Blog Post # 9

Zach Dakin

Blog Post #9

        The World of Islam

The homeland of Islam is in a region of the Arabian Peninsula, inhabited by nomads and sheep herders who lived in independent tribes who often fought in wars with each other. 

Beholding a powerful message he obtained through his overwhelming religious experiences, Muhammad Zinn Abdullah believed himself to be the messenger of Allah, the god that Islamic people followed. Muhammad traveled to a place called Medina where he expanded his message from allah and spread Islam through out Arabia.

A big reason for the conversion of Islam was because it had popular beliefs similar to Jews and Christians. One reason the slaves and prisoners were the first to convert was because of the famous idea that everyone goes to heaven. 

        The Quran ( the bible of Islam), stated that spiritually, men and women were equal but on social terms, basically, women had rights but were still inferior to men. For example, women were allowed to divorce if they wanted, but the option wasn't so readily available to women as it was to men. Also, if a man violates a sexual taboo, he is off the hook, but women may face tortures like the cutting of their clitoris.

        As Islamic cultures and communities spread through India, Anatolia, Africa, and Spain, they all managed to react different to their new societies by rather taking the egalitarian approach or invading and conquering cities. 

Blog Post #8

Zach Dakin

Blog Post # 8

        In what different ways did the history of Christianity unfold in various parts of the Afro-Eurasian world during the third-wave era.

         

       Christianity became a popular belief system for people in the third-wave era. Without any similarities among diverse cultures, Christianity became a "commonality" for western Eurasia. "The story of global Christendom in the era of third-wave civilizations is one of contractions and expansions. As a religion, Christianity contracted sharply in Asia and Africa even as it expanded in Western Europe and Russia."

        

Blog Post #7

Zach Dakin

Blog Post # 7

        Chapter 7 mainly discusses three major trading routes used hundreds of years ago, The Silk Road, The Sea Road, and The Sand Road. The Silk Road was a a road that stretched from Asia to Europe. Camel Caravans were used to travel through the road. Goods that were exchanged among the Silk Road were in high demand, making them luxuries. One of the most popular goods on this trading route was silk, hence the name, Silk Road. While merchants and explorers traveled the Silk Road, cultures started to spread as well as diseases. The second road is actually not a road but a route. It is called The Sea Road. This route stretched from Africa to India to Asia. And a few countries in between those as well. Goods, cultures, and diseases were exchanged among this route as well. Being on the Ocean, traders biggest threat was harsh weather conditions and the fear of being attacked or robbed by pirates. The third of the important trading routes was The Sand Road. Not consisting of actual roads, this road was more of a route, it stretched across the Sahara Desert and linked North Africa and the Mediterranean. Using camel caravans to travel across the desert, gold, salt, and slaves were the main things traded among this route.

Blog post #6

Civilizations of Africa:

        African colonies that were close to the equator, suffered due to very tropical weather. The warm weather caused less fertile soils, producing less agriculture and also, attracting parasitic insects hat carry diseases.

        In the Nile Valley, south of Egypt, the Nubian civilizations of Menroë are ruled both by men and women. This civilization was well organized and offered a wide variety of skilled civilians such as,weavers, potters, Masons,farmers and servants. Because the Nile valley relied on rain-based agriculture, farmers were less dependent on irrigation. The decline of the kingdom was caused by deforestation because they used all the wood for charcoal in order to smelt iron.

Over a span of 1300 years, Arab immigration, and the rise of Islam took over Christian covilozation, shifting Nubia into the world of Islam.

        During a dry spell, the Niger River attracted a large amount of people due to its mass body of water. This created clusters of civilizations to live along the Niger River, allowiing growth of cities. The clusters of cities weren't governed by one bigger government. Each city had its own political structures. The most prestige occupation during this time was iron smithing. Their ability to turn earth to metal and create so much of it was considered a key to their power and immense danger.