History of the Caliphates & Ancient Arab Kingdoms

OSH 197 / Non Credit
Course taught in: English
Locations: LFH 102
Instructor: Daniel Rivera

Course Description

This course explores in broad term the rich and vast history of the Arab people from pre-Islamic times to the fall of the Ottoman Empire. In this journey we will discuss the ancient Arab kingdoms that once ruled the Arabian Peninsula and we will look into how Islam created the conditions for a extraordinary expansion of the Arab civilization. We will also examine the evolution of the Caliphate system of government thoughtful the Middle Ages and Renaissance, and how western expansion and civilization led to the demise of the Ottoman Empire and the Caliphate system of government.    

Week 1

Politics, religion and trade in The Jahiliyya o Pre-Islamic times 

Week 2

The Al-Rassidun Caliphate and the expansion of Islam into the world 

Week 3

The Fitna, or civil war and the Umayyad Caliphate 

Week 4

The ‘Abbasi Revolution and the Crusades

Week 5

Other Caliphates: Al-Andalus in Iberia and the Fatimids in Egypt

Week 6

The Ottoman Caliphate and Western Colonialism    

Dr. Daniel Rivera is an accomplished multilingual professor and translator of Arabic/English/Spanish, has 13 years of academic teaching experience. He is an expert on international relations and Middle Eastern history and politics. He is a political analyst for America TeVe (Ch 41 and Radio Miami). He is an adjunct lecturer at the University of Miami. He holds a PhD in Arabic and Islamic Studies and a M.A. in International Relations and Diplomacy. 

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