Islam

Between the 1300s and the 1600s, powerful Islamic rulers controlled much of the Middle East, North Africa, and Spain. While Renaissance culture was spreading across Europe, Islamic civilization thrived in the regions under Muslim rule. Cities such as Cairo in Egypt and Granada in Spain became great cultural centers and attracted distinguished scholars and writers.

Islamic States. Egypt fell under Muslim control in the 600s. By 1250, the country was governed by a group of military officers called the Mamluks. The Mamluks had originally been slaves forced to serve in the army, but they used their military power to seize control of the country. The Mamluk capital, Cairo, was the leading city in the Islamic world. Rulers of other Islamic states sought the approval of the Mamluk leader, or caliph, to confirm their authority. Under the Mamluks, many educated Egyptians became government officials or religious scholars.

Beginning in the early 700s, Islamic rulers had conquered most of central and southern Spain. They set up independent caliphates and built cities featuring splendid palaces and mosques (places of worship). The Muslim kingdom of Granada, in southern Spain, developed a highly sophisticated Islamic culture. Eventually, however, the Christian rulers of northern Spain began to reclaim the territory captured by the Muslims. In 1492 troops from the northern kingdoms of Aragon and Castile took over Granada, the last remaining Muslim stronghold in Spain.

Iran, Iraq, and India also fell under Muslim control during the Middle Ages. In the 1250s, the Mongols* invaded Iran and Iraq. At first the Mongol rulers considered converting to Christianity and forming an alliance with western leaders against the Muslims. However, in 1295 the Mongols decided to adopt Islam. They established Muslim states in Iran and Iraq and became patrons* of Islamic culture and learning. In India, an Islamic state founded in the late 1100s grew into a wealthy empire. From their base at Delhi, in the north, the Muslims gained control of much of India's central plateau.

The most powerful of the Islamic states was the OTTOMAN EMPIRE. Founded by the Ottoman Turks in the 1300s, it eventually included large areas of eastern Europe, the Middle East, and northern Africa. The Ottomans established a capital at Bursa, in western Turkey, and extended their influence into Europe. Although Christian leaders launched attacks and crusades against the empire, they failed to stop the spread of Ottoman power. The only serious threat the Ottomans faced was the Turkish warlord Timur, also known as Tamerlane. Timur established his own kingdom in Iran, Iraq, Anatolia, Syria, and India in the late 1300s. However, his empire fell apart on his death in 1405.

After recovering their power in Turkey, the Ottomans turned their attention to the west. In 1453 the Ottoman sultan MEHMED II conquered CONSTANTINOPLE, the capital of the Byzantine Empire*. He intended to invade Italy, but he died in 1481 before he could carry out his plan. In the 1500s Islamic influence in Europe continued to expand. Muslim troops invaded Hungary and Austria and forced rulers to pay tribute*. The Ottoman Empire remained a significant threat to Europe for some time, but in the late 1600s it fell into a decline.

Islamic Culture. During the Renaissance, Muslim culture advanced in several fields, particularly law. In Europe, scholars of this time were reviving classical* ideas, most of which had been lost during the Middle Ages. In the Islamic world, by contrast, the works of ancient Greek philosophers and scientists had been translated into Arabic and had remained part of the culture. However, by the 1100s, some Muslims had begun to oppose the study of philosophy on the grounds that it was contrary to Islamic beliefs. They also objected to the study of science, which was based in part on philosophical ideas.

The study of Islamic law, which was closely tied to Islamic religious beliefs, flourished under Muslim rule. Legal scholars gathered in academies throughout the Muslim world. They focused on interpreting the Qur'an (the Muslim holy book), the sayings of the prophet Muhammad (founder of Islam), and the teachings of Muslim religious leaders.

Arabic literature made slow progress during the Renaissance due to a decline in the use of the Arabic language. Before 1200 the Muslim kingdoms had used Arabic for all intellectual activities. When the Mongols conquered Iran and Iraq in the 1200s, they adopted the Persian language of Iran because it was easier to learn than Arabic. In Egypt, the Mamluk rulers spoke Turkish and had little interest in promoting the use of Arabic. Eventually, proper Arabic was spoken only in religious schools and legal academies, and secular* learning in Arabic fell into a decline.

As a result of these developments, Arabic literature focused mostly on religious subjects. Scholars studied poetry and history in an attempt to understand the Qur'an or the history of Islam. Some wrote biographies of great religious scholars who had passed down the sayings of Muhammad. Others produced commentaries about these sayings.

Much of the secular literature in the Muslim world focused on history and geography. The Persian writer Rashid al-Din (1247–1318) wrote about the place of Islam in the history of the world. The North African historian Ibn Khaldun (1332–1406) developed a theory of history and wrote about the forces that drive governments and societies. World traveler Ibn Battuta (1304–1377), who visited the entire Muslim world as well as China, Indonesia, and various parts of Africa, wrote vivid reports of his journeys. Another popular form of literature was storytelling. Tales told at Islamic gatherings during this time became the basis of The Thousand and One Nights, the most famous work of Islamic literature.