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Teacher's Guide for CALLIOPE: Al-Ma'mun

Teacher Guide prepared by: Susan Douglass, teacher and teacher trainer, contributing writer for this issue.
Back issues of CALLIOPE® useful as classroom aids: Islamic Spain November / December 1995; Islam January / February 1997; Introduction to the Renaissance May / June 1994

VOCABULARY
Caliph - caliphate - succession - arbitration - caravanseries - hajj - hadith
mosque (masjid) - Renaissance - automata - suq - warraq - brocade - House of Wisdom

FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS

  1. How did the succession process and problems of the Abbasid caliphs differ from those of the first four caliphs in Muslim history, often called the "Rightly Guided Caliphs"?
  2. What forces caused the Abbasid Empire to break apart?
  3. Why did Muslim civilization continue after the breakup of the Muslim empire into many small states? What roles did merchants, ulama (Muslim scholars), writers and cities play in ensuring continuity?
  4. How might ordinary people have felt about the enormous wealth and lifestyles of the Abbasid rulers? Did they benefit from this wealth and power in any way?
  5. What made Baghdad an important city during the centuries of Abbasid rule, and what other cities in Asia, Africa and Europe were important during the same time period? Where were the largest cities located during the 9th - 14th centuries?
GEOGRAPHY
The Abbasid caliphs ruled from 750 CE to 1258 CE. What began as a large territory at the beginning of the Abbasid period gradually broke up into many smaller states that no longer took orders from Baghdad. Find maps that show the Abbasid Empire at different stages over time. Discuss which areas broke away first, and what patterns you can see in the breakup. [HINT: the Internet Islamic History Sourcebook includes a web page with map links.] Use these maps to trace trade routes that led from different regions of the Eastern Hemisphere to Baghdad. What products might have traveled over these routes? With which regional culture groups would Muslim merchants have come into contact? (i.e. Indians, Southeast Asians, Chinese, East and West Africans, Europeans, Russians, and others)

WOMEN IN HISTORY
Many women are mentioned and pictured in the al-Mamun issue. Have students search out as many references as they can find in all of the articles and have each student write a brief profile of one of these women. Share the descriptions with the class and follow with discussion.

The profiles should answer these questions:
  • What roles do these women play in society? Do they belong to the upper class or lower class?
  • What evidence of strength and leadership can they find in the women?
  • What contributions by women to Muslim society do the descriptions in these articles and features include?
RELIGION AND SOCIETY
Using the CALLIOPE back issue Islam or other resources, review or introduce the basic beliefs, practices and traditions in Islam, including the Five Pillars. Locate images and descriptions in the articles (both Islam and Al-Ma'mun) that show people carrying out these beliefs and practices, buildings where they were carried out, and objects related to these practices and traditions. Which images do not seem closely related to religious life?

CROSS-CULTURAL SCIENCE
Research the scientific and technological contributions of Muslim civilization to the fields of mathematics, astronomy, medicine, botany, geography / mapmaking, chemistry and other fields. Muslim discoveries built upon knowledge from many cultures. Identify some of these. How did the knowledge transferred to other cultures contribute to modern science and other areas of life? Find out how these scientists were helped by the patronage, or financial support, of Abbasid and other rulers. How do scientists get financial support in today's world?

ART
Have students view the calligraphy designs in the issue, or find additional examples of Arabic calligraphy in books. Students may design calligraphy using cursive writing, incorporating names, shapes from the natural world, or any other subject. The shapes may be related to the meaning of the words or simply form decorative patterns.
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