Editing Abbasid Caliphate (section)

==Culture==

===Islamic Golden Age===
{{Main|Islamic Golden Age}}
{{Further |Early Islamic philosophy|List of inventions in the medieval Islamic world}}
[[File:Folio from the "Tashkent Qur'an" MET DP234018.jpg|thumb|Page from the "[[Samarkand Kufic Quran|Tashkent Qur'an]]", one of the oldest surviving Qur'an manuscripts, dating from the late 8th or early 9th century<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ekhtiar |first=Maryam D. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=r-RoDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA74 |title=How to Read Islamic Calligraphy |publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art |year=2018 |isbn=978-1-58839-630-3 |pages=76 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Folio from the "Tashkent Qur'an" |url=https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/454661 |access-date=4 March 2025 |website=The Metropolitan Museum of Art}}</ref>]]
The Abbasid historical period lasting to the [[Mongol conquest of Baghdad]] in 1258 CE is considered the Islamic Golden Age.<ref name="Tahir Abbas">{{harvnb|Abbas|2011|p=9}}</ref> The Islamic Golden Age was inaugurated by the middle of the 8th century by the ascension of the Abbasid [[Caliphate]] and the transfer of the capital from [[Damascus]] to Baghdad.<ref name="Vartan">{{harvnb|Gregorian|2003}}</ref> The Abbasids were influenced by the [[Qur'an]]ic injunctions and [[hadith]], such as "the ink of a scholar is more holy than the blood of a martyr", stressing the value of knowledge. During this period the Muslim world became an intellectual center for science, philosophy, medicine and education as<ref name="Vartan" /> the Abbasids championed the cause of knowledge and established the [[House of Wisdom]] in Baghdad, where both Muslim and non-Muslim scholars sought to translate and gather all the world's knowledge into [[Arabic language|Arabic]].<ref name="Vartan" /> Many classic works of antiquity that would otherwise have been lost were translated into Arabic and Persian and later in turn translated into Turkish, Hebrew and Latin.<ref name="Vartan" /> During this period the Muslim world was a cauldron of cultures which collected, synthesized and significantly advanced the knowledge gained from the [[Ancient Rome|Roman]], Chinese, [[History of India|Indian]], [[Sasanian Empire|Persian]], [[Ancient Egypt|Egyptian]], North African, [[Ancient Greece|Ancient Greek]] and [[Byzantine|Medieval Greek]] civilizations.<ref name="Vartan" /> According to Huff, "[i]n virtually every field of endeavor—in astronomy, alchemy, mathematics, medicine, optics and so forth—the Caliphate's scientists were in the forefront of scientific advance."<ref>{{harvnb|Huff|2003|p=48}}</ref>

===Literature===
{{Main|Islamic literature|Arabic literature|Arabic epic literature|Persian literature}}
{{Further |Islamic poetry|Arabic poetry|Turkish poetry|Persian poetry}}
[[File:More tales from the Arabian nights-14566176968.jpg|right|thumb|Illustration from ''More tales from the Arabian nights'' (1915)]]

The best-known fiction from the Islamic world is ''[[One Thousand and One Nights]]'', a collection of fantastical folk tales, legends and parables compiled primarily during the Abbasid era. The collection is recorded as having originated from an Arabic translation of a Sassanian-era Persian prototype, with likely origins in Indian literary traditions. Stories from [[Arabic literature|Arabic]], [[Persian literature|Persian]], Mesopotamian, and [[Egyptian literature|Egyptian]] folklore and literature were later incorporated. The epic is believed to have taken shape in the 10th century and reached its final form by the 14th century; the number and type of tales have varied from one manuscript to another.<ref name="arabianNights">{{Harvnb|Grant|Clute|1999|p=51}}.</ref> All Arabian [[fantasy]] tales were often called "Arabian Nights" when translated into English, regardless of whether they appeared in ''The Book of One Thousand and One Nights''.<ref name="arabianNights" /> This epic has been influential in the West since it was translated in the 18th century, first by [[Antoine Galland]].<ref>{{harvnb|de Camp|1976|p=10}}</ref> Many imitations were written, especially in France.<ref name="arabianNights2">{{harvnb|Grant|Clute|1999|p=52}}</ref> Various characters from this epic have themselves become cultural icons in Western culture, such as [[Aladdin]], [[Sinbad]] and [[Ali Baba]].

A famous example of Islamic poetry on [[romance (love)|romance]] was ''[[Layla and Majnun]]'', an originally [[Arabic]] story which was further developed by [[Iranian peoples|Iranian]], [[Azerbaijani people|Azerbaijani]] and other poets in the [[Persian language|Persian]], [[Azerbaijani language|Azerbaijani]], and [[Turkish language|Turkish]] languages.<ref>{{harvnb|Clinton|2000|pp=15–16}}</ref> It is a [[Tragedy|tragic]] story of undying love much like the later ''[[Romeo and Juliet]]''.{{citation needed|date=May 2015}}

Arabic poetry reached its greatest height in the Abbasid era, especially before the loss of central authority and the rise of the Persianate dynasties. Writers like [[Abu Tammam]] and [[Abu Nuwas]] were closely connected to the caliphal court in Baghdad during the early 9th century, while others such as [[al-Mutanabbi]] received their patronage from regional courts.

Under Harun al-Rashid, Baghdad was renowned for its bookstores, which proliferated after the making of paper was introduced. Chinese papermakers had been among those taken prisoner by the Arabs at the [[Battle of Talas]] in 751. As prisoners of war, they were dispatched to [[Samarkand]], where they helped set up the first Arab paper mill. In time, paper replaced parchment as the medium for writing, and the production of books greatly increased. These events had an academic and societal impact that could be broadly compared to the introduction of the [[printing press]] in the West. Paper aided in communication and record-keeping, it also brought a new sophistication and complexity to businesses, banking, and the civil service. In 794, [[Jafa al-Barmak]] built the first paper mill in Baghdad, and from there the technology circulated. Harun required that paper be employed in government dealings, since something recorded on paper could not easily be changed or removed, and eventually, an entire street in Baghdad's business district was dedicated to selling paper and books.{{sfn|Bobrick|2012|p=78}}

===Philosophy===
{{Main|Islamic philosophy|Early Islamic philosophy}}
{{Further |Logic in Islamic philosophy|Kalam|Avicennism|Averroism|Illuminationist philosophy|Transcendent Theosophy}}

One of the common definitions for "Islamic philosophy" is "the style of philosophy produced within the framework of Islamic culture".<ref name="RoutledgeEoP">{{harvnb|Leaman|1998}}</ref> Islamic philosophy, in this definition is neither necessarily concerned with religious issues, nor is exclusively produced by Muslims.<ref name="RoutledgeEoP" /> Their works on [[Aristotle]] were a key step in the transmission of learning from ancient Greeks to the Islamic world and the West. They often corrected the philosopher, encouraging a lively debate in the spirit of [[ijtihad]]. They also wrote influential original philosophical works, and their thinking was incorporated into [[Christian philosophy]] during the Middle Ages, notably by [[Thomas Aquinas]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Pasnau |first=Robert |date=2011 |title=The Islamic Scholar Who Gave Us Modern Philosophy |url=https://www.neh.gov/humanities/2011/novemberdecember/feature/the-islamic-scholar-who-gave-us-modern-philosophy |access-date=2020-02-03 |website=National Endowment for the Humanities |language=en}}</ref>

Three speculative thinkers, [[al-Kindi]], [[al-Farabi]], and [[Avicenna]], combined [[Aristotelianism]] and [[Neoplatonism]] with other ideas introduced through Islam, and [[Avicennism]] was later established as a result. Other influential Abbasid philosophers include [[al-Jahiz]], and [[Ibn al-Haytham]] (Alhacen).

===Architecture===
{{Main|Abbasid architecture}}
[[File:قصر العاشق مدينه سامراء.jpg|thumb|[[Qasr al-'Ashiq]] palace in [[Samarra]], built between 877 and 882 CE{{sfn|Bloom|Blair|2009|p=82|loc=Architecture; IV. c. 750–c. 900}}]]
As power shifted from the Umayyads to the Abbasids, the architectural styles changed also, from Greco-Roman tradition (which features elements of Hellenistic and Roman representative style) to Eastern tradition which retained their independent architectural traditions from [[Architecture of Mesopotamia|Mesopotamia]] and Persia.<ref name="Hoag_p7_9">{{Cite book |last=Hoag |first=John D. |title=Islamic Architecture |date=2004 |publisher=Electa Architecture |isbn=1-904313-29-9 |location=Milan |pages=7–9}}</ref> The [[Abbasid architecture]] was particularly influenced by [[Sasanian architecture]], which in turn featured elements present since ancient Mesopotamia.{{sfn|Petersen|1996|p=1}}<ref name=":2442">{{harvnb|Bloom|Blair|2009|loc=''Architecture (IV. c. 750–c. 900)''}}</ref> The Christian styles evolved into a style based more on the [[Sasanian Empire]], utilizing mud bricks and baked bricks with carved stucco.<ref name="wil">{{harvnb|Wilber|1969|p=5}}</ref> Other architectural innovations and styles were few, such as the [[four-centred arch|four-centered arch]], and a dome erected on [[squinch]]es. Unfortunately, much was lost due to the ephemeral nature of the stucco and luster tiles.<ref name="wil2" />

[[File:Baghdad-Zumurrud-Khaton.jpg|thumb|[[Zumurrud Khatun Mosque|Zumurrud Khatun Tomb]] (circa 1152),<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Ettinghausen |first1=Richard |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=l1uWZAzN_VcC&pg=PA216 |title=Islamic Art and Architecture: 650–1250 |last2=Grabar |first2=Oleg |last3=Jenkins-Madina |first3=Marilyn |publisher=Yale University Press |year=2001 |isbn=9780300088670 |edition=2nd |pages=216 |language=en}}</ref> in a cemetery at [[Baghdad]]]]
Another major development was the creation or vast enlargement of cities as they were turned into the capital of the empire, beginning with the creation of Baghdad in 762, which was planned as a walled city with four gates, and a mosque and palace in the center. Al-Mansur, who was responsible for the creation of Baghdad, also planned the city of [[Raqqa]], along the [[Euphrates]]. Finally, in 836, al-Mu'tasim moved the capital to a new site that he created along the Tigris, called Samarra. This city saw 60 years of work, with race-courses and game preserves to add to the atmosphere.<ref name=wil/> Due to the dry remote nature of the environment, some of the palaces built in this era were isolated havens. [[Al-Ukhaidir Fortress]] is a fine example of this type of building, which has stables, living quarters, and a mosque, all surrounding inner courtyards.<ref name=wil/> Mesopotamia only has one surviving mausoleum from this era, in Samarra:<ref name=wil2>{{harvnb|Wilber|1969|p=6}}</ref> an octagonal domed structure known as the ''Qubbat al-Sulaibiyya'', which is the first known monumental tomb in [[Islamic architecture]] and may be the final resting place of [[al-Muntasir]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Brend |first=Barbara |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ba3LyiGfPU8C&dq=dome+al-muntasir+mausoleum&pg=PA32 |title=Islamic Art |date=1991 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0-674-46866-5 |language=en |trans-title=32}}</ref>

Baghdad, the epicenter of the empire, was originally [[Round city of Baghdad|organized in a circular fashion]] next to the Tigris River, with massive brick walls being constructed in successive rings around the core by a workforce of 100,000 with four huge gates (named Kufa, Basra, Khurasan and Syria). The central enclosure of the city contained Mansur's palace of {{convert|360000|sqft|m2}} in area and the great mosque of Baghdad, encompassing {{convert|90000|sqft|m2}}. Travel across the Tigris and the network of waterways allowing the drainage of the Euphrates into the Tigris was facilitated by bridges and canals servicing the population.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Marozzi|first=Justin|url=https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2016/mar/16/story-cities-day-3-baghdad-iraq-world-civilisation|title=Story of cities #3: the birth of Baghdad was a landmark for world civilisation|date=2016-03-16|work=The Guardian|access-date=2020-03-27|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

Outside the Abbasid heartlands, architecture was still influenced by the capital. In present-day Tunisia, the [[Great Mosque of Kairouan]] was founded under the Umayyad dynasty but completely rebuilt in the 9th century under the [[Aghlabid architecture|patronage of the Aghlabids]], vassals of the Abbasids.<ref name=":8">{{Cite book |last=Bloom |first=Jonathan M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IRHbDwAAQBAJ |title=Architecture of the Islamic West: North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula, 700–1800 |publisher=Yale University Press |year=2020 |isbn=9780300218701 |location= |pages=28–32 |language=en}}</ref> The styles utilized were mainly Abbasid.<ref>{{harvnb|Wilber|1969|pp=5–6}}</ref> In Egypt, Ahmad Ibn Tulun commissioned the [[Mosque of Ibn Tulun|Ibn Tulun Mosque]], completed in 879, that is based on the style of Samarra and is now one of the best-preserved Abbasid-style mosques from this period.<ref name=":0522">{{Cite book |last=Tabbaa |first=Yasser |title=Encyclopaedia of Islam, Three |publisher=Brill |year=2007 |isbn=978-9004161658 |editor-last=Fleet |editor-first=Kate |location= |pages= |chapter=Architecture |editor-last2=Krämer |editor-first2=Gudrun |editor-last3=Matringe |editor-first3=Denis |editor-last4=Nawas |editor-first4=John |editor-last5=Rowson |editor-first5=Everett}}</ref>

=== Arts ===
{{Main|Abbasid art}}
[[File:Bowl by Khalid, Iraq, Abbasid dynasty, 9th-10th century AD, earthenware painted over glaze with luster - Freer Gallery of Art - DSC04595.jpg|left|thumb|[[Lustreware]] bowl from 9th century Samarra<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bowl |url=https://asia-archive.si.edu/object/F2005.10/ |access-date=2025-03-02 |website=Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art |language=en-US}}</ref>]]
The establishment of Abbasid power based in Iraq, rather than Syria, resulted in a cultural and artistic development influenced not only by the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern traditions but also by connections further afield with India, Central Asia, and China.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4">{{harvnb|Bloom|Blair|2009|loc=''Abbasid''|pp=1–3}}</ref> The importation of [[Chinese ceramics]] elicited local imitations but also stirred innovations in local production.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4" /> [[Abbasid ceramics]] became a more important art form with greater emphasis on decoration. A major innovation was the emergence of monochrome and polychrome [[lustreware]], a technical achievement that had an important impact on the wider development of [[Islamic ceramics]].<ref name=":4" /> [[Islamic glass|Glassware]] also became a more important art form and was likely the origin of the lustre technique that was introduced into ceramics.<ref name=":3" /> Few textiles have survived but the production of ''[[tiraz]]'', textiles with royal inscriptions, is well attested.<ref name=":3" /> 
[[File:Folio from a Qur'an (8th-9th century) Sura 39.jpg|thumb|Folio from a Qur'an with [[Kufic]] script and gold [[Illuminated manuscript|illumination]], from 8th or 9th century<ref>{{Cite web |title=Folio from a Qur'an: Sura 38, verses 87-88; sura 39, verse 1 |url=https://asia.si.edu/explore-art-culture/collections/search/edanmdm:fsg_F1930.60/ |access-date=2025-03-02 |website=National Museum of Asian Art |language=en-US}}</ref>]]
Another major art form was calligraphy and manuscript production. During the Abbasid period, [[Islamic calligraphy|Arabic calligraphy]] evolved into a more refined discipline.<ref name=":4" /> Rounded [[Kufic]] script was typical<ref name=":3" /> and became increasingly stylized.<ref name=":4" /> [[Parchment]] only allowed for a few lines of script, but from the late 8th century onward [[History of paper|paper]] began to be produced.<ref name=":3" /> Qur'ans are the main type of book to have survived from this period.<ref name=":3" />