Understanding Islamic Civilization
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Date: 2023-03-16
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Comments and reviews: 14
tj
It was interesting to visit the Arab Emirates last year, which is indeed one of the tiny yet wealthy oil-producing Gulf States. The UAE is the Muslim world probably at its most liberal end, and social norms are more relaxed. Cities looked mostly modern and clean and stores had as good selection as any European or American ones.
What it felt like was as if I had visited America at the beginning of the 20th century or late Victorian Britain. These huge cities had just suddenly propped with huge wealth, with suburbs spawning around them. Technological and economic progress is great yet the society had not yet fully liberalised to the extent it us today. The cities were now bustling with activity and new money that wanted to show itself off. In fact, when the cities were planned in the middle of the 20th century, the model of urban design, technology and social norms was heavily emulated and imported from America of that time, and the areas were largely blank slate to work with, little earlier population or buildings. Thus, they felt even more American than the US itself
Another point of comparison would be the slave economies of the Caribbean in the early modern period. There is no other comparisons with as much massive immigration of workers occuring in history that I can think of. While many workers have good conditions, some work in practice like serfdom and slavery. That's something to be wary of. Could they start rebelling at some point when they comprise the main amount of population, if they are treated badly?
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It was interesting to visit the Arab Emirates last year, which is indeed one of the tiny yet wealthy oil-producing Gulf States. The UAE is the Muslim world probably at its most liberal end, and social norms are more relaxed. Cities looked mostly modern and clean and stores had as good selection as any European or American ones.
What it felt like was as if I had visited America at the beginning of the 20th century or late Victorian Britain. These huge cities had just suddenly propped with huge wealth, with suburbs spawning around them. Technological and economic progress is great yet the society had not yet fully liberalised to the extent it us today. The cities were now bustling with activity and new money that wanted to show itself off. In fact, when the cities were planned in the middle of the 20th century, the model of urban design, technology and social norms was heavily emulated and imported from America of that time, and the areas were largely blank slate to work with, little earlier population or buildings. Thus, they felt even more American than the US itself
Another point of comparison would be the slave economies of the Caribbean in the early modern period. There is no other comparisons with as much massive immigration of workers occuring in history that I can think of. While many workers have good conditions, some work in practice like serfdom and slavery. That's something to be wary of. Could they start rebelling at some point when they comprise the main amount of population, if they are treated badly?
reply
Padinspi
Great video, loved it.
Here are just a few aspects that aren't really wrong but another perspective could still be interesting:
-the Battle of Tours/Poitiers is not that important. It isn't even important at all. We don't exactly know when or where it took place (Battle of Tours in english, Poitiers in french. The main reasons it is that important are the fact the winner Charles Martel and its dynasty used it to legitimate their power and also modern french historiography really likes it too. In reality it was most likely not even an invasion and the muslim influence in southern France stayed for another few decades.
-while it surely is difficult to have a consensus on such a dividing topic, the role of Muhammad has been reconsidered by historian lately. He was likely never called a prophet during his lifetime and while his ideas were successfull he wasn't the first on the Arabian Peninsula to spread this kind of message. On top of that it is very likely he wasn't alone when uniting the arab tribes. He didn't rule alone.
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Great video, loved it.
Here are just a few aspects that aren't really wrong but another perspective could still be interesting:
-the Battle of Tours/Poitiers is not that important. It isn't even important at all. We don't exactly know when or where it took place (Battle of Tours in english, Poitiers in french. The main reasons it is that important are the fact the winner Charles Martel and its dynasty used it to legitimate their power and also modern french historiography really likes it too. In reality it was most likely not even an invasion and the muslim influence in southern France stayed for another few decades.
-while it surely is difficult to have a consensus on such a dividing topic, the role of Muhammad has been reconsidered by historian lately. He was likely never called a prophet during his lifetime and while his ideas were successfull he wasn't the first on the Arabian Peninsula to spread this kind of message. On top of that it is very likely he wasn't alone when uniting the arab tribes. He didn't rule alone.
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Jonathan
The Torah: go forth and Subdue the earth.
The New testament: you are in the world but not of it.
The Koran: too many quotes to mention.
The Abrahamic religions are totally built on rejection of nature and reality, hatred, fear and racism. An understandable but sad total reflection of the unforgiving environment they grew out of. No Arab, jew, or Iranian or their great great grandfathers has any claim at all to the ancient People's accomplishments that came before them.
Indeed, these aforementioned tribes tried their best to erase said accomplishments.
The abrahamic religions are the most poisonous curse spiritually, psychologically and historically operating in the world today
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The Torah: go forth and Subdue the earth.
The New testament: you are in the world but not of it.
The Koran: too many quotes to mention.
The Abrahamic religions are totally built on rejection of nature and reality, hatred, fear and racism. An understandable but sad total reflection of the unforgiving environment they grew out of. No Arab, jew, or Iranian or their great great grandfathers has any claim at all to the ancient People's accomplishments that came before them.
Indeed, these aforementioned tribes tried their best to erase said accomplishments.
The abrahamic religions are the most poisonous curse spiritually, psychologically and historically operating in the world today
reply
William
6: 17 a couple of bosses ago, I was waiting outside a house while he was inside doing a showing. There was this dude outside, we started talking, family was from Occupied Territories and had spread all over, as families from Occupied Territories do, conversation wandered over to Saudi Arabia, I offered the opinion that I thought MbS was modeling himself on Peter the Great, and he looks at me like I have lobsters coming out of my ears and says, don't you realize how many weapons Saudi hillbillies have stockpiled out in the desert? and proceeds to relay the story of how at a wedding out in the desert one of his cousins attended, the groomsmen rolled up riding on top of a T-55.
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6: 17 a couple of bosses ago, I was waiting outside a house while he was inside doing a showing. There was this dude outside, we started talking, family was from Occupied Territories and had spread all over, as families from Occupied Territories do, conversation wandered over to Saudi Arabia, I offered the opinion that I thought MbS was modeling himself on Peter the Great, and he looks at me like I have lobsters coming out of my ears and says, don't you realize how many weapons Saudi hillbillies have stockpiled out in the desert? and proceeds to relay the story of how at a wedding out in the desert one of his cousins attended, the groomsmen rolled up riding on top of a T-55.
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Hamzah
Good video but definitely had some major slips. For example, the difference between sunni and shia is that the sunnis believe that rulership should be inherited by the person deemed most worthy of the position while the shia believe leadership should be exclusively for the family of the Prophet. The primary and most revered figures for shias are Fatima (the daughter of the Prophet) and Ali (the prophets cousin and 4th caliph) along with Ali's sons (the prophets grandsons. The shia villains are the prophets closest companions (Abu Bakr, Umar, and Uthman. Sunnis revere all of them.
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Good video but definitely had some major slips. For example, the difference between sunni and shia is that the sunnis believe that rulership should be inherited by the person deemed most worthy of the position while the shia believe leadership should be exclusively for the family of the Prophet. The primary and most revered figures for shias are Fatima (the daughter of the Prophet) and Ali (the prophets cousin and 4th caliph) along with Ali's sons (the prophets grandsons. The shia villains are the prophets closest companions (Abu Bakr, Umar, and Uthman. Sunnis revere all of them.
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undead9999
The destruction of Baghdad and the death of the Caliph by mongol forces (they trampled him with horses after rolling him up in a carpet so to not shed his blood) was viewed as a sort of act of God to punish the decadence of the Ummah. Therefor it contributed to a significant shift towards religious fanatism.
If that never happened we probably would have never seen the end of the Muslim Golden Age
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The destruction of Baghdad and the death of the Caliph by mongol forces (they trampled him with horses after rolling him up in a carpet so to not shed his blood) was viewed as a sort of act of God to punish the decadence of the Ummah. Therefor it contributed to a significant shift towards religious fanatism.
If that never happened we probably would have never seen the end of the Muslim Golden Age
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auraguard02
The Mamelukes were insane. Imagine Haiti, but the slaves decided that staying slaves would be cool, since it let them know who was in the in-group and who was in the out-group. You had slaves lording over free people, and the composition of their elite was decided entirely by whichever group got subjugated and sold into slavery last.
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The Mamelukes were insane. Imagine Haiti, but the slaves decided that staying slaves would be cool, since it let them know who was in the in-group and who was in the out-group. You had slaves lording over free people, and the composition of their elite was decided entirely by whichever group got subjugated and sold into slavery last.
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Daniel
27: 25 The Muslims were right about the printing press, the Protestant Reformation couldn't happen without the printing press. So the printing press destroyed any semblance of unity in the West. A few centuries later and the West went from believing whatever they want to the majority believing nothing
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27: 25 The Muslims were right about the printing press, the Protestant Reformation couldn't happen without the printing press. So the printing press destroyed any semblance of unity in the West. A few centuries later and the West went from believing whatever they want to the majority believing nothing
reply
Tianming
Copts aren't Semites. The Afroasiatic language family is split into 6 main branches Berber, Chadic, Cushitic, Egyptian, Omotic, and Semitic. Copts unsurprisingly fall under Egyptian, whereas some Ethiopians like Amharas and Tigreans technically count as Semites.
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Copts aren't Semites. The Afroasiatic language family is split into 6 main branches Berber, Chadic, Cushitic, Egyptian, Omotic, and Semitic. Copts unsurprisingly fall under Egyptian, whereas some Ethiopians like Amharas and Tigreans technically count as Semites.
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Furkan
20: 50 this part of the video is completely wrong.
1. Abbasids weren't shia
2. They weren't persian although because they weren't opressive to other ethnicities they got supported bu other ethnicities which persians were culturally strongest.
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20: 50 this part of the video is completely wrong.
1. Abbasids weren't shia
2. They weren't persian although because they weren't opressive to other ethnicities they got supported bu other ethnicities which persians were culturally strongest.
reply
Abdirahman
According to some historians, Arabs first appeared in historical sources around 835 B. C. They were fighting with the assiriyan empire. They were led by a chief whom the assiriyans called jundibu the Arab. His group of camels are also mentioned.
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According to some historians, Arabs first appeared in historical sources around 835 B. C. They were fighting with the assiriyan empire. They were led by a chief whom the assiriyans called jundibu the Arab. His group of camels are also mentioned.
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tozarkt
Nice video, although in the future could you link some of the sources in the description for further reading? Cuz I enjoy your content, but frankly it can sometimes be hard to tell what s fact and opinion and where I can go for further research
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Nice video, although in the future could you link some of the sources in the description for further reading? Cuz I enjoy your content, but frankly it can sometimes be hard to tell what s fact and opinion and where I can go for further research
reply
chickenus-goddus
Good lord I can't believe I've been watching you for 7 years now dang your anthropology videos inspired me alot and I have to say your videos have seriously effected my views on a whole lot of things like communism so thanks alot
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Good lord I can't believe I've been watching you for 7 years now dang your anthropology videos inspired me alot and I have to say your videos have seriously effected my views on a whole lot of things like communism so thanks alot
reply
the
It's strange how the Asian countries industrialized quickly after they realize they are technologically inferior to the West but the Middle East still struggling it seemed that industrialization could only happen with secular government
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It's strange how the Asian countries industrialized quickly after they realize they are technologically inferior to the West but the Middle East still struggling it seemed that industrialization could only happen with secular government
reply
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