Class Assignment for World History

2. The Caliphate was the empire built by the Abbasid Dynasty, and expanded by the Fatamids. It
lasted until the 13th century and was successful because it absorbed the cultures it conquered rather
than destroy them. Its state governments favored merit over heredity in positions of power—a
forerunner of modern government systems. It included lands from modern day Spain to India by
the year 750.
Visit the ancient capitals of Damascus and Baghdad!

3. Intellectual achievements during the Golden Age of Islam were many. In
science, they invented the Arabic numeral system that we use today. The Book of Optics
was the first ever science book, written by Alhazen—the first ever Scientist! Avicenna
wrote the first-ever medical textbook as well. Islam’s intellectuals contributed great works
of art and literature in this time as well.
The governments of the Golden Age greatly prized intellectual and scholars,
and gave them a lot of support and money. The governments also built many libraries.

4. Ancient Islamic Coin
Islamic Map of the World
(1154)
Economics
Economics in the Islamic
world were heavily reliant
on commerce. The people
used early versions of a
tool called a sextant to
navigate oceans and travel
to areas across the seas.

5. A Society Ahead of its Time
Islamic society during the Golden
Age made many improvements. They
improved the number of readers in their
society by improving printing. They mass
produced paper, and citizens could actually
write and sell books for a living.
Citizens had access to very
advanced healthcare and hospitals in that
time. Their society also saved and
translated many lost works from the ancient
Greeks and Romans.