The Abbasid Dynasty
One thing that the Abbasid rulers did was to break the barrier between Arab and non-Arab Muslims. No matter what race they were, Muslims could now all be important in Islamic society. Intermarriage began, and soon Muslims were from all different cultures. Baghdad, which was established on the Tigris river, was the new capital of the Islamic world, built in 762. The city of Baghdad was along trade routes, and near a river, so it had many advantages. The Abbasids also began to change the look of the ideal citizen. As the best citizens were once warriors, they were now judges and officials; people with much political and social influence.
The rulers of the time were also exceptional, including one, Harun al-Rashid, who was able to help the Islamic world to reach its peak. He also had a son name al-Ma'mun, who loved the idea of studying and learning. He began to come up with a system to translate from Greek into Arabic, and he also established an astronomical observatory.
Economically, this was a prosperous time for Baghdad. Many of the old Roman regions were taken over, and trade routes were taken advantage of, pouring money into the economy.
With prosperity comes problems, and the Muslims were not short of them. There were fights over the caliphate. Many of these fights were detrimental to the society as a whole. The caliphs also appointed high positions under them, who soon began to turn their backs and break away from the main body to start their own dynasties. One of these such instances occurred when Abd al-Rahman went to Spain and began the emirate of al-Andalus, starting his own separate society. This society, however, did not require one to be of Muslim faith, and accepted much freedom of expression and speech, allowing creativity to abound.
Another example was with the Fatimid family, that, in 973, established their own dynasty in North Africa. Though much separation occurred, all Muslims had the Qur'an and the Arabic language to tie them together.
The rulers of the time were also exceptional, including one, Harun al-Rashid, who was able to help the Islamic world to reach its peak. He also had a son name al-Ma'mun, who loved the idea of studying and learning. He began to come up with a system to translate from Greek into Arabic, and he also established an astronomical observatory.
Economically, this was a prosperous time for Baghdad. Many of the old Roman regions were taken over, and trade routes were taken advantage of, pouring money into the economy.
With prosperity comes problems, and the Muslims were not short of them. There were fights over the caliphate. Many of these fights were detrimental to the society as a whole. The caliphs also appointed high positions under them, who soon began to turn their backs and break away from the main body to start their own dynasties. One of these such instances occurred when Abd al-Rahman went to Spain and began the emirate of al-Andalus, starting his own separate society. This society, however, did not require one to be of Muslim faith, and accepted much freedom of expression and speech, allowing creativity to abound.
Another example was with the Fatimid family, that, in 973, established their own dynasty in North Africa. Though much separation occurred, all Muslims had the Qur'an and the Arabic language to tie them together.