Muslim Empires

Kids explore the history of the Qur’an, Muslim’s holy book, and discover the foundations of Islamic law. Continuing to move through time, kids travel with Abu Bakr and other caliphs who consolidated and expanded the Muslim empire outside of Arabia. Visually oriented kids will want to pore over maps, including the one showing the reaches of the Ottoman Empire, a non-Arab Muslim group that built a powerful domain. Artists and future architects will enjoy the detailed images and analysis of the Blue Mosque in Istanbul.

Further illuminating the connection between past and present, kids explore an ancient disagreement about which group of Muslims can become caliphs, or successors to Mohammad. One group, the Shia, believed a caliph had to be related to Muhammad; the other group, the Sunni of the Ottoman Empire, did not. The conflict between these groups went on for more than a century. . . and into today. Kids with diverse interests will come to appreciate the contributions of the Muslim empires. Whether it’s the many observatories where people studied the sun, moon, and stars; the Arabic number system, which we use to this day; the world’s first pharmacy; or famous poets like Omar Khayyám, the Muslims of the ancient world were leaders.