CLIMATE OF THE MIDDLE EAST

VARIES A GREAT DEAL DEPENDING ON WHERE YOU ARE

RAINFALL

• Northern Iran gets up to 80 inches/year while desert regions of Iran can get no rain for several years

TEMPERATURES

• Ankara, Turkey experiences averages 32°F in January and 73°F in July.

• Jiddah, Saudi Arabia averages 75°F in January and 89°F in July.

• Lowland desert areas in the interior part of the Peninsula can get as hot as 113°F or higher.

GEOGRAPHY FACTS & FIGURES

• Much of the region consists of flat plains or plateaus. Extensive desert areas stretch across the southern regions

• Northern mountainous areas include the Taurus Mountains in Turkey and the Elburz Mountains and Zagros Mountains in Iran

EARLY LIFE ON THE ARABIAN PENINSULA

• Civilization dates back thousands of years

• BEDOUINS – nomads who herd sheep, camels, and goats

– Live mainly in tents

– Organized into tribes made up of related families

– Sheikh – chief of a tribe, appointed by heads of the families

– Warfare was a common part of life (fought over watering holes, camels, pastures…)

GROWTH OF TOWNS• A.D. 500 – many tribes

settled around an oasis or in fertile valleys

• Oasis – fertile area around springs and water holes that provides a permanent source of water

• Merchants began to create important market towns

MECCA (MAKKAH)

• very important market town

• People from all over the Arabian Peninsula came here to trade

• People also came to worship at the Kaaba – a sacred shrine that contained statues of many Arab deities

ISLAM PRE-QUIZ1. People who practice Islam are called Islams.2. People who practice Islam believe in the same god as

Christians and Jews.3. People who practice Islam do not believe at all in Jesus.4. Christians, Jews and Muslims all believe in parts of the

Bible.5. Muslims pray 6 times a day.6. Muslims pray in a church.7. About 1 out of every 10 people in the world is Muslim.8. Islam is the world’s fastest growing religion.9. Islam is older than Christianity and Judaism.10. Muslim religious leaders are called priests.

MUHAMMAD & HIS MESSAGE• Muhammad – born in 570 in

Mecca, the “Prophet of Islam”

• Had a revelation, vision, while praying in 610 telling him to recite the word of Allah (Muslim name for god)

• Messages were written down in the Koran, holy book for Muslims

MUHAMMAD cont.

• Many people in Mecca feared and hated Muhammad and his message (why?)

1. Loss of economic power

2. Loss of political power

MUHAMMAD cont.

• Hijrah - in 622 Muhammad and his followers left Mecca and went to Yathrib (Madinah/Medina) for safety

• 629/630 – Muhammad and his followers recaptured Mecca

• 632 – Muhammad died

5 PILLARS OF ISLAM• Faith

• Prayer

• Alms

• Fasting

• Pilgrimage

MOSQUE

PLACE OF WORSHIP SCHOOL

SHELTER

COURT

TURKEY

LONDON

BRUNEI

MALAYSIA

http://www.hitchams.suffolk.sch.uk/mosque/default.htm

IMPORTANT SITES IN JERUSALEM

WESTERN WALL (wailing wall)

• Section of the western wall that remains of the Jewish Temple destroyed in A.D. 70

• Extremely sacred place for Jews

DOME OF THE ROCK

• Built to represent the greatness of Islam

• Built on the site of the rock on which Abraham went to sacrifice his son

• Also the site of Muhammad’s “night journey”

CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHER

• Built over the site of Jesus’ burial

• Extremely sacred to Christians

ISLAM AFTER MUHAMMAD

WHAT NOW????

RIGHTLY GUIDED CALIPHS• After Muhammad died the Muslims had to choose a new

leader, or caliph

• Caliph – means "successor”, it was the title given to the leader of the Muslims

• The first four caliphs were chosen for life:a. Abu Bakr – Muhammad’s father-in-law (supported by

Sunnis) and first caliph

b. Ali – Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law (supported by Shiites) and last of the RGC

CALIPHS SPREAD ISLAM

• Muslims were looking to:

a. Expand Islam

b. Acquire agricultural wealth of surrounding empires to meet needs of a growing population

ISLAM

CALIPHS

WORLD

Reasons for the success of the Arab armies:

1. united in their belief and desire to spread Islam

– Idea of Jihad – holy struggle to bring Islam to other lands

2. Surrounding empires (Byzantine and Persian) were both weakened by continual warfare

3. People in Byzantine and Persian Empires preferred rule by Muslims

MUSLIMS

PERSIANS

I think I’ll go with the Muslims. The

Persians have been mean to me for sooooo long.

THE CRUSADES

What? - a series of wars fought between European Christians and Middle Eastern Muslims

When? – roughly 1095 – 1300

Why? – control of the “Holy Land” (Jerusalem and surrounding areas)

EFFECTS OF THE CRUSADES

1. Stimulated trade throughout the Mediterranean world

2. Tension between East and West?

DAILY LIFE and CULTURE

CITY and COUNTRY

• Most Muslims lived in rural or desert areas, but leadership came from cities

• Cities became major trading centers

• Cities were separated into business and residential districts

URBAN CENTERS• Houses were centered around courtyards which, if wealthy,

had fountains and gardens

• Interiors were plain with few pieces of furniture, usually sat on carpets or pillows

• Main religious, political, and economic buildings were at the center of the cities

• Worshippers gathered at the mosques on Fridays

TRADE and BAZAAR• Muslims dominated trade in the

Middle East and North Africa until about 1400

• Caravans traveled as far east as India and China

• Caravans also traded with African and Europe

• Most trading took place in bazaars – marketplaces. Consisted of shops and stalls

• Men would meet at bazaars for trade, but also to discuss politics and business

MEN1. Koran states that men are

responsible for women

2. Participate in politics, military, business

3. At age 7 boys enter mosque schools

4. Some continue education at a madrasas – theological schools

WOMEN1. Her social position is determined

by her role as wife, mother, daughter and/or sister

2. Islam improved position of women by forbidding ancient customs such as the killing of female infants and by limiting polygamy

3. Islam gave women control over their property

4. Upper class women had opportunities in business, literature…

ISLAMIC ACHIEVEMENTS• By the year 800 Muslims

enjoyed a period of cultural achievement that enabled them to make great strides in many areas

• Arabic became the common language, enabling people from different areas to communicate

BIG STRIDE

HOUSE OF WISDOM

• During the 800s the city of Baghdad became a leading cultural and intellectual center

• Influenced by Greece and India

• House of Wisdom– a center for learning founded in 830 that specialized in the translation into Arabic of Persian, Greek, and Indian scientific texts

WISDOM

MATHEMATICS

1. Invented algebra

2. Adopted Indian numerals (Arabic Numerals) and used them in a place value system

ASTRONOMY & GEOGRAPHY

1. Accurately describe solar eclipses

2. Proved the moon affects tides

3. Produced the first accurate maps of the Eastern Hemisphere

CHEMISTRY & MEDICINE

1. al-Razi classified chemical substances as animal, mineral, or vegetable

--- he also wrote a book describing the origins of diseases

2. Ibn Sina – wrote Canon of Medicine, which describe the functions of the organs and offered diagnosis and treatments for diseases

ART & ARCHITECTURE

• Opposed to the worship of idols, discouraged making images of living creatures

• Used calligraphy – art of elegant handwriting to decorate walls, mosques, buildings…

• arabesques – geometric designs that decorate books, carpets, swords, and entire walls

• Best architecture is seen in mosques

CALLIGRAPHY

MOTIFS/ARABESQUES

PHILOSOPHY & HISTORY• Muslim philosophers tried to reconcile

the Koran with Greek philosophy

• Much of their work on Greek philosophy was used in Western Europe

• Moses Maimonides – Spanish Jew who wrote MishneTorah and The Guide of the Perplexed

• Also very interested in examining and writing about history, they moved from chronicles, accounts that simply arrange events in order, to more scientific examinations that view history as a process and a series of cause and effect relationships (read section in text)