Geography
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Sitting at the crossroads of three continents, the Arabian Peninsula is part of modern day Saudi Arabia. With little rain, and poor soil, the land is mostly desert, though the Arabian Peninsula is surrounded by water. In the desert, there are frequent sand storms with very very high temperatures, so it's good to live by the coast, where trade and small amounts of farmland thrives. Only in oasis's, where the desert is wet and fertile can be places where people can settle and trade. But despite the high temperatures and poor soil, people lived in Arabia for thousands of years.
Islam Religion
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The 2nd largest religion in the world, Islam consists of 1.6 billion believers approximately 23% of the worlds population. Muslims based their lives on the Qur'an, their holy book, and the Sunna. These monotheistic people were forbidden to eat meat or drink alcohol, with women covering themselves from head to toe. Worship day was on Friday and was held in a mosque, where people would pray towards the direction of Mecca. All followers of Islam must obey The Five Pillars of Islam, which are Shahada(faith), Salat(worship), Zakat(giving), Sawm(fasting), and Hajj(pilgrimage).
Islam Achievements and Architecture
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The Muslims made many important contributions that affects our society today. First of all, Muslims made many advances in herbal medicines and pharmacies. Muslims discovered that many diseases could be treated though plants and herbs, as they were famous for their medical power. Without Muslims discovery with plants medical power, we might not have invented the more advanced medicines to cure diseases and illnesses. Muslims also flourished in architecture during the Golden Age of Muslims. Muslim art was abstract, and was usually in the form of arabesque, a design of a winding stem of leaves and flowers. Another achievement the Muslims made was the advancement in irrigation and wells. They invented things such as the water wheel and developed many irrigation techniques because the water was so scarce. Thanks to the Muslims we have clean fresh water transported in our very homes. Another important contribution was the banking system, which was developed to end the confusion caused by many currencies. Much like the banking system for Muslims, we have banks now to store our money and get money. I think the greatest contribution from the Muslims is algebra. Without algebra, we wouldn't be able to solve difficult math problems related to our life. Muslims achievements have greatly changed the world we lived today.
Politics and Government
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Soon after Muhammad and his followers were welcomed in Yathrib, As the leader, Muhammad created a Isalamic state, which is a government that uses its political power to rule Islam. Muhammad commanded that all Muslims had to place their loyalty to the Islamic state above their loyalty to their tribe. Also, fearing that Mecca would soon attack the city now renamed Medina, Muhammad built an army of 3,000.
Economy
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One of the reasons why Islam is one of the largest religions is because of trade. Like I said before, the Arabian Peninsula is located at the crossroads of three highly populated continents. That means that much trade occurred in Arabia. Also, the Kaaba in Mecca made the area a great trading place, for Muslims all around the world were to travel there for the pilgrimage. People traded merchandise and goods, as well as cultural ideas. Trading was a bi part of Islam.
Social Structure
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In Islam, there is no higher or upper class. One of the ideas that Muhammad preached was that the rich should be the same as the poor. Muslims believe that all people are equal under all law. He said that wealth or power is not as important as leading a good life. Muhammad also said that if you are good, you will fo to heaven, but if you are evil, you go to hell.