ITH: Cartography & Astronomy

What is the primary focus of cartography?

• Studying stars

• Making maps

• Writing historical texts

• Observing the Moon

Who was Al-Idrisi?

• An astronomer

• A historian

• A cartographer and geographer

• A mathematician

What is the name of the famous world map created by Al-Idrisi?

• Ptolemaic Map

• Tabula Rogeriana

• The Book of Fixed Stars

• The Great Atlas

Where did Al-Idrisi work under King Roger II?

• Baghdad

• Cairo

• Sicily

• Damascus

Which cultures influenced Al-Idrisi’s maps?

• Islamic, Greek, and European

• Hindu, Buddhist, and Christian

• Chinese, Mayan, and Egyptian

• African, Persian, and Indian

What shape did Al-Idrisi envision the Earth to be?

• Flat

• Cubic

• Spherical

• Pyramid-like

Why was Al-Idrisi’s work significant?

• It inspired later European and Islamic cartography

• It introduced the first compass

• It was the first recorded map in history

• It only described Europe

What role does astronomy play in Islamic worship?

• Determining prayer times

• Calculating fasting periods

• Identifying the Qibla direction

• All of the above

What is the Islamic calendar based on?

• The solar year

• The lunar cycle

• The movement of planets

• The Gregorian calendar

What marks the beginning of an Islamic month?

• The full moon

• The new moon

• The sighting of the crescent moon (hilal)

• The equinox