Islamic Art and Architecture Test I

Hajj

The annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca

Hijra

The trip Muhammad and his followers took from Mecca to Medina in 622, marks the beginning of the Islamic Calendar

Islam

a monotheistic religion based on the Quran and the preachings of the Prophet Muhammad

Jahiliya

The era before the Hijrah

Ka’ba

The stone building at the center of the Masjid al-Haram

Kiswa

The sacred black cloth covering the Ka'ba

Masjid

The Arabic word for mosque

Muslim

A worshipper of Islam and Allah

Qibla

The direction of Mecca and the Ka'ba

Qibla Wall

The wall in a mosque that direscts worshippers towards Mecca

Qur’an

The holy book of Islam

Shahada

"There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah."

Umma

the worldwide community of muslims

Congregational Mosque (Great or Friday)

A large, central mosque typically used by the entire community when gathering for holidays or friday prayer

Mihrab

A niche in a wall of a mosque that indicates the direction of Mecca

Aniconism

The prohibition of depictions of a given religious figure.

Iconoclasm

When an Aniconistic culture or religion begins to destroy icons or art depicting a religious figure.

Al-Walid I

Umayyad ruler from 705-715

Al-Walid II

Umayyad ruler from 743-744

Apodyterium

The changing room in a bathhouse

Caldarium

The hot, sauna-like area in a bathhouse

Cardo

The north-south road that ran through every ancient Roman city.

Castrum

A castle or fort

Decumanus

The east-west road that ran through every roman town.

Hypocaust

The hollow space under a Roman bathhouse in which steam was sent to warm the floors or bath.

Qasr

Castle

Squinch

A structural element used to support a round or hexagonal dome on a square structure.

Tepidarium

A room in which hypocausts pump steam and warm the walls and floors, creating a pleasant sensation.

Tetrapylon

A structure crafted out of arched passages, often used as demarcations at crossroads

Alif

The first letter of the Arabic alphabet— A.

Aya

A verse in the Qur’an.

Bismillah

The first sentence of every sura except sura 9.

Calligraphy

Beautiful handwriting

Codex

An early form of a book.

Juz’

A section in the Qur’an

Kufic

An early form of Arabic transcriptions best suited for decorative calligraphy.

Kitab

A book in the Qur’an

Nib

The cut in the tip of a reed Qalam

Parchment

A piece of thin animal skin treated in a way that allows it to be written on.

Qalam

A reed pen used in ancient Arabic scripts.

Sura

A chapter in the Qur’an

Tabula ansata

An illustration in the Qur’an that is square in shape and assists in navigation.

Fustat

The capital of Egypt when it was under Muslim rule

Dikka

A raised platform in a mosque from which the Qur’an is recited.

Ifriqiya

A province formed by the Umayyads in 703 in modern Tunisia.

Riwaq

The term for a portico or arcade in Islamic architecture

Ziyada

The outer enclosure of a mosque