Caliphate :

Caliph : Supreme religious head of all Muslims

First 4 caliphs : Abu Bakr, Umar, Usman, Ali
These Caliphs were the heads of Islam & also Islamic state .
Caliph Harun-ul-Rashid : Glorious period development in science & literature, economically strong hero of book
Arabian Night.

Expansion of Arab Empire :

Prophet Mohammed, united Arabia into a state by spreading the principles Of Islam

632AD : Abu Bakr become first Caliph he conquered parts of Syria from Byzantine empire

Umar conquered Iran Iraqs Egypt & rest of Syria.

Arab empire expanded up to North Africa, West Asia & Spain.

Umayyad Dynasty : Arab empire expanded up to Samarkand (east) & Sindh (South)

Abbasids Dynasty : Shifted capital from Damascus to Baghdad.

Arab empire began to Degenerate with rise of Junks in 1258 AD

Arab Influence reached India in 8
th
Century AD.

Turkish Tribes accepted Islam religion.

Art & Architecture :
Built new highways .
Repaired trade routes of Romans.
Built canals for irrigation .
Features of Arab architecture : semi-circular arch dome, tall minarets, filigree work beautifully carved designs.
e.g. mosque at Mecca, Medina, Jerusalem, Cairo, Cordova & Samarkand.
=> Palaces @ Damascus Bagdad Istanbul, Built in white marbles
=> Gardens
Cultural Life:
Greek & Roman cultures (Europe), And Persian & Indian cultures (Asia), Had an influence over Arab culture.
Religious Centres : Mecca, Medina, Jerusalem.
Trade Centres : Bagdad, Bukhara, Damascus, Samarkand.
Educational Centers : Cordova, Lisbon

Contribution of Arabs :

Arabs were expert in designing jewelry & metal urns.
Advanced in trade
Dominated trade of horse
Involved in silk business with china through silk route.
Introduced to Europe techniques of manufacturing paper, gun powder ,compass, porcelain .
Introduced new varieties of plants to Europe.
Arabs introduced fruits like orange, apricot, lemon, peaches & also flower to Europe.
Numerals & zero become known to Europeans trough Arabs.

Science & Literature
Bagdad : House of wisdom,
Huge library
Academy having a translational bureau .

Learning :
Al-Ajhar : Famous university at Cairo 12000 students
University of Cordova & Lisbon : Popular learning centres.
Qasida : new forms of poetry Hikayat.
Arabian nights : famous stories written during Arab rule.
Un-Rashid : great scholar
Sins /Aricenna : Prince of Arabian Scholarship.
Wrote books on medicines, philosophy, geometry, astronomy introduced ancient Greek philosophy to Arabs .
Omar Khayyam : famous poet
Ibn-khaldun : great philosopher & Spanish Arab Historian
Al-Beruni : Historian visited India in 10
th
century .
Tarikh-i-Hind : account of Indian philosophy.
Ibn- Batuta : Historian wrote safarnama also visited India.