Baghdad's Universities During the later part of the 11th century, Baghdad introduced the precursor to the modern university in the form of a chain of madrasahs which housed students and a salaried faculty. They were known as the Nizamiyah, after their founder Nizam al-Mulk, a Seljuk vizier. The largest and [...]
Kairouan: A Center of Learning, Arts, and Sciences The change of government in Tunisia recently took everyone by surprise. All eyes turned to the capital, Tunis, when Ben Ali relinquished his power and fled the country, causing a ripple effect in the region. Here, we would like to highlight another [...]
By: Saulat Pervez The Islamic State: A Divinely-Ordained Blueprint for Societal Balance When the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, first began to receive revelations from God in 610 A.D., little did he know that they were the foundational stones for the formation of a future state to be refined [...]
877-WHY-ISLAM Brochure By: Saulat Pervez The Many Faces of Muslim Families in America Mr. and Mrs. Siddiq migrated to the United States in the late 1980s from Pakistan. Sponsored by Mrs. Siddiq’s brother, they had a clear and simple goal: to avail better educational opportunities for their four children [...]
Unveiling the History of Halloween with Sh. Abdullah Hakim Quick 877-Why-Islam presents Sh. Abdullah Hakim Quick, a renowned historian and scholar, who gives the history behind Halloween.
Courtesy U.S. Department of State's Office of International Information Programs More than 1,200 mosques and Islamic centers have existed in this country, according to a survey conducted in the latter part of the 1990s, but fewer than 100 were actually designed as mosques. The survey revealed that most Islamic [...]
Muslim Scholars and Their Inventions In the West, many Muslim scholars were given Latin names such as Avicenna (Ibn Sina, c. 980 - 1037), Rhazes (ar-Razi, c. 841-926), and Averroes (ibn Rushd, c. 1126-1198); their works, as translated in Latin, became widely available. For instance, Ibn Sina’s Canon of Medicine set [...]
Baghdad's Libraries Muslims learned how to make paper from the Chinese, and proceeded to transform this art into a major industry. By 793 C.E., there were many paper mills in Baghdad. This was a revolutionary development because the existing alternatives to paper were papyrus, which was fragile, and parchment, which [...]
A Little Taste of an Islamic Art The Glorious Quran was revealed to Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be on him) in the seventh century of the Christian Era (610 CE - 632 CE). The revelations came to the Prophet through the angel Gabriel. For the past fourteen centuries, Muslims [...]
The Historic City of Cairo The world was lately riveted by the events taking place in Cairo, Egypt. The unfolding revolution in Tahrir Square transcended ethnic and religious affiliations, inspiring people worldwide with the power of change. In fact, this historic city has undergone many upheavals over the centuries and [...]
