survives until 1453 Persia shift to Sassanid in 226 CE (Neo-Persian Empire) o Official religion : Zoroastrianism

Both Romans and Sassanid fall eventually to the Arab conquests o Sassanid completely crumble in their entirety o Romans not as much, just lose Egypt, Syria, and some other places

Two Little Arab Kingdoms which are buffers (Border States) between the Roman and NeoPersian empires: Both the Romans and neo-Persian empires need these two buffer states and have a trickledown effect on them Banu Ghassan 500-636 o Modern day Jordan o Monophystite Christianity Lakhnids 300-602 o Nestorian Christians o Modern Day Iraq o Oldest of the two kingdoms o Did great things to evolve Arab culture

Pre-Islamic Culture Muallaqat collection of 10 most famous poems 500s very evolved Arabic poetry Ukaz 3 of the 10 most famous poets wrote in the court of the Lakhmids became a center of arab culture

Ibn-Khaldun Lived in 1300s Father of sociology In 1348 black death pandemic and bubonic plague hit Theory of historical change why societies change o Primitive Societies (Bedouin) People are good and strong but there are desires that come with big civilizations that need to be controlled and curbed A motor of social change That solidarity of the Bedouins and strength is what led them to conquer and survive

Islamic Period (Middle Ages) 622: Hejra, beginning of the Islamic Calender Life of the Prophet Muhammad 570 - 632 o Born 570 in Mecca o Clan Bann Hashim o Tribe Quraysh

o Father: Abdullah Mother: Amena Father dies before Muhamamd is born, very paternal society so this definitely affected him greatly o Grows up under Uncles guardianship Abu Talib o Mother dies when he is 6 years old o Cousin Aly who is younger o A lot of the Quraysh tribe were guardians at shrine site for kahba paegan religions o Hanif: people of the religion of Abraham in Mecca o Muhammad is employed by a wealthy widow named Khadija to manage her affairs They get married when hes 25, shes 40 She is the first believer/supporter of Islam and mother of all his children Sabiqa (Precedence) you have higher religious virtue if youre one of the first groups to believe o Sira Biography on life of the prophet Earliest sira written in 761 by Ibn Ishaq Ibn Hisham then rewrote it in 833 The sira included writings of fasting and praying o In 610 the revelation of the angel Gabriel to Prophet Muhammad Scripture divine text o People in Prophets house are his first believers Khadija Aly ibn Abu Talib Zayd Abu Bakr (first outsider, not direct family) o Prophet waits 3 years before going public with revelation In 613, instructed by the revelation, goes public Very hostile reaction from Quraysh seen as very threatening to the existing order Initial believers tend to be the poor and not powerful of the society in Mecca Quran is revelation but delivered sequentially takes time (610-632) o Year of Sadness 619 Khadija and Abu Talib die Prophet Mohammad has 4 daughters from Khadija, all his sons die in childhood Abu Talib was his guardian and this precipitates boycott against believers because now they have no one to protect them

These boycotts lead them to believe that living a peaceful life in Mecca at this time is impossible, begin to seek outside support Before Hijra and After the year of sadness the night of the ascent Muhammad transported from Mecca to Jerusalem overnight, and from Jerusalem through the heavens and then back to Mecca 622 Plan to flee, move from Mecca to Medina Khazrajt and AWS, pagan tribes in Yathrib (later named Medina) invited the prophet to mediate disputes In 622 the first mosque is built and the Medinan period begins (622-632) Medina first capitol from 622-656 War with Quraysh o War starts with a raid on Meccan caravan because medina believers realized they cannot survive without Mecca o 3 major battles: Badr, Uhud, Khandaq/Ahzab o Badr 300 muslims vs 10,000 Quraysh/allies victory to the Muslims because they were not all obliterated o Uhud muslim loss which Quraysh fails to capitalize on o Khandaq siege warfare on Medina Medina surrounded and cut off Muslim survive and Quraysh desists Complicated aftermath includes exile of 3 Jewish tribes from medina because they tried to sabotage battle This is where jewish/muslim religious tension partly begins Victory for muslims because they survive the siege and outlast the Quraysh o After these 3 battles both parties realize that their problems cant be resolved militarily and Quraysh realize the muslims wont back down from war Hudaybiya Peace Treaty (629) 10 year treaty o Some conditions not favorable for Muslims No pilgrimage that year Promised to return any Meccan that tries to escape to Medina Huge First Pilgrimage to Mecca 630 o Final Hajj 10,000 Muslims o Meccans leave into the hills and allow for muslims to come o Many meccans join Islam unpunished at this time Growth of Political Community o Almost all Arabian tribes decide to convert to Islam around this time Death of the Prophet o Dies in 632 o Abu Bakr takes over directly after him but doesnt last long Succession of the Prophet

4 Rashidun (Companion) Caliphs 632-661 Abu Bakr Al Siddiq 632-634 Umar b. Al-Khattab 634-644 Uthman B Affan 644-656 Ali b. Abu Talib 656-661 The ansar, Medinan citizens that welcomed prophet to Medina and muhajriin and waged war with Quraysh for Islam (Khazraj and AWS), get together after the death of the prophet to decide whos gonna lead o Rivalry develops between Mecca and Medina when deciding who new leader will be o Abu Bakr goes to meeting to talk to them and is named leader meeting called Saqifat Bani Saida o Political, Religious, and economical crysis emerges at the time Wars of Ridda o 632-634 beginnings of tributes being paid o Abu Bakr launches series of military campaigns to try and put down rebel Arabian tribes and regain stability in Mecca o The rebels' position was that they had submitted to Muhammad as the prophet of God, but owed nothing to Abu Bakr. o Most rebel tribes were defeated and reintegrated into the Islamic community Abu Bakr dies of natural causes in 634 Umar ibn Al-Khattab takes over (634-644) o Becomes archetype for good Islamic leadership o Expands tremendously and increases their land by 20x Palestine, Syria, Egypt, Iraq, Iran all conquered and subsumed into the society o Introduces Diwan first imperial administratice system Distribute pay to military in an organized fashion Recorded whos serving in the army, tribes, etc. o Sabiqa seniority to earliest warriors o Pact of Umar Puts whole tribute system together Taxes on non-muslims Zakat paid by muslims Sadaqa Donated by muslims Many more taxes/tributes o By the time he was assassinated (644 by a Persian freeman) the empire was completely different due to the collection of wealth o Umar valued Islamic + Arab aristocratic principle seen as archetype of good leader and didnt especially favor Quraysh powerful families fairness

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o Umar came into power because Abu Bakr had chosen hima s the new leader before his death; no shura was needed to decide Uthman 644-656 o After Umar assassinated a shura is formed of major companions which decides on Uthman as next leader o Uthman is from a very powerful Meccan family o Focuses on centralization o Nepotism giving preference to your family and high positions, unlike Umar o The Quran was collected and written to avoid danger of people corrupting/changing the oral scriptures Quran memorizers and reciters are not happer with written Quran because their power is lose Part of centralization strategy o Tries to exert central power more effectively o Assassinated by Egyptian contingent because Uthman changed their governer in order to have more centralized control and in turn a rebellion was launched o Stabbed while praying in 656 Ali ibn Abu Talib 656-661 o The empire is a mess and in chaos after Uthman is killed o Ali is the last of the of the rashidun (companions to the prophet) caliphs o After Uthman death, some supporters give Ali allegiance and he accepts to be named leader in order to overcome chaotic situation and regain order o Not everyone agrees that Ali is the rightful leader o 656 Some very important individuals dont agree with Alis leadership and this leads to one of the greatest crisis in Islamic history o Fitna the great civil war Many people believe that Ali benefitted from the death of Uthman Ali criticized because he didnt try to persecute and bring justice to murderers of Uthman This becomes official justification but some people didnt agree with his leadership from the beginning Talha, Zubayr, and Aisha go to war with Ali Talha and Zubayr think that they should be the leaders because they were senior companions of the prophet They represented the Meccan Elite: Quraysh Ali moves capital from Medina to Kufa where his base of supporters are, Quraysh didnt support him Battle of the Camel between mecca and Kufa Aisha riding an armored camel and her army feel they have to protect her

She takes an arrow and Ali pulls her out and sends her to Medina under a sort of house arrest- but doesnt kill her. She is removed from the picture at this point Muawiya and the Battle of Siffin 657 Muawiya was the governor of Syria at the time This battle took place vs. Ali, partly geographical issue Syria vs. Iraq Muawiya launched a propaganda war Syrian patriotism vs. Iraq and Ali Ali was winning the battle and Syrians begin hanging Quran pages from their spears Alis army stops because of this and realize that they are killing fellow Muslims and start peace talks A peace camp develops between the two, recourse to Islamic principles Although Ali was winning, it ends with a stalemate and arbitrators (representatives) are called from each side Muawiya pics Amr ibn Al-As to defend interests of Syria and Muawiya they knew that he would be biased towards the Syrians and try to get them the most out of the treaty Alis side picks Abu Musa Al-Ashari because Ali knew that he would be neutral Arbitration - goes against Ali Says Ali was not legitimate Caliph and call for him to step down and elections to be held Ali of course rejects this and hostility begins to rise again Due to Alis rejection, he is breaking his pledge to abide by the results of the arbitration This makes him look weak, especially among his supporters and a profound rift in Alis supporters develops. The split is first theological/political, the Khawarij do not feel that Ali can safeguard their interests Then, the differences in Islamic traditions emerge Khawarij are way more radical, and believe that any muslim, not just companions of the prophet, have the right to be the leader and that they should revolt against any leader who doesnt abide by their interpretation of Islam This includes killing different faction Muslims and labeling them as non believers Khawarij believe that by sinning you are no longer legit leader, they believe Ali sinned in not seeking Uthmans justice Leave to found their own community, radically loyal to the Islamic principles Muawiya claims moral victory

Ali realizes his mistake in trusting the arbitration and is ready to resume war Ali resumes war with Muawiya but realizes Khawarij are a huge threat Attacks Khawarij and beats them very badly, now Khawarij are even more resentful and one sneaks into Alis camp and assassinates him in 661 Umayyad Caliphate after Ali o Caliphate becomes heir inheritance (Dynastic) vs. the meritocracy of before (deciding leader based on merit, not bloodline) o Capital moved to Damascus, Syria of Arab Islamic empire o First Dynastic regime of Islam massive expansion happens under this dynasty o Rather than calling the Umayyad Caliphates, they are called mulk which means kingdom and has a negative connotation to the dynasty format o Alis son Hassan was convinced by Muawiya and Ms supporters to go live peacefully in Medina and refuse to seek out leadership position o Umayyad generally regarded in Islam in a negative light, concerned with riches, wealth, power, women and less concerned with Islamic ideas empire mindset Umayyad Caliphate Religiously Problematic o Focused on girls, riches, power, wealth, expanding empire while ignoring the Islamic ideals that the Rashidun Caliphate mostly focused on o Acting as emperors not as religious leaders Umayyad Caliphate Socio Economic Development o Built huge buildings, foundational moment for Arab Islamic empire o No huge, expensive buildings on this huge scale were built before this o Massive program of construction on monumental scale never seen before in Islamic empire o Architecture was a recombination of existing forms roman, Persian, etc. o By building these huge structures they are saying that they are the rightful emperors and that they are the ones making it possible for believers to live in this world o Starting using Arabic as official language of administration in Damascus o Caliphs acting as emperors o Damascus was a Greek/Aramaic speaking and record keeping state When Islamic arabs took power they didnt immediately force Arabic but by 690 arabic becomes the official language of administration Receipts, records, poems, etc. Umayyad Caliphates 661-750 o Muawiya settles in Damascus o Yazid ibn Muawiya Not liked at all, killed Hussein ibn Ali o Abd Al-Malik

o Al Walid Abd Al-Malik and Al Walid were the greatest builders out of them established control even better than Muawiya o Oldest coins were from Abd Al-Malik, basically a Roman coin from the front (face) and Arabic, quranic sayings, on the back Imperial Fiscal System introduced with the coins o Military Conquests continue under them: Maghrib (Morocco) in 690s Al-Andalus (Spain) in 711 Battle of Poitiers/Tours in France Arab loss, big step for perserving Christianity in Europe Charlemagne (Charles) Battles in Bukhara and Samarqand in Uzbekistan (Near Iran) which were beautiful Persian cities 730 Discovery of paper from Chinese prisoners cheaper than leather, which was previously used to produce texts, and allowed for cheap mass production of books, making them more accessible to the common people and the fast spread of the Quran Why did the Umayyad fall apart? o Army that destroys the Umayyad are only 3,500 troops Abbasids o People began to critique the Umayyad leadership for being corrupt and unjust o Overextension of the empire, couldnt keep tabs on it all o Over reliance on Syrian Arab troops o Troops got thin because of constant expansion and putting down rebellions starting in 734 o Berber- groups of North Africans who initially joined the Arab Islamic conquest but later launched a huge rebellion against the Umayyad starting in 734 o Umayyad must send thousands of troops to put down revolts, which severely weakens them (Military aspect ^) o Umar b. Abd Al Aziz then takes power one of the only, maybe the only one, who wasnt corrupt and was against non-Quranic taxation and wanted to implement equality through removing the non-quranic taxations o As a result of this: Arab factionalism and split (Political aspect) Yamen more comfortable with relative equality supported Umar Qays against Umars decision to do this o This led to both internal and external attacks on the Umayyad empire, leading to its fall