Deck 15: Islam

Question 1

What was the most likely cause of the economic crisis facing the Arabs at the time of Muhammad?

A)A lack of rainfall.
B)Overpopulation for the available resources.
C)A disease that ravaged the flocks.
D)A decline in gold supplies from Africa.
E)Too many invading armies.

Answer 1

Overpopulation for the available resources.

Question 2

According to Islam, the rules for righteous living included which of the following?

A)A hajj once every five years.
B)Dietary restrictions against meat.
C)Prayer ten times daily.
D)Giving help to the poor through alms.
E)A week of fasting each six months.

Answer 2

Giving help to the poor through alms.

Question 3

The merchants of Mecca profited a great deal from the thousands of religious pilgrims who came to the city each year. What prompted the pilgrims to visit Mecca?

A)The pilgrims came to hear Muhammad preach.
B)They came to worship clan idols at the Ka'ba.
C)The pilgrims were seeking new wives.
D)They came to visit Muhammad's grave.
E)It was a place to renew their commitment to Allah.

Answer 3

They came to worship clan idols at the Ka'ba.

Question 4

During the Umayyad Dynasty, conquered peoples were often converted to Islam if they

A)were among the majority of those who were peasants.
B)had some special wealth or prestige to bring into the Muslim community.
C)asked for conversion.
D)appeared to be at risk of rebelling against their oppressors otherwise.
E)lived in the cities and would have sufficient access to places of worship.

Question 5

Which of these statements is true of jihad ?

A)Jihad means to strive against the desire for worldly goods.
B)All Muslims are commanded by God to participate in jihads .
C)Participating in a jihad was one way for young men to attain adulthood.
D)A jihad always involved a military holy war.
E)Dying in a jihad assured one of an eternal reward.

Question 6

The Ka'ba was known best by Muhammad's time for its

A)healing properties.
B)representation of Allah.
C)animistic spiritual qualities.
D)beauty and grandeur.
E)beautiful artwork.

Question 7

Shi'ite Muslims insist that the only rightful caliphs are descendants of whom?

A)Omar.
B)Harun.
C)Abu Bakr.
D)Muhammad.
E)Muawiya.

Question 8

What would be the best description of the Umayyad leader Muawiya?

A)He was clearheaded and cautious.
B)He was an austere, quiet leader.
C)He was a capable statesman.
D)He was diligent but unimaginative.
E)He was adventurous and somewhat careless.

Question 9

After being introduced into places such as Syria and Lebanon, Islam quickly became the dominant religion there, often in response to

A)the sharp divisions within Christianity.
B)the exclusionary practices of the Jews.
C)major military assaults that were unrivaled in their viciousness.
D)the promise of economic success held out to those who converted peacefully.
E)the leadership of Abu Bakr.

Question 10

Who was the first caliph?

A)Abu Bakr.
B)Muhammad.
C)Omar.
D)Abbas.
E)Ali.

Question 11

Muhammad's death in 632 resulted in

A)persecution for his followers.
B)an uncertainty as to how to go about recording his verbal teachings.
C)a sharp division among the faithful as to how future leaders should be selected, and what their qualifications should be.
D)a great deal of concern among the faithful that God might no longer bless them.
E)the selection of Omar as the first caliph.

Question 12

Muhammad's preaching about women

A)taught that women and men were equal.
B)acknowledged certain basic rights for women.
C)rendered women legally powerless.
D)insisted on the wearing of veils.
E)implied that women were to serve their husbands at all times.

Question 13

Which of the following was not a reason for the success of Muhammad and his followers in spreading Islam?

A)The faith was simple to explain and to understand.
B)Believers were promised an eternal reward for their faithfulness.
C)Islam's moral and ethical code attracted many who disliked the dissension of Christianity and the complexities of Judaism.
D)The Five Pillars of Faith were easier to hold to than were the Ten Commandments.
E)The doctrine of salvation that Muhammad preached gave believers a single, living God who promised never to fail them.

Question 14

Why is 622 C.E. considered the first year of the Muslim calendar?

A)It is the year of the the birth of Muhammad.
B)It is the year of Muhammad's triumphant return to Mecca.
C)622 C.E. is the year in which Muhammad instituted the jihad .
D)It marks the death of the prophet Muhammad.
E)622 C.E. is the year of Muhammad's flight to Medina.

Question 15

As conquered subjects of the Muslims, local Christian and Jewish merchants and artists

A)paid extremely high taxes to the occupiers.
B)were, for the most part, able to carry on their daily lives much as they had before.
C)were excluded from the international trade networks.
D)received less business than did their Muslim neighbors.
E)were especially pressured to convert to Islam.

Question 16

The assassination of Ali, the Fourth Caliph, resulted in

A)the formation of the Abbasid Dynasty.
B)a civil war that lasted for one hundred years.
C)the establishment of a system for selecting caliphs that pleased both groups.
D)the establishment of the Umayyad Dynasty.
E)the capital city of Islam being moved back to Mecca from Medina.

Question 17

The umma

A)was a collection of Muhammad's writings.
B)was a set of law codes based on the Quran.
C)were Islamic leaders after Muhammad.
D)was a Muslim community founded by Muhammad.
E)was a single family unit.

Question 18

Regarding the issue of divorce, Muhammad

A)did not allow it.
B)required men to treat their former wives honorably.
C)placed all blame on women.
D)required that women give all gifts back to former husbands.
E)None of the options are correct.

Question 19

What is the literal meaning of the Arabic word "Islam"?

A)Submission.
B)Holy war.
C)Conversion.
D)Son of Allah.
E)Acceptance.

Question 20

Mecca in Muhammad's time could best be described as

A)a haven for thieves and lawbreakers.
B)a cosmopolitan center of trade.
C)one of the least religious cities in Arabia.
D)open to new religious views.
E)accepting of the new precepts of Islam.

Question 21

The caliph Uthman is known for

A)his bloodthirstiness in battle.
B)implementing the first jihad .
C)ordering a new, official version of the Qur'an.
D)establishing a new capital city at Baghdad.
E)founding the Abbasid Dynasty.

Question 22

When his life in Mecca was threatened in 622 C.E., Muhammad fled to the city of  ____________________.

Question 23

The main problem faced by the Abbasid Empire was

A)its inability to quell political unrest.
B)the failure to convert captured peoples to Islam.
C)a poor economy.
D)its size and diversity.
E)who should succeed to the position of caliph.

Question 24

Which group transformed Islam into a true world religion?

A)Shi'ites.
B)Abbasids.
C)Sufis.
D)Umayyads.
E)Qur'aish.

Question 25

In 733 C.E. where was the spread of the Islamic empire in western Europe halted?

A)Córdoba, Spain.
B)Lyons, France.
C)Madrid, Spain.
D)Cairo, Egypt.
E)Tours, France.

Question 26

The ____________________ dynasty turned away from an all-Arab elite within religion and government.

Question 27

Muhammad's religious awakening came

A)as a result of a childhood experience.
B)in his middle years, after a series of visions.
C)in response to the Christian conquest of Mecca.
D)after an encounter with a wandering holy man.
E)after his rejection of the Jewish faith.

Question 28

Generally, how did non-Muslims view their treatment under Islamic rule?

A)Their treatment was always harsh and oppressive.
B)It tended to be lax and inefficient.
C)The Muslims tended to be tolerant and flexible.
D)Muslims were usually bigoted and intolerant.
E)Treatment of non-Muslims was restrictive and upsetting.

Question 29

The Non-Muslims who were considered to be closer to an understanding of the truth and, therefore, more privileged, were known as ____________________, or ____________________ of the ____________________.

Question 30

Muhammad's son-in-law, the last "orthodox" caliph according to Shi'ites, was ____________________.

Question 31

Muhammad's teaching was written down after his death in the ____________________.

Question 32

The pagan Meccans laid great stress on the holy qualities of the ____________________ in Mecca.

Question 33

"There is one God (whom the Muslims call Allah), and Muhammad is His prophet" is the first of the ____________________.

Question 34

Which of the following is not one of the Five Pillars of Islam?

A)Frequent and regular prayer to Allah.
B)Fasting as prescribed times.
C)Almsgiving.
D)A pilgrimage to Mecca if one is able.
E)Taking up arms against the infidel.

Question 35

The supporters of Muawiya and the Ummayads developed into the ____________________ sect of Islam.

Question 36

The Pilgrimage to Mecca is referred to as the ____________________.

Question 37

Until 750 C.E., what was the social status and position of the Arab Bedouins?

A)Their status varied according to their wealth.
B)They were sometimes considered below the status of slaves.
C)Arab Bedouins were at the top of the pyramid.
D)It was above that of the dhimmis but below that of converts.
E)It was lower than that of the dhimmis.

Question 38

In which of the following areas was a relationship between Muslims and NonMuslims prohibited?

A)Business
B)Marriage
C)Government
D)Banking
E)None of the options are correct.

Question 39

In Islam, Muhammad is seen as the ultimate prophet of ____________________.

Question 40

Following the murder of Ali,

A)the Muslim world devolved into civil war.
B)the Abbasid Dynasty came to power.
C)the Kharijites came to power.
D)the Sunni sect lost some of its influence.
E)the Umayyad Dynasty was founded.

Question 41

Term for identification: jizya

Question 42

Term for identification: jihad

Question 43

Describe the world Muhammad lived in. Elaborate on how Arabia specifically shaped him and facilitated the rise of Islam.

Question 44

Explain the key issues surrounding leadership after the death of Muhammad.

Question 45

Define and elaborate on the main doctrines of Islam, examining its popularity and the overall religious context of the Middle East at that time.

Question 46

Term for identification: Five Pillars of Islam

Question 47

Term for identification: Abbasids

Question 48

Term for identification: Umar

Question 49

Discuss the major achievements and the shortcomings of the Abbasids.

Question 50

Term for identification: Bedouins

Question 51

Term for identification: Quraysh

Question 52

Term for identification: Muawiya

Question 53

Term for identification: Damascus

Question 54

Elaborate on the internal and external nature of the Jihad in the context of Arabia during this time.

Question 55

Term for identification: Abu Bakr

Question 56

Discuss life for the "People of the Book", or dhimmis, under the control of Muslims.