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Online Readings
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“Islam”, Islamic History Sourcebook, Fordham University “Africa and its Golden Age of Empires” by J. Henderson, HistoryHaven.com |
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Videos
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Lecture: Narrated PowerPoint
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Learning Objectives
(Included in PowerPoint)
Upon successful completion of this lesson, students should be able to:
- Detail the life of Muhammad and the founding of Islam.
- Know the basic tenets of Islam, including terminology related to the religion.
- Describe the schism that followed the death of Muhammad.
- Trace the vast expansions of the Muslim rulers throughout the Mediterranean region.
- Offer perspectives on the contributions of Islamic cultures to other parts of the world.
- Explain the connections of Islam to Africa, looking at the kingdoms of Ghana, Mali, Benin, Zimbabwe, and the Sonhai in particular.
Terms to Know
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Thought Questions
1. Describe the many cultural influences related to the spread of Islam. How did these contribute to European knowledge? Give specific examples and results in your answer.
2. How did the movement of Islam into Africa transform the city-states and kingdoms there? Consider people such as Mansa Musa and the impact of trade on economics in your answer.
Discussion Questions
1. Read the overview of Islam in both your online content and from the link to the Internet history sourcebook in your syllabus. What was "philosophy" in Islamic culture? Note in your answer how it differed, in general, from the Greek concept of philosophy we discussed in Lesson 7.
2. Give examples of at least five cultural, artistic, and scientific works and discoveries that emerged from the Islamic world prior to 1600 (based on Online Content and your reading from the syllabus). Which do you believe to be the most significant, and why?
3. Compare and contrast the kingdoms of Ghana, Mali and Songhai. You may want to prepare a table or points in your analysis. Examine the economics, government, and culture (art and religion, for example) of each of these three powerful realms.
4. Who were the Bantu people? How did their migrations affect provide some commonalities for sub-Saharan African despite the diversity and lack of central authority in this large region?
Further Explorations
- History in the Qur’an
- The Qur'an
- History of Islam
- History of the Middle East [OSU]
- History of the Middle East [Albany]
NOTE: From time to time, these web pages may "disappear." Please send an email to library@ega.edu if you find broken links, so they may be replaced.