World History, Unit 2
Module 1, Lesson 1: Basic Beliefs of Islam
Document A: Overview of the History and Teachings of Islam
Islam is the third of the major monotheistic faiths, meaning those whose followers believe in One
God. Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all trace their origins to the teachings of prophets, or
messengers, who received revelations passed down as holy scriptures. Followers believe that
these scriptures are the word of God, or inspired by God.
Based on the teachings of the Qur’an, the holy scripture of Islam, Muslims trace the origins of
their faith to the first prophet, Adam, to whom God revealed Himself. The Qur’an teaches that
God repeatedly sent prophets to humankind with the same basic message of belief in One God
and of the necessity to worship and act according to strong moral standards. The prophets and
their scriptures are recognized by Muslims as having the same divine source, so the major
biblical prophets Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus, as well as lesser known prophets, are
honored in Islam. This religion teaches that earlier scriptures were sometimes lost or altered, or
were superseded by later revelation.
Therefore, Muhammad, the final prophet, completed God’s message to humankind.
The word Islam means “peace through submission to God.” A Muslim is “one who seeks peace
through submission to God,” that is, a follower of Islam. The Qur’an teaches that all prophets
were Muslim in the sense that they were models of submission to God and seekers of truth.
Muslim practice is defined by the Qur’an and also by the Sunna, which is the example of
thinking and living set by the Prophet Muhammad and transmitted through the Hadith, his
recorded words and deeds. The Islamic requirements of worship are set down in the Five Pillars.
These are:
 To testify to belief in One God and the prophethood of Muhammad.
 To pray five obligatory prayers each day.
 To fast from dawn to sunset annually during the month of Ramadan,
 To pay annual obligatory charity,
 To make the pilgrimage to the city of Mecca (Makkah) at least once in a lifetime.
Islamic teachings also lay out a way of life based on moral values and commandments for just
relations among human beings in the community and the world. Islamic law, or shari’a, is a
system of interpretation of the Qur’an and Sunna based on scholars’ study of the Islamic sources
and related disciplines, including logic and Arabic grammar.
Historically, the origin of Islam is the revelation received by Prophet Muhammad, a man born
about 570 CE in the city of Mecca, a caravan stop on a trade route that ran along the western side
of the Arabian Peninsula between Yemen and the Mediterranean region. Mecca was also the site
of an important house of worship called the Ka’bah, which the Arabs associated with the Prophet
Abraham (Ibrahim) and his son Ishmael (Ismail).
Muhammad was born into the ruling tribe of Mecca. The tribe was the caretaker of the Ka’bah
and leaders in the regional caravan trade. Orphaned at an early age, Muhammad spent his youth
in the care of his socially prominent grandfather and uncle. He worked as a caravan trader, which
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World History, Unit 2
led to his marriage to the wealthy widow Khadijah. He was known for wisdom and honesty. At
about the age of forty, after years of spiritual searching and meditation, he reported receiving a
revelation through the Angel Gabriel in a mountain cave outside the city. These revelations
continued for the following twenty-three years, between about 610 and 622 CE.
The revelations were transmitted by Muhammad to his followers in Arabic, and they were
memorized and committed to writing during his lifetime. These words were known as the
Qur’an. Muslims believe this text to be the direct word of God, whose name in Arabic is Allah.
Soon after Muhammad’s special revelations started, he began to carry out the duties of
prophethood, preaching first to members of his family, then to members of his tribe, and finally
beyond Mecca. While a few members of his immediate family and others in Mecca accepted his
prophethood and its teachings, the leaders of his tribe rejected it. They tried to turn him away
from preaching by persuasion and coercion. Finally, with the number of Muslims growing, and
the message reaching beyond Mecca, Muhammad and his followers fled to the city of Yathrib
which is north of Mecca, where the residents offered them protection. The people of Yathrib
agreed to Muhammad’s leadership of the city, and renamed it Madina “City of the Prophet”.
Muhammad’s migration to Madina is called the Hijrah, and marks the beginning of the Islamic
calendar. The Hijrah of year one occurred in 622 CE (Common Era).
Following Muhammad’s death in 632 CE, the Muslim community became well established in the
Arabian Peninsula. Muslims represented a growing political, military, and religious force in the
region. During the centuries following the rise of Islam and the expansion of the Muslim state,
the religion spread among the populations of Muslim-ruled territories in Afroeurasia. The growth
of cities was both a cause and an effect of the spread of Islam and of economic growth in
Muslim-ruled areas. Cultural developments in literature, arts, sciences, manufacturing, and trade
accompanied the spread of Islam and its influence on religious, intellectual, economic, and
political life in a large part of Afroeurasia. By 1500, Islam had spread to West and East Africa, to
western and coastal China, and to India and parts of Southeast Asia. It was also advancing in
southeastern Europe and experiencing permanent loss of territory only in the Iberian Peninsula
owing to the conquests of Christian Spanish and Portuguese.
Adapted from Cohen, Sharon and Susan Douglas. Big Ear 5: Panorama Unit, Patterns of Interregional Unity.
World History for Us All. 18-20. <http://worldhistoryforusall.sdsu.edu>
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World History, Unit 2
NAME: ______________________________ PERIOD: ________ DATE: _______________
Module 1, Lesson 1: Basic Beliefs of Islam
Student Handout #1: Overview of the History and Teachings of Islam
1. What are the major beliefs of Islam?
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2. Why might these beliefs (or pillars) of Islam be important to Muslims? Provide an example.
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3. What is the origin of Islam?
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4. Describe the geographic spread of Islam.
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5. Describe the cultural impact of Islam.
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World History, Unit 2
Module 1, Lesson 1: Basic Beliefs of Islam
Teacher’s Copy Student Handout #1: Overview of the History and
Teachings of Islam
1. What are the major beliefs of Islam?
Islamic faith requirements are set down in the Five Pillars –
Belief in one God and Muhammad is his prophet
Say five prayers each day
Fast during the month of Ramadan
Give to charity
Make a pilgrimage to Mecca
Islamic teachings lay out a way of life based on certain moral values
Islamic law is based on the interpretation of the Qur’an
2. Why might these beliefs (or pillars) of Islam be important to Muslims? Provide an example.
There are a number of possible answers to this question. An overarching answer that is
true for all is to remind followers of their devotion to God and his prophet Mohammad.
3. What is the origin of Islam?
The origin of Islam is the revelation received by the prophet Muhammad in the city of
Mecca on the Arabian Peninsula in 570 CE
4. Describe the geographic spread of Islam.
Muhammad began his preaching in Mecca and surrounding areas in Arabia. After
Muhammad’s death, his teachings spread across the region from North Africa to Inner
Eurasia.
By 1500 Islam had spread to West and East Africa, to western and coastal China, and to
India and parts of Southeast Asia. It also made it to southeastern Europe and Spain and
Portugal on the Iberian Peninsula.
5. Describe the cultural impact of Islam.
Cultural developments in literature, arts, sciences, manufacturing, and trade
accompanied the spread of Islam and it influenced religion, intellectual, economic, and
political life in a large part of the Afroeurasia.
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World History, Unit 2
Module 1: DETAILED LESSON PLANS
Lesson 2: The Rise of Early Modern Muslim Empires
Warm Up:
1. Begin by finding out what students know or assume about empires. Ask them: What are
some features of an empire? Chart students’ answers.
2. Follow up with the following question: In your opinion which of these features is absolutely
necessary to maintain the empire? Why?
3. Refer to the map on p. A26-A27 (Ottoman, Safavid, and Mudhal Empires in the 16th and
17th centuries) of Modern World History. Using the map as a point of discussion ask the
following:

Where did the Ottoman Empire begin? Why do you think it began there?

Based on the information on this map, what aspect of geography helped the Ottoman
Empire expand during the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries? (NOTE: Teacher’s may wish to
compare this map to the physical map on p. A4-A5 or other physical map of the region.)

Based on the map, what factors may have prevented the Ottoman Empire from getting
even larger?
Teacher Model:
4. Explain to students that over the next couple of days they will be exploring three modern
empires, all of which were Muslim empires that began and flourished in Western and
Southern Asia.
5. Begin this exploration by distributing Student Handout #1 (Map of Afroeurasia). Let students
know that throughout this unit they will be creating a map/timeline that plots out the different
empires they will be studying.

For this map, the students will need the following materials:

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Color pencils
The map should show the following:

Key of the empires (i.e. green=East Asian empires or green=Ming Dynasty,
Orange=Qing Dynasty)

Dates of rise and fall of the empire

Geographic boundaries at the height of the empire
NOTE: The goal of this exercise is to provide context to the students that there were
several empires that either were in existence at the start of the early modern period or
came into being during the first couple of hundred years of the early modern period.
Make a point of asking students where these empires are located to reinforce geography
skills.
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World History, Unit 2
6. Distribute Student Handout #2 and ask students to open their textbook to p.73. Have students
read the first few paragraphs and model for students how they should respond to the guided
questions on the graphic organizer. Chart students’ answers as you go along.

For struggling readers, consider reading the passages aloud. Have students create a list of
terms/phrases that are not clear. Work as a large group to define these items so students
are more confident in responding to the questions.

For more advanced readers, have them read the passage on their own and then responding
to the guided questions. You may also choose to allow them to work on these passages on
their own and then reconvene as a large group to discuss the answers to the guided
questions.
Group/Individual Work:
7. Break students up into pairs to work on the section on the Safavid Empire (the second
column on the graphic organizer).

For struggling readers consider placing them in groups of three to work on this section.
Use the same method as previously for identifying unclear terms to assist students in
comprehension.
8. Students should complete the final column on the Mughal Empire for homework.
9. Review students’ answers for the Safiavid and Mughal Empires.
Summing Up:
10. Using the final two questions on the graphic organizers, have students do a quick write in
answering the two questions. Have students share out their answers.
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World History, Unit 2
NAME: ______________________________ PERIOD: ________ DATE: _______________
Unit 2: Map of Afroeurasian Empires
Student Handout #1
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World History, Unit 2
NAME: ______________________________ PERIOD: ________ DATE: _______________
p. 1 of 4
Module 1, Lessons 2: The Rise of Early Modern Muslim Empires
Student Handout #2: Guided Questions
The Ottoman Empire
(1300-1918)
pp. 73 – 77
The Safavid Empire in Persia
(1499-1747)
pp. 79 – 81
Who were some of the early
leaders of this empire and
what were they known for?
How did they expand their
empire? What technology
and methods did they use?
What was the center
(geographically, politically)
of the empire and why?
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The Mughal Empire in India
(1494-1661)
pp. 82 – 87
World History, Unit 2
The Ottoman Empire
(1300-1918)
pp. 73 – 77
The Safavid Empire in Persia
(1499-1747)
pp. 79 – 81
How did they treat the
people they conquered/
absorbed into their empire?
What evidence is there of
cultural blending, or cultural
diffusion?
How did they finance their
empire? What role did trade
play in the rise of this
empire?
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The Mughal Empire in India
(1494-1661)
pp. 82 – 87
World History, Unit 2
The Ottoman Empire
(1300-1918)
pp. 73 – 77
The Safavid Empire in Persia
(1499-1747)
pp. 79 – 81
Who did they fight in war?
What were they fighting over
and why?
What led to the decline
and/or fall of this empire?
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The Mughal Empire in India
(1494-1661)
pp. 82 – 87
World History, Unit 2
The Ottoman Empire
(1300-1918)
pp. 73 – 77
The Safavid Empire in Persia
(1499-1747)
pp. 79 – 81
The Mughal Empire in India
(1494-1661)
pp. 82 – 87
Of all the leaders of this
empire, who do you think
was the greatest leader? List
three to five (3-5)
achievements. Why you
think they were
achievements?
Summing Up:
What features did these empires share? Provide at least three similarities ________________________________________________
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How were these empires different from one another? ________________________________________________________________
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World History, Unit 2
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