NASWA - Human Geography - Culture of the Region Lesson

Human Geography - Culture of the Region

Religious Faith

After the fall of the Roman Empire, common bonds of religion and language were created for the people through the invasion of the Arabs, who introduced the Islamic faith. Centuries later, North Africa's primary connection with the Middle East and Central Asia is that it is a Muslim-dominated region with Arabic as its primary language. Islam acts as more than just a religion, providing structure and consistency in daily life. The holy cities of Mecca and Medina are in Saudi Arabia. Other holy cities for other divisions of Islam include Jerusalem and the two cities holy to Shia Muslims: Karbala and Najaf in Iraq. Although Islam dominates the realm, other religions have significant numbers of adherents in various parts of the region. Judaism, for example, is practiced in Israel and Christianity is common in places from Lebanon to Egypt. To a lesser extent, there are followers of the Baha'i faith and Zoroastrianism in the region. Since the principles of Islam are a continuation of Judaism and Christianity, the basics of all three monotheistic religions will be explored along with their similarities and differences. Although some of the basic information is listed below, this Abrahamic Religions chart Links to an external site. is a more comprehensive chart that should be reviewed.

The similarities include:

• A belief in a divine creator.
• The belief was that Abraham was the founding patriarch and that he had an agreement (covenant) with the divine creator.
• A belief that important messages came through prophets or holy messengers.
• Stories about creation, Adam and Eve, and the flood.

The differences include:

• Christianity is based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, who lived in Palestine in the first century CE.
• Islam is based on the teachings of Muhammad, a seventh-century religious and political figure who lived on the Arabian Peninsula.
• Muslims believe that Moses and Jesus were major prophets and that Muhammad was the greatest and final prophet.
• Jews and Christians do not believe Muhammad to be a prophet.
• Jews and Muslims do not believe Jesus was the son of God.

Religion is a part of the culture. The religions that emerged out of the Middle East absorbed many of the existing cultural traits, traditions, or habits of the people into their religious practices. Early Islam adapted many Arab cultural traits, styles of dress, foods, and the pilgrimage and folded them into its principles. Early Christianity and Judaism also adopted cultural traits, holidays, styles of dress, and cultural traditions.

Spatial Diffusion

The spread of Islam was accomplished through trade and conquest. Mecca was a center of trade. When camel caravans left Mecca, they carried Muhammad's teachings with them. Islam diffused from Mecca and spread throughout the Middle East and into Central Asia and North Africa. The geographic principle of spatial diffusion can be applied to any phenomenon, idea, disease, or concept that spreads through a population across space and through time. The spatial diffusion of Islam outward from Mecca was significant and predictable.

There are two main types of spatial diffusion: expansion diffusion and relocation diffusion. Expansion diffusion has two main subtypes: contagious diffusion and hierarchical diffusion. A religion can spread from individual to individual through contagious diffusion when religion starts at one point and propagates or expands outward from person to person or place to place in a pattern like the spreading of disease. Another way religion can spread through expansion diffusion is hierarchical, when rulers of a region convert to the religion and decree it as the official religion of their realm; the religion filters down the political chain of command and eventually reaches the masses. The second type of diffusion, relocation diffusion, takes place when the religion relocates to a new place from a central point. When Islam jumped from the Middle East to Indonesia, it diffused through relocation. Relocation diffusion also occurred when Islam spread to the United States.

The Five Pillars of Islam 

The basic tenets of the Five Pillars of Islam create the foundational structure of Islam. Prayer is an important part of the religion. A Muslim must offer prayers five times a day: before sunrise, at midday, at midafternoon, after sunset, and in the early evening. During prayer, Muslims face toward the compass direction of Mecca.

The Five Pillars of Islam can be translated as follows:

1. Express the basic creed (Shahadah).  Profess that there is no god, but Allah and his messenger and prophet is Muhammad.
2. Perform the prayers (Salat).  Pray five times a day.
3. Pay alms or give to charity (Zakat).  Share what you have with people who are less fortunate.
4. Fast (Sawm).  During the month of Ramadan, abstain from personal needs, drinking, and eating from dawn to dusk (as one's health permits).
5. Make the pilgrimage to Mecca (Hajj).  Conduct at least one pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca (if within one's capacity).

The Death of Muhammad

Muhammad died at the age of sixty-two, never claiming to be a god or anything other than a mere mortal. Since no provisions or instructions were made to continue Muhammad's work after he died, there was a division in the religion. One side thought his successor should be a blood relative. This division led to the Shia (or Shi'ite) branch of Islam. Others felt that the successor should be a worthy follower and did not need to be a blood relative. This branch became known as Sunni. Various smaller branches of Islam also exist, including Sufi, which approaches the Islamic faith from a more mystical and spiritual perspective.

Three Main Divisions of Islam with Approximate Percentages

In understanding the Middle East, it is most critical to understand the Sunni and Shia divisions of Islam. This divergence is part of the basis for the current civil unrest in Iraq. Sunni Muslims look to the family and community for direction; Sunni leaders are elected by the whole community.

Shia Muslims look to their imams for the official source of direction. Imams hold the religious and political leadership in the Shia faith. Through the right of divine appointment, Imams are considered by many in the Shia division to hold absolute spiritual authority. There are many subgroups or branches in each of the Islamic divisions.

Secular State versus Religious State 

Islam has a code of law called the Sharia criminal code. The Sharia dictates capital punishment for certain crimes. For example, if a person is caught stealing, his or her arm would be severed. For more serious offenses, he or she would be beheaded or stoned to death. Some countries use Sharia as the law of their country. Countries are called religious states (Islamic states in this case) when religious codes take precedence over civil law.

States in which people democratically vote on civil law based on the common agreement are called secular states. Whereas secular states attempt to separate religious issues and civil law, religious states attempt to combine the two.

The cultural forces of democratic reforms and Islamic fundamentalism have been pushing and pulling on the Islamic world. Democratic reformers push for a more open society with equality for women, social freedoms for the people, and democratically elected leaders in government. Islamic fundamentalists pull back toward a stricter following of Islamic teachings; they oppose what they consider the decadent and vulgar ways of Western society and wish to restrict the influence of liberal, nonreligious teaching. A rift between militant Islamic fundamentalists and moderate Islamic reformers is evident throughout the Muslim world. Militant leaders strive to uphold the Sharia criminal code as law. Moderate reformers work toward a civil law based on democratic consensus. The Muslim world will continue to confront such arguments over the future direction of Islam in a globalized economy.

 

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