Ch 10 Islamic Keywords

Arabesque

A style which employs flowers, fruit, foliage, animal or figure outlines in an interlaced pattern.

Assemblage

Art work constructed from existing objects.

Blind Arcade

A series of arches in relief, with blocked openings.

Caliph

Ruler of the Muslim community.

Calligraphy

"Beautiful writing" or ornamental writing as a decorative art.

Voussoir

A wedge-shaped stone used in building an arch.

Visigoth

A nomadic tribe of Germanic peoples who conquered territories during the decline of the Roman Empire.

Umayyad

Major caliphate dynasty which ruled after the death of Muhammad.

Maqsura

An enclosure in a mosque in front of the mihrab designed for protection and prestige.

Qarina

Bilateral symmetry along a central axis, favored by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan.

Islam

A religion begun by Mohammed, with belief in one god, Allah, whose revelations he received beginning in 610AD.

Koran (Quran)

The sacred book of Islam.

Madrasa

An Islamic school.

Qibla

The wall in a mosque which faces Mecca and houses the mihrab niche.

Mecca

The birthplace of Mohammed and a place of pilgrimage.

Minaret

A tower from which the muezzin calls the faithful to prayer.

Moorish

A combination of Spanish and North African architecture.

Tessarae

Used in mosaics, small pieces of stone or glass in cement.

Mosque

A Muslim place of worship.

Muezzin

A holy man who calls Muslims to prayer.

Muslim

A believer in Islam.

Ottomans

Turkish people who converted to Islam, conquered Constantinople and changed the name to Istanbul.

Kaaba

The most sacred site in Islam, it is the direction to which all Muslims pray.

Jali Screen

An intricate stone screen used in Mughal Indian architecture.

Nasrid

The last ruling Muslim dynasty in Spain.

Chahar Bagh

A four-part garden plan used to represent the garden of paradise in architectural settings.

Mamluk

Former Slave-Soldier dynasty which ruled in Egypt and Syria 1250-1517.