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Medieval Islam and Africa

Total questions: 21

Worksheet time: 11mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

What is the root language of the West Africans?

a)

Bantu

b)

Latin

c)

Arabic

d)

Swahili

2.

Which factor allowed the ancient kingdom of Ghana to become so successful?

a)

The kingdom was able to resist being overtaken by the neighboring kingdom of Mali.

b)

The kingdom's rulers were godlike figures who ruled with absolute authority.

c)

The kingdom's location allowed it to control the gold-salt trade.

d)

The kingdom produced a surplus of food that it traded with people in the modern day countries of Nigeria and Senegal.

3.

Which is the best conclusion to draw from this passage?


"There was so much salt in the Sahara, that people in Taghaza, in the central part of the desert, built homes out of blocks of salt. But in the savanna, several hundred miles south, salt was so scarce that it was worth its weight in gold. In the kingdom of Ghana, merchants paid one pound of gold for one pound of salt."

a)

The uneven distribution of natural resources promotes trade.

b)

The surplus of a given natural resource affects its value.

c)

The scarcity of a given natural resource affects its value.

d)

The even distribution of natural resources promotes trade.

4.

What caused the West African kingdom of Ghana to grow powerful, wealthy, and to incorporate Islamic values and ideas in its society and government?

a)

control of the gold-salt trade routes

b)

Islam spread by Arab invaders

c)

influence by the neighboring Songhai

d)

the enlightened and wise rule of Mansa Musa

5.

In what important trade city did Mansa Musa build a University?

a)

Axum

b)

Timbuktu

c)

Sofala

d)

Meroe

6.

What lead to the decline of the Axum Empire?

a)

Civil war

b)

Religions severed trading ties

c)

Distance from Europe

d)

All of the above

7.

What evidence suggests that Great Zimbabwe was a great commercial center?

a)

Oral histories describe Great Zimbabwe as a great commercial center.

b)

Architecture similar to Zimbabwe's Great Stones houses has been found in China and India.

c)

Travelers who journeyed through Great Zimbabwe commented on the kingdom's wealth.

d)

Artifacts such as beads from India and porcelain from China have been found among the ruins.

8.

In African villages that were part of a larger kingdom, decisions that had to be obeyed were made

a)

through consensus.

b)

in distant courts.

c)

by village women.

d)

by village elders.

9.

Which was a core social factor gave people a sense of community and shared responsibility in medieval African culture?

a)

royal duty

b)

identification with extended lineages

c)

identification with the nuclear family

d)

religious obligations

10.

Select the statement that best analyzes the critical role that the structure shown in the photo plays in Islam.

a)

Muhammad destroyed the idols at the Kaaba and rededicated it to Allah, making it the holiest place in the newly founded monotheistic religion of Islam.

b)

Muhammad dedicated the Kaaba to his military victory at the site over Arab tribes who had opposed his religious messages.

c)

Muhammad received holy messages from an angel of God at this sacred site, making it the birthplace of the newly founded monotheistic religion of Islam.

d)

Muhammad rededicated the Kaaba to the idol Allah, making it the holiest place in the newly founded polytheistic religion of Islam.

11.

Which answer best categorizes the importance of the items listed above?

a)

commandments from each of the five books comprising the holy Quran

b)

the fundamental duties comprising the Pillars of Islam

c)

duties common to Islam, Judaism, and Christianity

d)

the most important laws comprising Islamic Sharia

12.

Select the accomplishment from Islam's Golden Age that could be classified as not mainly mathematical?

a)

The refinement of Arabic numerals and the development of Algebra

b)

The development of navigational devices such as the astrolab

c)

One Thousand And One Nights

d)

The study of eclipses and the measurement of the Earth's circumference

13.

Based on what you learned about Islam, which statement offers the best analysis of the saying?


"I commend the merchants to you, for they are the couriers of the horizon and God's trusted servants on Earth."--Sayings of the Prophet

a)

Commerce was tolerated because it helped spread Islamic ideas to new regions; however, Muhammad did not respect merchants in general.

b)

Commerce was an honored profession because Muhammad communicated that it was one of the Five Pillars of the Islamic faith.

c)

Trade was a forbidden profession because Muhammad believed the spread of commercial goods led to the worship of false idols.

d)

Trade was held in high esteem by Muslims because Muhammad was a merchant, and trade helped spread Islam across a wide area spanning several continents.

14.

Given the importance of class divisions in the Ottoman empire, the best hope for the sons of those peoples the Ottomans conquered was to become

a)

janizaries.

b)

tax collectors.

c)

merchants.

d)

farmers.

15.

Who is considered by some to be the father of Judaism, Islam, and Christianity?

a)

Adam

b)

Jesus

c)

Moses

d)

Abraham

16.

At the bottom of Ottoman society were the

a)

Men of the Pen

b)

Men of the Sword

c)

Men of Husbandry

d)

Men of Negotiation

17.

When Muslims conquered a new land, they often

a)

imposed a special tax on non-Muslims.

b)

forced the conquered people to convert to Islam.

c)

looted and burned conquered cities.

d)

adopted the beliefs of the conquered people.

18.

The spiritual and living successor to Muhammad

a)

rajahs

b)

Suleiman

c)

caliph

d)

Firdawasi

19.

What was a major political effect of this event the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman's?

a)

The siege paved the way for the rise of the rival Safavid Empire to gain a military foothold in Europe.

b)

The siege marked the end of the Byzantine Empire. The newly conquered city was renamed Istanbul, which became a center of Muslim culture and the seat of Ottoman military power.

c)

The siege marked a new era of Orthodox Christian rule in Southern and Eastern Europe.

d)

The siege allowed the Byzantine Empire to extend Islamic rule and culture throughout the Mediterranean world.

20.

In which country is Mecca found today?

a)

Iraq

b)

Iran

c)

Pakistan

d)

Saudi Arabia

21.

What could Sunnis and Shi'a muslims not agree on?

a)

Leader of Islam

b)

Direction of Prayer

c)

Quran scriptures

d)

The last Prophet