Submitted to: Sir Yaqoob

Submitted by: Mameeza Saeed

Aliza Yousaf

Roll no: MF-19139

MF-19132
Semester: BS English 6th B (Morning)

Course: Islamic History and Culture

Department: English

Topic: Islamic Culture and Civilization

 Islamic Culture

Culture

Culture can be defined as all the ways of life including arts, beliefs, and institutions of a
population that are passed down from generation to generation. Culture has been called "the way
of life for an entire society." As such, it includes codes of manners, dress, language, religion,
rituals, and art. For example, the culture of working long hours is one that most Americans ascribe
to but many other cultures do not (Fayzullayevich & Axtamovich, 2021). Culture is a strong part
of people's lives. It influences their views, their values, their humor, their hopes, their loyalties,
and their worries and fears. So, when you are working with people and building relationships with
them, it helps to have some perspective and understanding of their cultures.

Islamic Culture

Islamic culture and Muslim culture refer to cultural practices which are common to
historically Islamic people. The early forms of Muslim culture, from the Rashidun Caliphate to the
early Umayyad period and the early Abbasid period, were predominantly Arab, Byzantine,
Persian, and Levantine (Saydulloevich, 2022). With the rapid expansion of the Islamic empires,
Muslim culture has influenced and assimilated much from the Persian, Egyptian, North Caucasian,
Turkic, Mongol, Caucasian Indian, Bangladeshi, Pakistani, Malay, Somali, Berber, and
Indonesian, and Moro cultures. Islamic culture generally includes all of the practices which have
developed around the religion of Islam. There are variations in the application of Islamic beliefs
in different cultures and traditions

Religion

Muslims believe that the Creator of all mankind is one god (called ‘Allah’ in Arabic) and
that the God of all Abrahamic religions is the same God. Muslims believe Islam is the continuation
and culmination of Judaism and Christianity. Muslims are required to pray five times a day. Men
are encouraged to pray in the mosques instead of at home to strengthen community bonds, while
women are granted a special concession if they wish to pray at home due to their family
responsibilities. Depending on lifestyle and work schedules, many Muslims pray at home, in the
workplace, or during travel in the car, the train, or on an airplane whenever the time for either one
of the five daily prayers approaches. It is not uncommon for Muslims to keep a prayer mat in their
cars and simply stop anywhere at the time of prayer and spread it out on the ground, offering their
prayers toward the direction of Ka’ba, the center and starting point of Islam, in Mecca.

While reciting the prayer, full meditative concentration is required. Talking or paying
attention to surroundings is not permissible, except in emergencies. Old people or those in ill-
health may recite a prayer while sitting or lying in bed, as comfortable. Friday is a special day of
prayer when most Muslims prefer to go to the mosque (Ibtasam, et al., 2019). Inside the mosques,
since Muslims pray on rugs and prostrate before God, it is considered disrespectful to step on
prayer mats with shoes. In Western cultures where non-Muslim guests are invited for interfaith
gatherings, a complete wall-to-wall rug is spread over the prayer mats so that guests do not have
to take their shoes off. Inside homes, there is no specific designated place of worship, but prayer
mats may be spread in any room at the time of prayer.

Celebrations

The Islamic calendar is based on the lunar cycle, which is 11 days shorter than the Solar
calendar. Hence, Islamic holidays shift each year. Muslims believe the Quran was revealed to
Prophet Muhammad in the month of Ramadan, which is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar.
During fasting, Muslims refrain from consuming food and drinking liquids from dawn until sunset.
They are encouraged to practice reflection, forgiveness, and charity during this month, and
capitalize on it for the rest of the year. Eid-ul-Fitr marks the end of fasting. The greeting of “Eid
Mubarak” (Happy Eid) is used to wish Muslims well on this day. Eid al-Adha begins on the 10th
day of Dhu’l-Hijja, the 12th month of the Islamic calendar. Lasting for three days, it occurs at the
conclusion of the annual Haj, or pilgrimage to Mecca. Eid-ul-Adha is an occasion to commemorate
Abraham’s obedience to God. The Islamic New Year begins with the month of Muharram, 20 days
after Haj. Unlike most Western holidays, the welcoming of the new year is a quiet event marked
with prayer.

Dress

Islam encourages Muslims to dress modestly. Muslim women from diverse backgrounds
observe modesty in their way and that explains the variation in their dress codes across cultures.
Wearing the Hijab (head covering) is a mark of devotion and commitment to Faith. In some
countries, wearing the Hijab is obligatory, but in others (as in the United States) it is considered a
personal choice. It is not a symbol of repression and separation. In either case, it would be
disrespectful to criticize women for wearing it.

Way of Talking

Muslims are very particular about showing respect for elders. Many gestures that might
seem okay for young adults to indulge in are considered rude in the presence of elders, e.g., one
may beckon a peer with the index finger, but never an older person. Such expressions from small
children are not considered offensive. A certain amount of decorum is always expected, e.g.,
calling elders by their first name or their last name without the prefix of Mr., Mrs., or Miss is
considered very rude (Ibtasam, et al., 2019). it is best to start with more formality and let them
clarify how they want to be addressed. Second generations living in Western societies may be
more flexible on this. Standing up to greet guests, especially elders, opening doors for them, giving
one’s seat up for them, not interrupting, and maintaining a generally respectful demeanor towards
them is highly appreciated. Voicing open and strong opposition to the views of elders is perceived
as an insult. However, polite insertion of views is appreciated.

Language and literature

Arabic literature (Arabic: ‫ اﻷدب اﻟﻌﺮﺑﻲ‬/ ALA-LC: al-Adab al-'Arabī) is the writing,
both prose , and poetry, produced by writers in the Arabic language. The Arabic word used for
literature is "Adab", which is derived from a meaning of etiquette, and which implies politeness,
culture, and enrichment. Arabic literature emerged in the 5th century with only fragments of the
written language appearing before then. The Qur'an, widely regarded by people as the finest piece
of literature in the Arabic language, would have the greatest lasting effect on Arabic culture and
its literature. Arabic literature flourished during the Islamic Golden Age but has remained vibrant
to the present day, with poets and prose-writers across the Arab world, as well as the rest of the
world, achieving increasing success.

Persian

Persian literature comprises oral compositions and written texts in the Persian
language and it is one of the world's oldest literature. It spans over two-and-a-half millennia. Its
sources have been within Greater Iran including present-day Iran, Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan,
the Caucasus, and Turkey, regions of Central Asia (such as Tajikistan) ,and South Asia where
the Persian language has historically been either the native or official language. For
instance, Rumi, one of the best-loved Persian poets born in Balkh or Vakhsh wrote in Persian and
lived in Konya, then the capital of the Seljuks in Anatolia (Fayzullayevich & Axtamovich, 2021).
The Ghaznavids conquered large territories in Central and South Asia and adopted Persian as their
court language. There is thus Persian literature from Iran, Mesopotamia, Azerbaijan, the wider
Caucasus, Turkey, western parts of Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Tajikistan and , other parts of
Central Asia. Not all Persian literature is written in Persian, as some consider works written by
ethnic Persians in other languages, such as Greek and Arabic, to be included. At the same time,
not all literature written in Persian is written by ethnic Persians or Iranians, as Turkic, Caucasian,
and Indic poets and writers have also used the Persian language in the environment
of Persianate cultures.

Turkish

From the 11th century, there was a growing body of Islamic literature in the Turkic
languages. However, for centuries to come the official language in Turkish-speaking areas would
remain Persian. In Anatolia, with the advent of the Seljuks, the practice and usage of Persian in
the region would be strongly revived. A branch of the Seljuks, the Sultanate of Rum, took the
Persian language, art, and letters to Anatolia. They adoptedthe Persian language as the official
language of the empire. The Ottomans, which can "roughly" be seen as their eventual successors,
took this tradition over. Persian was the official court language of the empire, and for some time,
the official language of the empire, though the lingua franca amongst common people from the
15th/16th century would become Turkish as well as having laid an active "foundation" for the
Turkic language as early as the 4th century. After several centuries, Ottoman Turkish had
developed into a fully accepted language of literature, which was even able to satisfy the demands
of a scientific presentation. However, the number of Persian and Arabic loanwords contained in
those works increased at times up to 88%. However, Turkish has proclaimed the official language
of the Karamanids in the 17th century, though it didn't manage to become the official language in
a wider area or larger empire until the advent of the Ottomans. With the establishment of
the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman Turkish grew in importance in both poetry and prose becoming, by
the beginning of the 18th century, the official language of the Empire. Unlike India, where Persian
remained the official and principal literary language of both Muslim and Hindu states until the
19th century.

Art

Public Islamic art is traditionally non-representational, except for the widespread use of
plant forms, usually in varieties of the spiraling arabesque. These are often combined with Islamic
calligraphy, geometric patterns in styles that are typically found in a wide variety of media, from
small objects in ceramic or metalwork to large decorative schemes in tiling on the outside and
inside of large buildings, including mosques. However, there is a long tradition in Islamic art of
the depiction of human and animal figures, especially in painting and small
anonymous relief figures as part of a decorative scheme. Almost all Persian miniatures (as
opposed to decorative illuminations) include figures, often in large numbers, as do their
equivalents in Arab, Mughal, and Ottoman miniatures. But miniatures in books
or muraqqa albums were private works owned by the elite. Larger figures in monumental
sculpture are exceptionally rare until recent times, and portraiture showing realistic
representations of individuals (and animals) did not develop until the late 16th century in miniature
painting, especially Mughal miniatures. Manuscripts of the Qur'an and other sacred texts have
always been strictly kept free of such figures, but there is a long tradition of the depiction of
Muhammad and other religious figures in books of history and poetry; since the 20th century,
Muhammad has mostly been shown as though wearing a veil hiding his face, and many earlier
miniatures were overpainted to use this convention.

Calligraphy

Islamic calligraphy is the artistic practice of handwriting and calligraphy, based on

the alphabet in the lands sharing a common Islamic cultural heritage. It includes Arabic
Calligraphy, Ottoman, and Persian calligraphy. It is known in Arabic as khthatslami (‫)ﺧﻂ اﺳﻼﻣﻲ‬,
meaning Islamic line, design, or construction.

The development of Islamic calligraphy is strongly tied to the Qur'an; chapters and
excerpts from the Qur'an are a common and almost universal text upon which Islamic calligraphy
is based. However, Islamic calligraphy is not limited to strictly religious subjects, objects, or
spaces. Like all Islamic art, it encompasses a diverse array of works created in a wide variety of
contexts. The prevalence of calligraphy in Islamic art is not directly related to its non-figural
tradition; rather, it reflects the centrality of the notion of writing and written text in Islam.[23] It is
noteworthy, for instance, that the Prophet Muhammad is related to have said: "The first thing God
created was the pen. Islamic calligraphy developed from two major styles: Kufic and Naskh. There
are several variations of each, as well as regionally specific styles. Islamic calligraphy has also
been incorporated into modern art beginning with the post-colonial period in the Middle East, as
well as the more recent style of calligraffiti.

Comparison

If we compare our society so, people do not follow the Islamic culture. They make their
own rules and they do the opposite things and do not follow the holy book Quran and the guidelines
of the Holy prophet (PBUH). Because they face different problems in their lives.

Islamic civilization, history, Caliphas, and silent features

Introduction

Islam emerged as part of the history of monotheism and quickly formed the lasting basis
of a global community. This community was united less by political systems than by common
reference points and social networks (Renima, Tiliouine, & Estes, 2016). The reference points
include the Qur’an and the Sunna, which have spawned vastly diverse arts of interpretation and
traditions of learning. Within a short period of its inception Islam became the namesake of a world
civilization, with diverse social but intercommunicating intellectual traditions. In modern times,
Islam witnessed revival as a language of social integration and political participation.

Origin and Sources

As a faith system Islam is the most recent of the great world religions and forms an integral
part of the history of monotheism. As a social system Islam supplies, or is said to supply, a vast
body of rules regulating social relations of all kinds. These rules, along with the various
reformulations of the basic religious ideas of Islam, have offered Islam up as a namesake of social
integration. Thus, over fourteen centuries and on a world scale, Islam has provided various
societies, otherwise divided along the lines of class, ethnicity, tribe, clan, or race, with a common
platform upon which to negotiate and stabilize patterns of mutual coexistence.
 By Muhammad’s death in 632 C.E., Islam was already the dominant religion in Arabia. It
had displaced Arab polytheism, which was organized around the worship of tribally and locally
specific deities. In their place, Islam highlighted the idea of an exclusive monotheistic God, who
possessed an abstract character incomprehensible to humanity, and who was responsible for all
being and creation (Ibtasam, et al., 2019). In terms of social appeal, the idea of a monotheistic God
established Islam as the first genuinely trans-tribal community in Arabia, and the term umma was
later expanded to describe the global fellowship of all Muslims regardless of what else may divide
them.

Differences between culture and civilization

Culture Civilization
According to the anthropologist of 19th century A civilization can be formed up of different
the culture created itself prior and civilization cultures.
made afterward.
Culture can survive by itself. A civilization cannot be recognized as a
civilization in case it does not have a particular
or specific culture.
Culture exists in both substantial as well as Civilization is higher or less sustainable.
indefinite shapes
Culture can be acquired by the means of Civilization of any religion cannot be changes
speech and information from one era to effectively since of its complexity as well as
another dimension.
Culture cannot be assumed to be progressive Civilization is continuously in a state of
headway.

Islam and Social Integration

The fact that Islam had served from its early days as the namesake of an effort to establish
a universal community and thereby abolish conflict is evident in Muhammad’s own hijra, or
migration, to Medina, which signaled that one could sever seemingly inviolable ties—in this case
to his home town of Mecca and tribal fellowship with Quraysh—when such ties served only to
hide unjustified social inequality, divisions, and absence of real social solidarity. By contrast
Medina became the site of a new Muslim community, forged together by a number of hitherto
disparate and disconnected communities, and governed by its own trans-tribal constitution that
was derived from the evolving doctrines of Islam. It is for this reason that Muslims highly venerate
the hijra of Muhammad and his Meccan followers (al-Muhajir), and the Islamic calendar in fact
begins with that event rather than with Muhammad’s birth or first revelations. The centrality of
the notion of a universal community based on collective submission to a monotheistic God and
open to all is also evident in that Islam did not shy away from incorporating any previously existing
practice that promoted such a community. Thus, pilgrimage to Mecca, for example, which had
been a pre-Islamic pagan practice, was incorporated as an Islamic ritual—the main alteration being
the removal of the objects of polytheist worship from the haram (or sanctuary) of Mecca.

By Muhammad's time many Arabs were already familiar with the Abrahamic variety of
monotheism, and many had adopted Christianity and Judaism. Islam was formulated essentially as
a continuation of the Biblical tradition, so that divine revelation to humanity is understood as
historically evolving. That scheme allowed for the incorporation of the Biblical traditions into
Islam, but also posited Muhammad as the “seal of the prophets,” through whom divine revelation
to humanity reached its conclusion. Thus, all Biblical prophets are acknowledged in Islam, and in
the Qur'an their stories are mentioned as parables for the faithful—even though usually without
much detail, since the assumption is that the audience must be familiar with the story (Meri, 2018).
Along with Jesus and Moses, Abraham is given an Islamic character, and is credited with building
the haram of Mecca. While recognized as embodying earlier revelations by the same God, both
Judaism and Christianity seem lacking from an Islamic point of view, and in both cases largely
due to their failure to translate the idea of a monotheistic God into the social base of a meaningfully
united, egalitarian, and harmonious community. The fact that Jews remained an exclusive
community and that Christians became divided along deeply sectarian lines seemed to indicate
that the monotheistic ideal embodied in them lacked a socially open and integrative capacity. In
this case the fault was identified not in God but in humanity, whose errors in comprehending the
meaning of monotheism were corrected in the Islamic revelation.

Islam as Basis of a Universal Community

 The conquests allowed for a great deal of population movement. Muslim armies of
conquest did not return to Arabia, and after an early period of segregation Muslim soldiers began
to mix with the local populations in the conquered territories, many of whom, including especially
members of Christian sects persecuted under Byzantium, welcomed the Muslim conquests as
heralding a new and more tolerant era. For many non-Muslims that was indeed the outcome. Not
only could they now practice their religion more freely, but they could also maintain their property
and social status. Subsequently many local Jews and Christians entered the service of the
bureaucracy of the new Islamic state and held high positions without being required to convert to
Islam.

Salient features of Islamic civilization main characteristics

That distinguish Islamic civilization from other civilizations and give it a unique position
can be discerned as:

• It is based on the Islamic faith. It is monotheistic, based on the belief in the oneness of the
Almighty Allah, the Creator of this universe. It is characterized by submission to the will
God and service to humankind. It is a socio-moral and metaphysical view of the world,
which has indeed contributed immensely to the rise and richness of this civilization.
• It is a civilization with a universal dimension (Renima, Tiliouine, & Estes, 2016). It is not
associated with a particular geographic region, race or historical era. It is predicated on the
idea that man has precedence over the rest of the creatures of Allah. All human activities
should lead to the happiness and welfare of man. Any action intended to serve this goal is
a God-blessed action indeed.
• It is an open civilization and is not shy of deriving and drawing niceties of other
civilizations in the past, provided they do not run counter to the spirit of Islam.1 Islam is
the most pluralist religion; it coexists with other religions, allowing full religious
autonomy.
• It is a well-balanced civilization. It insists on equilibrium between the material and the
spiritual dimensions of life. In fact, this moderation is the essence of Islamic thought and
civilization. It permits of no excess, no neglect, no extremism and no recklessness—that
moderation is based on a “golden mean”.
 • It is a perennial civilization and will not last as long as Islam exists. So long as, it embodies
the very principles of Islam, the Almighty Allah will preserve. This unique civilization will
never wither away: since, it is not a national or a racial civilization, nor does it run counter
to human nature. In any case, Islam should not be identified with Muslims. Muslims may
become weak or strong but Islam would remain an everlasting guidance to humankind.

Period of Righteous Caliphs THE FIRST FOUR CALIPHS, who truly followed the
Quran and the Sunnah, are known as the ‘Rightly Guided Caliphs’. They are Abu Bakr, Omar,
Uthman and Ali. Main characteristics of their rule are:

• Assumed office only with the consent of the people and never imposed themselves through
force and fraud;
• Governed the people through ‘shura’ (consultation) and were not inclined toward tyranny,
oppression and dictatorship;
• State and its functionaries were committed to the establishment of a just moral order;
• Committed to the rule of law and the constitutional order. They publicly announced that so
long as they adhere to the Quran and the Sunnah expect the masses to assist them in the
conduct of the affairs of the state;
• Acknowledged that the community has a watch-dog role and if they somehow departed
from the Quran and the Sunnah, they would be straightened out by the community;
• Acknowledged supremacy of judiciary and took even their own cases to the courts for
adjudication;
• Honored sanctity of treasury and never used a single cent for the promotion of personal
cause; Dignity and divinity of man was taken as the foundational stones of the socio-
political and moral order

Conclusion

It is concluded that there are many aspects of the Islamic cultures and these are followed
by the Muslims. They believe one God and follow the all guidelines of Holy Prophet (PBUH).
Islamic civilization is superior to all other social systems.
References
Fayzullayevich, J. S., & Axtamovich, A. A. (2021). The historical fundaments of Islamic Culture
in Bukhara. . Central Asian Journal of Social Sciences and History.

Ibtasam, S., Razaq, L., Ayub, M., Webster, J. R., Ahmed, S. I., & Anderson, R. (2019). " My
cousin bought the phone for me. I never go to mobile shops." The Role of Family in
Women's Technological Inclusion in Islamic Culture. Proceedings of the ACM on Human-
Computer Interaction.

Meri, J. W. (2018). Medieval Islamic civilization: an encyclopedia. . Routledge.

Renima, A., Tiliouine, H., & Estes, R. J. (2016). The Islamic golden age: A story of the triumph
of the Islamic civilization. In The state of social progress of Islamic societies .

Saydulloevich, U. E. (2022). ISLAMIC CULTURE: THE ESSENCE AND WAYS TO

IMPROVE IT. Academicia Globe: Inderscience Research.