Teacher Notes: Cut up each of these boxes and distribute to groups of students or tape them up around the room as a station activity. Students should read about each, then take brief notes and make a sketch on their worksheet. Algebra al jabr, using x, y, or z in place of numbers to solve complex mathematical problems. Zoology study of animals. Al-Jahiz wrote of scientific theories and info involving animals; Ibn Bakhtishu wrote of medicines that could be extracted from animals; Al-Damiri wrote an encyclopedia of animals. Banking system to end confusion of all the types of currencies used. Sakks (pronounced checks ) were letters of credit allowing a sakk written in one part of the empire to be cashed in a distant city. Chess imported from India, became popular due to its difficulty and intellectual challenge. Caliphs invited people to play matches at their palaces. Chess eventually spread to Europeans.
Geometric and floral design (arabesque) due to the Muslim belief that human images would distract from worship of Allah, Muslim art was mostly abstract. Polo introduced by Persians, used by the Abbasids; Arabian horses were bred to play the game, and it spread to Europe. House of Wisdom library, academy and translation center in Baghdad. Translated texts from Greece, India, Persia and elsewhere into Arabic; scholars from many areas worked side by side here. Calligraphy art of elegant handwriting; included pictures. Reflected the glory of Allah.
Bookmaking captured Chinese soldiers taught their captors how to make paper and books, making them available throughout the empire and sparking an interest in all kinds of learning. The city of Baghdad now the capital city of Iraq. Centrally located between two rivers and two important trade routes. Built in concentric circles with walls and a moat, and the Caliph s palace in the center. The city of Cordoba center of learning and intellectual life; had many libraries, where clerks (many of them women) hand copied books and the Qur an. Scientific observation and Experimentation instead of using logic, Muslim scholars conducted experiments in laboratories to test and solve problems.
Irrigation techniques and underground wells dams, reservoirs, aqueducts and water wheels were constructed to provide water throughout the desert. Underground wells were used to prevent evaporation of the supply; allowed agriculture throughout the Islamic Empire. Herbal medicines and pharmacies doctors experimented with herbal medicines (sedatives to kill pain during surgery, antiseptics to kill germs in wounds) and created pharmacies to distribute prescriptions from doctors. Hospitals to promote health, cure diseases, and teach and expand medical knowledge.
Astronomy study of the skies; created astrolabe to determine the positioning of the planets, time of day and latitude; some already knew the earth was round and began to believe the Earth rotated on its own axis and that the sun was the center of the universe (long before European cultures). Music of Muslim Spain combined musical styles from all over the world. Poets and musicians worked together to create songs of love, nature and achievements of the empire. The oud, an ancestor of the guitar, the rebab, which is like a violin, the ney, a wood flute, and the darbuka, a kind of drum, are all similar to instruments used today.
Name Directions: Use the table to list all of the Islamic achievements you read about. Take brief notes on each and draw a picture in the appropriate columns. After you have completed each, rank them from most important/ influential to least (1-17). Finally, explain your rationale of your rankings in a paragraph at the end. Achievement Notes Picture Ranking
My Rationale for My Rankings