ISLAM (IV). SOCIETY AND THE CITY

8.1 Social organisation

Muslim society was very diverse due to the great expanse of the empire. There were different ethnic groups, such as Arabs, Berbers and slaves of different races, as well as several religions, such as Islam, Christianity and Judaism. This ethnic and religious diversity influenced the social structure, which was made up of three basic groups:

• The aristocracy was a very small group of mainly Arab origin. They possessed large amounts of property, which came from war booties, and held high positions in the government and the administration.

• The masses included peasants, craftsmen and traders. Within this group, distinction was drawn between those who had converted to Islam, or Mawali, and the protected population, or Dhimmis, consisting of the Christians and Jews that did not convert to Islam and conserved their religion, its way of governing and its laws. This last group paid more taxes than those who had converted.

• The slaves were prisoners of war or came from trade.

8.2 The Muslim city

Muslim cities were the centre of government, and concentrated craft, commercial, religious and cultural activities. They had walls, an irregular plan and included a medina and suburbs.

• The medina was the part of the city inside the city walls. It included a citadel or fortified area. It was located at the highest point and used to defend the population. It also had various neighbourhoods. All medinas had essential public buildings and spaces, such as the Great Mosque, the souk, the public baths, and the alhóndigas.

• Collective Friday noon prayers took place in the main mosque, which was obligatory for men, as daily prayers were held in smaller, neighbourhood mosques.

• The souk was located in the streets near the Great Mosque. It was the marketplace where craftsmen sold their products such as clothes, fabrics, perfumes and footwear.

• The public baths had rooms with warm, hot and cold water and men and women used them at different times.

• The alhóndigas were large warehouses to store goods. Merchants who had come from far away stayed there too.

• The suburbs were districts outside the city walls. Low-income people lived there and, when they grew large, they were surrounded by their own walls.

Outside the suburbs was the countryside, which was divided into the almunias or pleasure estates for the rich.

In the Muslim family, the husband had absolute authority over his wife and children. Wealthy men, according to the law of the Koran, could have up to four wives, as long as their financial situation enabled them to maintain their wives and children.

Women were always subordinate to men, first to their father and then to their husband. They lived confined to a special part of the house, the harem, and could only leave this area when granted permission and with an escort.

Their main task was to look after the house and the children. Nevertheless, they were allowed to perform certain jobs, such as that of a midwife, wet-nurse, singer or dancer. There were also poets and doctors within the upper classes.

Skill progress

Understanding cultural reality

1 What were the criteria behind the organisation of Muslim society?

2 Make a diagram representing social organisation, including the criteria in the previous activity. Add images found on the Internet.

3 Answer the questions using the information given in the text and the pictures: a) What two elements were used for defence in Muslim cities? b) What were the main religious places? What were they used for? c) What places and buildings were for public use? What were they used for?