 At the ruins of the Roman
city of
Nyssa in Turkey
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| CURRICULUM VITAE (updated January 2011) |
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History 478A / 678A
Islamic Civilization from its origins to 1750 C.E.
(scroll down for readings and powerpoint presentations)
Description: This seminar will examine the rise and development of Islamic civilization from its inception in the seventh century through the advent of the modern period during the eighteenth century. In doing so, we will hope to gain a greater appreciation of the diversity of Islamic civilization as it evolved in various places and time periods, and better understand the historical contexts that affected the peoples and cultures of both the Islamic heartland and its surrounding regions.
NOTE: You will now need a username and password to access course files. If you are registered for the course and do not have it, please e-mail me so I can get it to you as soon as possible.
Course Syllabus, Study Guides and Extra Credit Assignment
(Study Guide links will be posted in the week before exams)
History 478A/678A Course Syllabus [PDF]
History 678A Grad Student Syllabus Addendum [PDF]
* * * * *
Midterm Study Guide [PDF] (available later)
Final Exam Study Guide [PDF] (available later)
* * * * *
Extra Credit Assignment [PDF] (available later)
Course Readings by date and format
(.pdf = Adobe Acrobat format)
** Note #1: The Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to view readings; if you do not have it installed on your computer, a copy can be downloaded [HERE].
** Note #2: Downloading of resources may be slow if a dial-up connection is used--try an on-campus computer lab if it is slow.
** Note #3: Instructor responses to the reading assignments can be found on the WebCampus "Announcements" tab
** Note #4: Please note that dates given here may be subject to changes based on circumstances; i.e., we may not complete all units in a single day, instructor illness may occur, etc..
The Pre-Islamic World in the Near East
January
23 (assignment
due 1/25)
Section 0 Questions/Readings: #1 and #2 [PDF]
Islamic Foundations: Muhammad in Mecca
January 25 (assignment due 1/30)
Section 1 Questions/Readings: #3, #4 and #5 [PDF]
Optional Link 1: Online Text of the Qur'an with Arabic text
(click on "English" in right column and then scroll down)
Optional Link 2: Online Text of Qur'an with three translations
The first Muslim Community: Muhammad in Medina
January 30 (assignment due 2/1)
Section 0 Questions/Readings: #1 and #2 [PDF]
Islamic Foundations: Muhammad in Mecca
January 25 (assignment due 1/30)
Section 1 Questions/Readings: #3, #4 and #5 [PDF]
Optional Link 1: Online Text of the Qur'an with Arabic text
(click on "English" in right column and then scroll down)
Optional Link 2: Online Text of Qur'an with three translations
The first Muslim Community: Muhammad in Medina
January 30 (assignment due 2/1)
The Rightly-Guided Caliphate and Muslim Expansion
February 6 (assignment due 2/8)
Section 3 Question/Readings: #9, #10 and #11 [PDF]
Interpreting the Umayyad Caliphate
February 8 (assignment due 2/13)
Sectin 4 Questions/Readings: #12, #13 and #14 [PDF]
Optional Link 1: Detail photos of the Umayyad Mosque
Optional Link 2: YouTube movie of Umayyad Mosque
Optional Link 3: Movie about Umayyad castles
The `Abbasid Revolution
February 13 (assignment due 2/15)
Section 5 Questions/Readings: #15, #16 and #17 [PDF]
Optional Link: Genealogical charts for caliphs and Shi`ism
The `Abbasid High Caliphate and Islamic Absolutism
February 15 (assignment due 2/22)
Section 6 Questions/Readings: #18, #19 and #20 [PDF]
Optional Link 1: Satellite Images of the ruins of Samarra'
(scroll north along river to see ruins beyond Great Mosque)
Political Fragmentation
and
Counter-Caliphates
February 22
(assignment due 2/27)
Optional Link 1: The Mezquita in Spain (scroll down for images)
Optional Link 2: Film about Mezquita w/various images
Central Asian Migrations and the Saljuq Turks
February 27 (assignment due 2/29)
Section 8 Questions/Readings: #24, #25 and #26 [PDF]
Optional Link: The Geography of the Saljuq Turkish world
Commerce, rural life, and non-Muslim communities
February 29 (assignment due 3/5)
Section 9 Questions/Readings: #27, #28 and #29 [PDF]
Foundations of Islamic law and theology
March 5 (assignment due 3/7)
Section 10 Questions/Readings: #30, #31 and #32 [PDF]
Mysticism and philosophy in the medieval Islamic world
March 7 (assignment due 3/12)
Section 11
Questions/Readings: #33, #34
and #35 [PDF]
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TAKE-HOME MIDTERM EXAM (DISTRIBUTED 3/7, DUE 3/14)
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The Crusades and the Islamic World
March 14 (assignment due 3/19)
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TAKE-HOME MIDTERM EXAM (DISTRIBUTED 3/7, DUE 3/14)
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The Crusades and the Islamic World
March 14 (assignment due 3/19)
The Mongol Invasions
March 19 (assignment due 3/21)
Section 13 Questions/Readings: #39, #40 and #41 [PDF]
Contours of the post-Mongol world
March 21 (assignment due 3/26)
Section 14 Questions/Readings: #42, #43 and #44 [PDF]
The disastrous fourteenth century
March 26 (assignment due 3/28)
Section 15 Questions/Readings: #45, #46 and #47 [PDF]
Gunpowder Empires I: the early Ottoman Empire
March 28 (assignment due 4/9)
Section 16 Questions/Readings: #48, #49 and #50 [PDF]
Ottoman domination of the Near East to 1750
April 9 (assignment due 4/11)
Section 17 Questions/Readings: #51, #52 and #53 [PDF]
Gunpowder Empires II: the Safavids in Iran
April 11 (assignment due 4/16)
Section 18 Questions/Readings: #54, #55 and #56 [PDF]
Gunpowder Empires III: the Mughal Empire in India
April 16 (assignment due 4/18)
Section 19 Questions/Readings: #57, #58 and #59 [PDF]
The spread of Islam in sub-Saharan Africa
April 18 (assignment due 4/23)
Section 20 Questions/Readings: #60, #61 and #62 [PDF]
The spread of Islam in Asia and China
April 23 (assignment due 4/25)
Section 21 Questions/Readings: #63 and #64 [PDF]
World historical changes and Islamic "decline"
April 25 (assignment due 4/30)
Section 22 Questions/Readings: #65 and #66 [PDF]
Lecture notes (powerpoint reader required)
Introductory Session Notes (1/18)
Section 0--The Pre-Islamic Middle East (1/23)
Section 1--Pre-Islamic Arabia and the Prophet Muhammad (1/25)
Section 2--The Medinan Period of the Prophet (1/30)
Section 3--The Rightly-Guided Caliphate (2/6)
Section 4--The Umayyad Dynasty (2/8)
Section 5--Sunni / Shi`a schism; the `Abbasid Revolution (2/13)
Section 6--The `Abbasid Caliphate (2/15)
Section 7--Political fragmentation in the Islamic world (2/22)
Section 8--Turkic Migrations and the Saljuq Turks (2/27)
Section 9--Non-Muslims and medieval Islamic life (2/29)
Section 10--Formation of Islamic law and theology (3/5)
Section 11--Knowledge, philosophy and mysticism (3/7)
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Section 12--The Crusades of the Latin West (3/14)
Section 13--The Mongol Invasions (3/19)
Section 14--Contours of the post-Mongol Islamic world (3/21)
Section 15--Disasters of the fourteenth century (3/26)
Section 16--Rise of the early Ottoman state in Asia Minor (3/28)
Section 17--The Ottoman Empire in the Near East (4/9)
Section 18--The Persian Safavid Dynasty (4/11)
Section 19--The Mughals of India (4/16)
Section 20--Islam in sub-Saharan Africa (4/18)
Section 21--The spread of Islamic civilization in Asia (4/23)
Section 22--Islam and global transformation (4/25)
Assistant Professor
4505 S. Maryland Parkway
Box 455020
Las Vegas, NV 89154
(702) 895-0891
