Section 2:The Rise and Spread of Islam

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Section 2The Rise and Spread of Islam

• A man, Muhammad, became the leader of the Islamic
  religion
• Muhammad was born on the Arabian Peninsula
• The Arabian Peninsula mostly desert
• Mecca, the city where Muhammad lived was located
  on the edge of the desert

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• Mecca great location for trade
• Camel trains brought perfumes, Ivory, spices,
  silk and precious metals such as gold
• Some merchants traveled north to Syria to sell
  goods
• Others traveled across the desert to Iraq to trade

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• Bedouins and Merchants
• In the Arabian desert there were many groups of
  nomadic Bedouins
• They herded sheep, camels, and goats

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• They also acted a guides for trade caravans
• Sometimes they would rob the caravan
• Deals were made to prevent the robberies
• Religion was used to seal the deal
• Merchants welcomed the Bedouins into their holy
  place called the Kabah located in the center of
  Mecca
• The Kabah held a black stone, a meteorite which
  was sacred to the Merchants
• The Kabah also held many object sacred to the
  Meccans and Bedouins

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• Muhammads life
• He was orphaned at the age of 7 and lived with
  his uncle until adulthood
• He went to work in Mecca in the Caravan trade
• He traveled to Syria (part of the Byzantine
  Empire)
• At 25 he married a wealthy widow named Khadijah
• When not working he would walk in the hills
  outside of Mecca

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• Muhammads mission
• An angle visits and gives Muhammad a mission
• He traveled around and Proclaimed that there
  was only one true God
• People who accepted this became Muslims which
  means person who submits
• The religion became known as Islam which means
  Submission to God

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• Meccans were angry
• They did not like Muhammads teachings
• They feared their gods would be mad and the
  importance of their city lost
• They also did not like that Muhammad saw all
  people as brothers and sisters so they threw
  garbage at Muhammad and his followers

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• Forced to flee the city Muhammad made his way
  north to the city of Yathrib which welcomed him
  and his followers
• People of Yathrib believed Muhammad to be a
  prophet and a wise man
• This move from Mecca to Yathrib was known as the
  hijra meaning migration
• After the hijra the city changed its name to
  Medina which means city of the Prophet

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• The spread of Islam
• People did not like the Byzantine and Persian
  Empires because their rulers were mean
• The new religion promised a new way of life that
  made sense
• Muhammad his followers were traders so they
  traveled all over telling people about their
  religion
• Muhammad united the Arabs into one community and
  once they were working together they were very
  powerful!

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