Geography of Arabian Peninsula Map Activity Early Empire of Islam Islamic Empires Instructomania

instructor mania presents the geography of the Arabian Peninsula the medieval Islamic empire this video will detail geographic features of the Arabian Peninsula how geography shaped the lives of early Muslims and who lived on the Arabian Peninsula and what unified the early Islamic empire the word geography through historians lens means the physical environment and how it may influence an economy and culture some examples may include scorching deserts that encourage nomads to move between water sources islands where the surrounding ocean offered food source flooding rivers that created fertile farmland and mountains where resource like timber was used for building the geographic features of the Arabian Peninsula Muslims or followers of the religion of Islam originated on the Arabian Peninsula the peninsula is situated south of Europe southeast of the Black Sea and southwest of the Caspian Sea the Arabian Peninsula is flanked on the west by the Mediterranean Sea and separated from Egypt by the Red Sea water meant sustaining life for the nomadic tribes and desert oases cities of this dry land in the northeastern section of the peninsula the Euphrates River slices across both the Syrian desert and on the food desert just north of the Euphrates winds the Tigris River both rivers exist in modern Iraq and parts of Iran and both empty into the Persian Gulf the majority of the Arabian Peninsula makes up the modern-day country of Saudi Arabia two cities in Saudi Arabia hold great significance in Islamic traditions Mecca located in west central Saudi Arabia was the birthplace of the founder of Islam Muhammad many early Muslims including Muhammad migrated to the northern city of Medina in the six hundreds marking the start of the Islamic calendar the rub al-khali desert makes up over 250,000 square miles of southern Saudi Arabia it stretches along the Indian Ocean and juts out into the Gulf of Aden to the south and the Gulf of Oman to the east through military conquest the religion of Islam spread to empires in every direction including East to Asia and west through northern Africa all the way through Spain and parts of France in Europe test your knowledge let's play follow the Sheep in this game you will track the sheep as it appears on blank map of the Arabian Peninsula once the music stops you will use an Arabian Peninsula map labeled with physical features to determine where the sheep ended up other animals may appear on the map so don't forget to keep your eyes on the sheep so where did the Sheep end up was it the Gulf of Aden the rub al-khali desert or the city of Mecca that's right it was the city of Mecca let's try it again remember to keep your eyes on the sheep so where did the Sheep end up was it the Syrian desert the city of Medina or the Indian Ocean yep it was the Syrian desert let's try one last time you got this so where did the sheep end up was it the Euphrates River the Rubel collie desert or the Black Sea nice job it was the Black Sea did you know lamb and chicken are the most common meats eaten in Saudi Arabia today however Islam law dictates that Muslims can't eat certain foods such as the hindquarters of animals or pork they also can't eat food that isn't considered clean pure or properly prepared section two how did geography shape the lives of early Muslims as the Islamic empire grew Muslim traditions mingled with other cultures for example walled in stone courtyards made to keep sand and wind out were replaced with Airy elaborate palaces in the milder climates of the Mediterranean and Europe new cities sprang up along trade routes and water sources as the Islamic empire grew one such city Baghdad stands in the location of the ancient city of Babylon along the Tigris River though Muslim cities sprang up as result of the expanding Empire many Muslims still chose nomadic lifestyle as traveling traders and lived among hot deserts in cool Oasis where water was available perhaps the greatest way geography shaped the lives of Muslims had to do with religion the holy city of Mecca is the direction in which all Muslims face when they pray five times each day no matter where in the world they are Mecca is also the place Muslims are required to travel to at least once in their lifetime this is called their pilgrimage section three who lived on the arabian peninsula and what unified the early islamic empire before the birth of Mohammed the Arabian Peninsula was warlike with tribes of Arabs competing over resources tribes also worshipped different gods which created disjointed belief systems in the region after Muhammad lived the Arabian Peninsula was unified and primed for expansion Arab farmers increased agriculture around the Tigris and Euphrates rivers to feed growing population and economy fierce Muslim warriors banded together under the banner of Islam and conquered vast empire with camel and horse cavalry so as new territories were acquired the religion of Islam spread creating unity via common belief system throughout the Empire still since Christians and Jews shared many of the same prophets as Muslims these other monotheistic religions were often tolerated Arabs many of whom were Muslim were deep thinkers and philosophers Muslim merchants and scholars spread culture inventions and knowledge about medicine math and science all around the known world to maintain productive trade relationships and to govern their vast empire Muslims made Arabic the official language which unified the Empire under common language oral traditions gave way to literature and the creation of libraries later universities were built where Muslims could share their knowledge here's fun fact hunting was no longer necessary for Arab survival during the Middle Ages due to the increase in farming but Arabs turned hunting into sport using both falconry and horses check out what it really looks like on the Arabian Peninsula as you can see the physical environment of the Arabian Peninsula and medieval Islamic empire greatly influenced the economy and culture of the people who live there consider this in what ways does the physical environment influence your neighborhood be prepared to support your answers with examples from two teachers - all of you amazing teachers out there we would like to thank you for choosing our resources to use in your classroom find more instruct domain iya teaching materials and lessons at our instructor mania store and on our youtube channel thanks so much for your support