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Islam in Africa

posted by soasstudent During the lifetime of Prophet Muhammad (saw) a group of Muslims escaped Meccan persecution (615) by fleeing to Ethiopia, where the Negus gave them protection. The spread of Islam in Africa began in the 7th and 8th cent. with the Umayyads, who brought the religion to the Middle East and to the littoral of North Africa. Along the coast of Africa Islam spread among the Berbers, who joined the Muslim community and almost immediately drove north across the Mediterranean into Europe. In Morocco, Muslims founded the city of Fès (808), which soon thereafter gave refuge to Andalusian Muslims fleeing an uprising in Córdoba (see Idrisids). On the east coast of Africa, where Arab mariners had for many years journeyed to trade, Arabs founded permanent colonies on the offshore islands, especially on Zanzibar, in the 9th and 10th cent. From there Arab trade routes into the interior of Africa helped the slow acceptance of Islam and led to the development of Swahili culture and language.Prior to the 19th cent. the greatest gains made by Islam were in the lands immediately south of the Sahara. The Islamization of W Africa began when the ancient kingdom of Ghana (c.990) extended itself into the Sahara and the Islamic center at Sanhajah. Mansa Musa (1307--32) of Mali was among the first to make Islam the state religion. By the 16th cent. the empire of Mali and its successor-state Songhaj included several Saharan centers of trade and Muslim learning, such as Timbuktu. In the region of the E Sudan, Islamic penetration followed the route of the Nile. By about 1366, Makurra, the more northerly of the two Christian kingdoms of the E Sudan, became Islamic. The other kingdom, Aloa, was captured (c.1504) by the Muslims.In the 16th cent. the Somali conqueror Ahmad Gran unsuccessfully attempted to convert Ethiopia to Islam. In the late 18th and early 19th cent., Africa, like the rest of the Muslim world, was swept by a wave of religious reform. Militant reformers, such as the Fulani and the followers of Hajj Omar, greatly extended the area over which Islam held sway in W Africa. Usumanu dan Fodio (1809) founded the Sokoto caliphate, which was eventually incorporated under British rule into Nigeria.The famous Arab historian Ibn Khaldun says that the name Ifriqiya was given after Ifriqos bin Qais bin Saifi, one of the Kings of Yemen. To Al-Bakri, the boundries of Ifriqiya were Barga on the East and Tangier on the West, which means that in addition to the Africa proper of the Romans, it included Tripolitania, Numidia and Mauritania. Today, by the use of the word Ifiriqiya or Africa, the Arabs as well as non-Arabs mean the entire continent of Africa which includes North Africa (including the Maghrib), East Africa, West Africa, Central Africa, and South Africa. It was significant that the first shelter of early Muslims was in Africa (Abyssinia, 615 CE). By the time Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) began his mission, the Egyptians and Syrians had partially severed their activelink with the Roman Empire.The true factor of Islamization lies in the religion of Islam itself. Every Muslim has been asked to carry the message of the Prophet to others. The Prophetic Tradition says: "Preach even if it may be one verse." Wherever the Muslims went, they took their religion and culture with them. The Arabic language formed almost a part of their religion, as the Qur'an was in Arabic. There were long-distance trade routes, running from North to South. The Arab traders and business men and some quiet missionaries, who had dedicated their lives to the cause of Islam, carried the message of Islam wherever they travelled. It is also true that wherever the Muslim conquests took place a large number of Muslims chose to settle down in newer places. The period between 660-670 C.E., was remarkable for the expansion of Islam further into Africa along the Mediterranean coast. Morocco came under Islamic influence in the 8th century and the Berbers began to join the Muslim armies. Islam spread in North Africa with remarkable speed, and by the year 732 C.E., which marked the first centennial of Muhammed's death, his followers were the masters of an empire greater than that of Rome at its Zenith, an empire extending from the Bay of Biscay to the Indus and the confines of China and from the Aral Sea to the lower contracts of the Nile. The name of the Prophet, as Messenger of God along with the name of God [Allah] was being called out five times a day from thousands of minarets scattered all over North Africa, South-Western Europe, and Western and Central Asia.Islam is the largest religion in Africa with about 45 % of the population being Muslims, in contrast to 40 % being Christians and less than 15 % being non-religious or adherents of African traditional religions. Islam is still increasing in Africa as many Africans Bantu speakers embrace Islam especially in the central and eastern part of Africa.

Author: euraktiva
Keywords: islam africa
Added: September 5, 2008

alisha's attic - Alisha Rules The World - One Shot 1996

download free at http://www.YoutubePromo.com for more music from alisha's attic - Alisha Rules The World - One Shot 1996

Author: annnxoi
Keywords: alisha's attic Alisha Rules The World One Shot 1996
Added: September 5, 2008

the rules of skateboarding

just in case you don't know how to skate we thought we should tell you

Author: NuttiProduction
Keywords: short film sketch funny the rules of skateboarding nuttiproduction nick simon
Added: September 5, 2008

No Immunity for Bush Aides - Judge Rules

http://No_Immunity_for_Bush_Aides_-_Judge_Rules.kw.groks-this.info - No Immunity for Bush Aides - Judge Rules -

Author: lucyWatson973
Keywords:
Added: September 5, 2008

No Immunity for Bush Aides - Judge Rules

http://No_Immunity_for_Bush_Aides_-_Judge_Rules.kw.groks-this.info - No Immunity for Bush Aides - Judge Rules -

Author: lucyWatson973
Keywords:
Added: September 5, 2008

No Immunity for Bush Aides - Judge Rules

http://No_Immunity_for_Bush_Aides_-_Judge_Rules.kw.groks-this.info - No Immunity for Bush Aides - Judge Rules -

Author: lucyWatson973
Keywords:
Added: September 5, 2008

No Immunity for Bush Aides - Judge Rules

http://No_Immunity_for_Bush_Aides_-_Judge_Rules.kw.groks-this.info - No Immunity for Bush Aides - Judge Rules -

Author: lucyWatson973
Keywords:
Added: September 5, 2008

Telecom Reporting Rule May Be Eased
Phone giants AT&T, Verizon Communications and Qwest today are expected to win approval to report less information to the Federal Communications Commission on such matters as consumer complaints and infrastructure investments.
http://digg.com/tech_news/Telecom_Reporting_Rule_May_Be_Eased

How to Create Relevant Classroom Rules
Students who have a hand in creating the classroom rules are more likely to remember and observe them. It is important for classroom rules to be as few in number as possible. Rules should exist for the smooth running of the classroom rather than tradition and they should be instructive rather than punitive.
http://digg.com/educational/How_to_Create_Relevant_Classroom_Rules

The 2008 Way To Get Your Blog Noticed
Rules change with the times, and that includes ways of attracting readers to your blog.
http://digg.com/arts_culture/The_2008_Way_To_Get_Your_Blog_Noticed

Choose the perfect tie!!!
With a wide variety of choices available, it can be tricky to pick out the perfect tie to go with the rest of your attire. Here are a few rules that can help you decide which tie to choose.
http://digg.com/arts_culture/Choose_the_perfect_tie

The Middleman Praised for its Portrayal of Women [TV]
...on NPR's "all things considered," the middleman was not only cited as one of the few shows on television that adheres to "the bechdel rule" but also as THE show that got them talking about the bechdel rule as an indicator of a tv show's quality!
http://digg.com/television/The_Middleman_Praised_for_its_Portrayal_of_Women_TV

FCC exempts small cable operators from HD must-carry rule
The cable industry is cheering an FCC order exempting smaller operators from HD must carry rules. The question of Class A TV must carry still looms.
http://digg.com/tech_news/FCC_exempts_small_cable_operators_from_HD_must_carry_rule_2

FCC exempts small cable operators from HD must-carry rule
Smaller cable companies have won a big victory from the Federal Communications Commission, which ruled that they don't have to carry high definition versions of broadcast signals until February 17, 2012—three years after the digital TV (DTV) transition.
http://digg.com/tech_news/FCC_exempts_small_cable_operators_from_HD_must_carry_rule

Employee has no privacy on company computers, US court rules
Employees do not have a reasonable expectation of privacy for material stored on computers owned by their employers, a US court has ruled.The New Jersey court said that files on a work-owned computer can be accessed and searched if the company gives permission, even if the user does not...
http://digg.com/business_finance/Employee_has_no_privacy_on_company_computers_US_court_rules

Rules for Going Global change: do it from the begining
For small business entrepreneurs, it is no longer enough to have an Internet presence as a globalization strategy. Physical presence around the world is what will give them the lead; and, it is possible...
http://digg.com/business_finance/Rules_for_Going_Global_change_do_it_from_the_begining

Depths of Peril rpg strategy game
Depths of Peril - protect your barbarian city from rampaging monsters while competing with rival factions to see who will rule the city in Depths of Peril! Between battles and raids, build the most powerful faction possible, to withstand your enemies.
http://digg.com/pc_games/Depths_of_Peril_rpg_strategy_game