Lesson 1.2 · Unit 1 · CED topic 1.2
Dar al-Islam after the Abbasids
Dar al-Islam, the "house of Islam," names the lands where Islam was the main religion and Muslim law and culture shaped public life. By 1200 this world stretched from Spain and West Africa to India and Central Asia. This lesson covers how new Muslim states replaced the Abbasid caliphate's direct rule, how Islam spread, and why Muslim scholars made so many intellectual advances.
Learning objectives.
- 1D. Explain how systems of belief and their practices affected society in the period from c. 1200 to c. 1450.
- 1E. Explain the causes and effects of the rise of Islamic states over time.
- 1F. Explain the effects of intellectual innovation in Dar al-Islam.
Historical developments.
- 3.1.III.D.iii. Islam, Judaism, Christianity, and the core beliefs and practices of these religions continued to shape societies in Africa and Asia.
- 3.2.I. As the Abbasid Caliphate fragmented, new Islamic political entities emerged, most of which were dominated by Turkic peoples. These states demonstrated continuity, innovation, and diversity.
- 3.1.III.A. Muslim rule continued to expand to many parts of Afro-Eurasia due to military expansion, and Islam subsequently expanded through the activities of merchants, missionaries, and Sufis.
- 3.2.II.A.i. Muslim states and empires encouraged significant intellectual innovations and transfers.
From one caliphate to many states
The Abbasid caliphate (750 to 1258) was the great Muslim empire centered in Baghdad. But it had lost real control over distant provinces long before the Mongols took the city in 1258. Regional dynasties ruled in its place while often keeping the caliph as a symbol of unity. The CED asks about new Islamic political entities, and three matter most.
- The Seljuk Empire was established by Turkic peoples from Central Asia. Seljuk sultans took Baghdad in 1055 and ruled much of Southwest Asia, while the caliph remained a religious figurehead. They defeated the Byzantines at Manzikert in 1071, which opened Anatolia to Turkic settlement.
- The Mamluk sultanate of Egypt (1250 to 1517) was ruled by former slave soldiers (mamluks) who seized power. They defeated a Mongol army at Ain Jalut in 1260 and ruled Egypt and Syria.
- The Delhi sultanates (from 1206) were Muslim states in northern India founded by Turkic military leaders. Their rulers governed a population that was mostly Hindu, which shaped their policies.
Islam spread as well, which the CED traces to military expansion and, after that, to the activities of merchants, missionaries, and Sufis. Conquest brought Muslim rule, but conversion was usually gradual. Merchants carried Islam along trade routes to East Africa, Southeast Asia, and West Africa. Sufis, Muslim mystics who stressed personal devotion and often traveled, attracted converts through teaching and example. Sufi orders such as the Chishti in India set up lodges that served as centers of charity, learning, and prayer.
Religious communities in Muslim lands
Muslim rulers governed large populations of Jews, Christians, and others. Under Islamic law, these groups were considered "people of the book," who paid a special tax in exchange for protection and the right to practice their religion. Judaism, Christianity, and Islam each shaped social life. The practices were not always the same everywhere, and treatment of minorities varied by place and ruler, but this arrangement meant that Muslim states ruled diverse societies rather than forcing quick conversion.
A center of learning
The CED says Muslim states encouraged significant intellectual innovations and transfers. Scholars in places such as Baghdad, Cairo, Cordoba, and Samarkand preserved and extended Greek, Persian, and Indian learning. They translated works into Arabic, and Arabic served as a common language of scholarship across a huge area. Notable achievements included:
- Mathematics. Al-Khwarizmi's work gave algebra its name, and the Indian numbering system, adopted and passed on by Muslim scholars, reached Europe as "Arabic numerals."
- Medicine. Ibn Sina (Avicenna) wrote the Canon of Medicine, which was used in Europe for centuries, and hospitals in cities such as Cairo trained physicians.
- Astronomy and navigation. Muslim astronomers refined the astrolabe and improved tables of the stars, which helped travelers find the direction of Mecca and sailors find their way.
- Philosophy. Ibn Rushd (Averroes) wrote commentaries on Aristotle that influenced Latin Christian thinkers.
These ideas moved to other regions through trade, travel, and contact, which is why Muslim lands were an important link between the ancient Mediterranean world and the later growth of learning in Europe.
Description of the account of Ibn Battuta (1304 to c. 1369), a Moroccan jurist who traveled for about thirty years across Africa, Asia, and Europe. This is a description of the book, not a quotation.
Ibn Battuta wrote of being received as a scholar of Islamic law in cities from Cairo to Delhi. Local rulers gave him hospitality and appointments, and he praised the cities' markets, colleges, and mosques while sometimes criticizing local customs he found un-Islamic.
Sourcing (HIPP). Ibn Battuta's point of view was that of an educated Sunni Muslim jurist. His purpose was to describe his travels, and he dictated the account in the 1350s after returning to Morocco at the request of a ruler, so some details were written from memory and may be exaggerated. The audience was educated Muslims at a royal court. Even so, his journey shows that scholars, law, and the Arabic language connected distant parts of Dar al-Islam.
Claim. Shared religion and learning connected distant parts of Dar al-Islam, even though it had no single ruler.
Evidence. A Moroccan jurist could travel across Africa and Asia and be received as a scholar of law by rulers in cities as far apart as Cairo and Delhi.
Reasoning. His ability to find work and hospitality in many places shows that Islamic law, the Arabic language, and a common educated culture linked societies that were politically divided into Seljuk, Mamluk, and Delhi states. A limit is that the account was written long after the journey by a man who wanted to impress a court, so details may be exaggerated.
Question. Explain one way Islam spread after 1200.
Model. Islam spread through the activities of Sufis, who traveled and attracted followers through personal devotion, charity, and teaching in lodges such as those of the Chishti order in India. Unlike conquest, this method led to gradual conversion because Sufis often adapted their message to local customs.
Learning Objectives 1D to 1F ask about belief systems, state formation, and intellectual innovation. Name the three new states (Seljuk, Mamluk, Delhi), the three agents of expansion (military, merchants, Sufis), and at least two innovations (algebra, medicine, astronomy, translation). Stress that cultural unity continued even though political unity did not.
- What was the Abbasid caliphate and what happened to it in 1258?
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It was the Muslim empire centered in Baghdad (750 to 1258); the Mongols sacked Baghdad in 1258, ending it, though it had long ceased to rule directly.
- Who were the Mamluks?
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Former slave soldiers who seized power in Egypt and Syria and ruled from 1250 to 1517, defeating a Mongol army at Ain Jalut in 1260.
- What role did Sufis play in the spread of Islam?
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Sufis, Muslim mystics, traveled and attracted converts through personal devotion, teaching, and charity, so Islam spread by example as well as by conquest.
- Name two intellectual advances of Muslim scholars.
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Algebra and the transmission of Indian numerals, Ibn Sina's Canon of Medicine, improved astronomical tools, and translations of Greek works are examples.
- How did Muslim states rule non-Muslim subjects?
Show answer
They usually allowed Jews and Christians to practice their religion under Islamic law in exchange for paying a special tax and accepting Muslim rule.
- Why was Arabic important?
Show answer
It served as a common language of scholarship, law, and religion across a huge area, which helped ideas travel among distant societies.