Early History & Invasion
Tudela & the Itinerary
Mongol Rule
Literature & Plague
Later Invasion & Reaction
100
These were the rulers of the Jewish community during the period of Islamic rule.
Who were the exilarch and the geonim
100
This was where Benjamin of Tudela came from and how long he was on his journey.
What was Sepharad and nine years?
100
This decision by Ghazan Khan, later during the Mongol rule, made life more difficult for Jews because of this.
What was his decision to convert to Islam and the consequent return of the status of dhimmi and the jizya?
100
In the literature of the Persian Jews, this story is central.
What is the story of Esther and Mordecai?
100
Name two earlier historical factors that led to enormous destruction and political instability in Persia over several centuries.
What was the invasion of the Mongols and the Black Death?
200
These were three important responsibilities of the rulers of the Jewish community.
What was the responsibility for education and the selection of judges and rabbis?
200
He was the man described by Tudela who wanted to overthrow the Persian rulers and then do this.
Who was David Al Roy who wanted Jews to retake Jerusalem?
200
Mongols preferred these people to help them in the running of their government for this reason.
Who were minorities like Jews and Christians because they would be more likely to be loyal, since they had benefited in some ways and not lost power, like the Persian Muslims?
200
The Black Death reached Persia in this year and killed this percent of the population.
What is 1347 and a third of the population?
200
A later conqueror carried off artists and craftsmen, including Jews of this profession, to do what to his capital of Samarkand?
Who were Jewish textile merchants and what was to beautify his capital?
300
These were two consequences for the Jews of the new ideas unleashed by Islam and one sect that was influenced by Islam.
What were heretics and false messiahs and the sect of the Karaites?
300
In the Far East, Tudela described the Kofar al Turak, who had no noses, who, fifteen years earlier had done what?
What was overrun Persia, take spoils (loot), and then return to the wilderness?
300
He was Arghun Khan's vizier and this is what happened to him.
Who was Sa'ad al-Daula and what was being killed by his enemies when Arghun became ill?
300
Persian Jews were translating this and writing these as far back as the 9th century.
What is translating the Bible and writing dictionaries?
300
The final conqueror, who invaded Mongol-governed Persia, was this man, who came from this ethnic background.
Who was Timur Lenk, who was of mixed Turkish and Mongolian background?
400
This was the religious perspective of the Mongols and the consequence of that perspective.
What was polytheism and the consequent ending of the rules of dhimmi and jizya?
400
This frontier town of Persia was located in what ancient part of Mesopotamia and was across from this ancient city.
What was Mosul, located in Assur (Assyria), across from Nineveh?
400
These were three achievements of Arghun Khan's Jewish vizier.
What was establishing a fixed tax, not allowing special taxes, and opening diplomatic relations with Europe?
400
The highest literary achievement of the Persian Jews was this, particularly this kind of rendition of Torah and Tanakh.
What is poetry and the poetic paraphrasing of Torah and Tanakh?
400
This was a pattern that emerged with regard to the successive foreign invaders and these were three ways that these conquerors were affected.
What was conversion to Islam and the adoption of Persian clothing, Persian artistic and literary styles, Persian architecture, and the Persian language (only three of the latter required)?
500
This was the year the Mongols overthrew the Islamic caliphate in Persia, how many they killed, and what they called this new section of the Mongol empire.
What is the year 1258, 10-15 million dead, and an Il-Khanate?
500
According to the Itinerary, these were part of the church of St. John in Rome and were said to do this on this day.
What were two bronze columns from the Temple of Solomon that exuded moisture on the ninth of Av?
500
This was the Jewish vizier who converted to Islam, the name of the important history he wrote, and who that history was about.
Who was Rashid al-Din Hamadani and what was the Jami al-Tawarikh, which was about the invasion of Persia by the Mongols?
500
These were two of the surviving works of the Jewish Persian literature related to Torah and Tanakh (Esther and Mordecai was a third).
What were poetic versions of the story of the rebuilding of the Temple and Ezra and of Joseph and Potiphar's wife?
500
One successful reaction to the destruction and instability of this time was this, led by this man, whose descendants would go on to do this.
What was the establishment of a Sufi brotherhood led by Safi al-Din, whose descendants would found the next Persian dynasty?