Islamic History
This early Islamic empire, centered in Damascus, ruled from 661 to 750 CE and greatly expanded into North Africa and Spain.
What was the Umayyad Caliphate?
This famous conqueror created an empire stretching from Greece to the Indus River before dying at age 32.
Who was Alexander the Great?
This explorer’s 1519–1522 expedition was the first to circumnavigate the globe, though he himself died in the Philippines.
Who was Ferdinand Magellan?
This arabic word meaning “permissible” is used to refer to things that comply with Islamic law.
What is "halal"?
This fruit is known as the “king of fruits” in Southeast Asia for its large size and odor.
What is durian?
This year marks the Hijra, when Muhammad and his followers migrated from Mecca to Medina, beginning the Islamic calendar.
What is 622 CE?
This Caribbean revolution, led by figures like Toussaint Louverture, resulted in the first independent Black republic in 1804.
What is the Haitian Revolution?
This empire’s capital at Timbuktu became a major center of trade and learning under Mansa Musa in the 14th century.
What is the Mali Empire?
This language is the most widely spoken Muslim-majority language in the world today.
What is Indonesian/Malay?
This ocean is the largest on Earth, covering more than 30% of the planet’s surface.
What is the Pacific Ocean?
This 14th-century North African traveler journeyed over 70,000 miles through Africa, the Middle East, and Asia, recording his observations in the Rihla.
Who was Ibn Battuta?
This 14th century pandemic was caused by the bacteria Yersinia pestis.
The Black Death
This Mesoamerican civilization’s capital was built on a lake and conquered in 1521.
Who were the Aztecs?
This Islamic dynasty of North Africa and Spain, known for the Alhambra, ruled from the 13th to 15th centuries.
Who were the Nasrids?
This ancient wonder, located in modern-day Iraq, featured a massive ziggurat and was built by the Babylonians.
What is the Tower of Babel?
This 8th-century battle in France stopped the northward expansion of the Umayyad forces into Western Europe.
What is the Battle of Tours?
In 1494, this treaty divided newly discovered lands between Spain and Portugal along a meridian 370 leagues west of the Cape Verde Islands.
What is the Treaty of Tordesillas?
This 19th-century conflict between Russia and an Ottoman-led alliance is known for Florence Nightingale’s nursing reforms and the “Charge of the Light Brigade.”
What is the Crimean War?
This geometric art style, avoiding depictions of living beings, is a hallmark of traditional Islamic architecture.
What is arabesque?
This planet is known for its unique, iron oxide surface.
What is Mars?
This medieval Islamic philosopher and polymath, known in the West as Averroes, wrote influential commentaries on Aristotle.
Who was Ibn Rushd?
Founded in the 3rd century BCE, this Indian empire under rulers like Ashoka united most of the subcontinent and promoted the spread of Buddhism.
What is the Maurya Empire?
This ancient Mesopotamian ruler is known for a law code inscribed on a stone stele that begins, “Anu and Enlil called me by name.”
Who was Hammurabi?
This city in Spain was the capital of the Umayyad Caliphate of al-Andalus and became one of Europe’s great centers of learning in the 10th century.
What is Córdoba?
This 2017 horror film won the Academy Award for Best Picture and was directed by Jordan Peele.
What is Get Out?