The World of Islam
Q FOCUSQUESTION: What were the chief developments
in the Islamic world between 750 and 1000?The Umayyad Dynasty of caliphs had established
Damascus as the center of an Islamic empire created
by Arab expansion in the seventh and eighth centu-
ries. But Umayyad rule created resentment, and the
Umayyads’ corrupt behavior also helped bring about
their own end. One caliph, for example, supposedly
swam in a pool of wine and drank enough of it to
lower the wine level considerably. Finally, in 750,
Abu al-Abbas (uh-BOOL-uh-BUSS), a descendant of
the uncle of Muhammad, brought an end to theUmayyad Dynasty and established the Abbasid (uh-
BAH-sid orAB-uh-sid) Dynasty, which lasted until
1258.
The Abbasid rulers brought much change to the
world of Islam. They tried to break down the distinc-
tions between Arab and non-Arab Muslims. All Mus-
lims, regardless of ethnic background, could now hold
both civil and military offices. This helped open Islamic
life to the influences of the civilizations they had con-
quered. Many Arabs now began to intermarry with the
peoples they had conquered.
In 762, the Abbasids built a new capital city, Bagh-
dad, on the Tigris River far to the east of Damascus.
The new capital was well placed. It took advantage of
river traffic to the Persian Gulf and was located on theA Muslim’s Description of the Rus
Despite the difficulties that travel presented, some
contact among the various cultures did occur through
trade, diplomacy, and the conquest and migration of
peoples. This description of the Swedish Rus was
written by Ibn Fadlan, a Muslim diplomat sent from
Baghdad in 921 to a settlement on the Volga River. His
comments on the filthiness of the Rus reflect the Muslim
preoccupation with cleanliness.Ibn Fadlan,Description of the Rus
I saw the Rus folk when they arrived on their trading-
mission and settled at the river Atul (Volga). Never had
I seen people of more perfect physique. They are tall as
date-palms, and reddish in color. They wear neither
coat nor kaftan, but each man carried a cape which
covers one half of his body, leaving one hand free. No
one is ever parted from his axe, sword, and knife....
Each man has a number of trees, figures, and the like
from the fingernails to the neck. Each woman carried
on her bosom a container made of iron, silver, copper
or gold—its size and substance depending on her
man’s wealth....
They [the Rus] are the filthiest of God’s creatures.
They do not wash after discharging their natural
functions, neither do they wash their hands after
meals. They are as lousy as donkeys. They arrive from
their distant river, and there they build big houses onits shores. Ten or twenty of them may live together in
one house, and each of them has a couch of his own
where he sits and diverts himself with the pretty slave
girls whom he had brought along for sale. He will make
love with one of them while a comrade looks on;
sometimes they indulge in a communal orgy, and, if a
customer should turn up to buy a girl, the Rus man will
not let her go till he has finished with her.
They wash their hands and faces every day in
incredibly filthy water. Every morning the girl brings
her master a large bowl of water in which he washes
his hands and face and hair, then blows his nose into it
and spits into it. When he has finished the girl takes
the bowl to his neighbor—who repeats the
performance. Thus, the bowl goes the rounds of the
entire household....
If one of the Rus folk falls sick they put him in a
tent by himself and leave bread and water for him.
They do not visit him, however, or speak to him,
especially if he is a serf. Should he recover he rejoins
the others; if he dies they burn him. But if he happens
to be a serf they leave him for the dogs and vultures to
devour. If they catch a robber they hang him to a tree
until he is torn to threads by wind and weather.Q What was Ibn Fadlan’s impression of the Rus? Why
do you think he was so critical of their behavior?Source: FromThe Vikingsby Johannes Brïndsted, translated by Kalle Skov (Penguin Books, 1965), copyrightªJohannes Brïndsted, 1960, 1965. Reproduced by permission of Penguin Books Ltd.192 Chapter 8European Civilization in the Early Middle Ages, 750–1000Copyright 2017 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).
Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
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