1 00:00:02,580 --> 00:00:03,677 John: Hi, there I'm John Green. 2 00:00:03,677 --> 00:00:06,610 This is Crash Course World History, and today we're gonna talk about Islam, 3 00:00:06,610 --> 00:00:08,374 which like Christianity and Judaism, 4 00:00:08,374 --> 00:00:10,397 grew up on the east coast of the Mediterranean, 5 00:00:10,397 --> 00:00:12,195 but unlike Christianity and Judaism, 6 00:00:12,195 --> 00:00:14,733 it's not terribly well understood in the West. 7 00:00:14,733 --> 00:00:18,570 For instance, you probably know what this is and what this is. 8 00:00:18,570 --> 00:00:22,084 You probably don't know what that is. Google it. 9 00:00:22,084 --> 00:00:23,815 Mr. Green, Mr. Green, why do you think 10 00:00:23,815 --> 00:00:25,780 people know so little about Islamic history? 11 00:00:25,780 --> 00:00:29,578 Did you just ask an interesting, non-annoying question, me from the past? 12 00:00:29,578 --> 00:00:32,093 I think we don't know much about early Islamic history 13 00:00:32,093 --> 00:00:34,591 because we don't learn about it, because we're taught 14 00:00:34,591 --> 00:00:38,283 that our history is the story of Christianity in Europe, 15 00:00:38,283 --> 00:00:43,225 when in fact, our history is the story of people on the planet. 16 00:00:43,225 --> 00:00:44,828 So, let's try to learn something today. 17 00:00:44,828 --> 00:00:53,677 (upbeat music with whistling) 18 00:00:53,677 --> 00:00:56,939 So, in less than 200 years, Islam went from not existing 19 00:00:56,939 --> 00:00:59,786 to being the religious and political organizing principle 20 00:00:59,786 --> 00:01:02,377 of one of the largest empires in the world, 21 00:01:02,377 --> 00:01:04,590 and that story begins in the 7th century CE, 22 00:01:04,590 --> 00:01:08,006 when the angel Gabriel appeared to Muhammad, a 40-ish guy, 23 00:01:08,006 --> 00:01:09,586 who made his living as a caravan trader, 24 00:01:09,586 --> 00:01:12,611 and told him to begin reciting the word of God. 25 00:01:12,611 --> 00:01:15,084 Initially, this freaked Muhammad out as, you know, 26 00:01:15,084 --> 00:01:17,174 it would, but then his wife and a couple other people 27 00:01:17,174 --> 00:01:20,840 encouraged him and slowly he came to accept the mantle of prophet. 28 00:01:20,840 --> 00:01:22,493 A few things to know about the world Islam entered, 29 00:01:22,493 --> 00:01:25,146 first, Muhammad's society was intensely tribal. 30 00:01:25,146 --> 00:01:27,852 He was a member of the Quraysh tribe living in Mecca, 31 00:01:27,852 --> 00:01:30,811 and tribal ties were extremely important. 32 00:01:30,811 --> 00:01:32,538 Also, at the time the Arabian Peninsula 33 00:01:32,538 --> 00:01:34,824 was like this crazy, religious, melting pot. 34 00:01:34,824 --> 00:01:36,729 Like most tribal Arabs worshiped gods 35 00:01:36,729 --> 00:01:41,410 very similar to the Mesopotamian gods you'll remember from episode 3, 36 00:01:41,410 --> 00:01:43,625 and by the time of Muhammad, cult statues of many of those gods 37 00:01:43,625 --> 00:01:46,158 had been collected in his home town of Mecca 38 00:01:46,158 --> 00:01:48,750 in this temple-like structure, called the Kaaba. 39 00:01:48,750 --> 00:01:51,919 But, Arabia was also home to monotheisms like Christianity and Judaism, 40 00:01:51,919 --> 00:01:53,565 and even a bit of Zoroastrainism; 41 00:01:53,565 --> 00:01:56,208 so the message that there was only one god 42 00:01:56,208 --> 00:01:59,079 wouldn't have been like as surprising to Muhammad 43 00:01:59,079 --> 00:02:01,060 as it was, for instance, to Abraham. 44 00:02:01,060 --> 00:02:02,490 Also, and this will become very important, 45 00:02:02,490 --> 00:02:05,668 the northern part of Arabia was sandwiched between the Byzantine Empire 46 00:02:05,668 --> 00:02:08,853 and the Persian Sasanian Empire, and you'll remember 47 00:02:08,853 --> 00:02:11,062 those guys were always fighting. 48 00:02:11,062 --> 00:02:13,399 They were like snow boarders and skiers, 49 00:02:13,399 --> 00:02:17,022 or like the Westboro Baptist Church and everyone else. 50 00:02:17,022 --> 00:02:19,866 At its core, Islam is what we call a radical reforming religion, 51 00:02:19,866 --> 00:02:23,640 just as Jesus and Moses sought to restore Abrahamic monotheism 52 00:02:23,640 --> 00:02:27,214 after what they perceived as straying, so too did Muhammad. 53 00:02:27,214 --> 00:02:29,637 Muslims believe that God sent Muhammad as the final prophet 54 00:02:29,637 --> 00:02:33,357 to bring people back to the one true religion, 55 00:02:33,357 --> 00:02:37,880 which involves the worship of and submission to a single and all-powerful God. 56 00:02:37,880 --> 00:02:40,984 The Koran also acknowledges Abraham, and Moses, and Jesus, among others, 57 00:02:40,984 --> 00:02:44,222 as prophets, but it's very different from the Hebrew and Christian Bibles. 58 00:02:44,222 --> 00:02:45,853 For one thing, it's much less narrative, but also, 59 00:02:45,853 --> 00:02:48,608 it's the written record of the revelations Muhammad received, 60 00:02:48,608 --> 00:02:51,549 which means it's not written from the point of view of people, 61 00:02:51,549 --> 00:02:54,072 it is seen as the actual word of God. 62 00:02:54,072 --> 00:02:55,813 The Koran is a really broad-ranging text, 63 00:02:55,813 --> 00:02:57,797 but it returns, again and again, to a couple of themes; 64 00:02:57,797 --> 00:03:02,173 one is strict monotheism, and the other is the importance of taking care 65 00:03:02,173 --> 00:03:04,063 of those less fortunate than you. 66 00:03:04,063 --> 00:03:07,089 The Koran says of the good person, "Spends his substance, 67 00:03:07,089 --> 00:03:10,456 "however much he himself may cherish it, upon his near of kin, 68 00:03:10,456 --> 00:03:13,891 and the orphans, and the needy, and the wayfarer, and the beggars, 69 00:03:13,891 --> 00:03:16,658 "and for the freeing of human beings from bondage." 70 00:03:16,658 --> 00:03:20,267 These revelations also radically increase the rights of women and orphans, 71 00:03:20,267 --> 00:03:22,643 which is one of the reasons that Muhammad's tribal leaders 72 00:03:22,643 --> 00:03:24,318 weren't that psyched about them. 73 00:03:24,318 --> 00:03:25,355 (digital sounds) To talk more about 74 00:03:25,355 --> 00:03:27,158 Islamic faith and practice, let's go to the thought bubble. 75 00:03:27,158 --> 00:03:30,054 The five pillars of Islam are the basic acts considered obligatory, 76 00:03:30,054 --> 00:03:31,549 at least by Sunni Muslims. 77 00:03:31,549 --> 00:03:34,055 First is the Shahadah, or the profession of faith. 78 00:03:34,055 --> 00:03:37,442 There is no God, but God, and Muhammad is God's prophet, 79 00:03:37,442 --> 00:03:40,349 which is sometimes translated as there is no God but Allah, 80 00:03:40,349 --> 00:03:43,653 and Muhammad is Allah's prophet, which tries to make Muslims sound other, 81 00:03:43,653 --> 00:03:46,049 and ignores the fact that the Arabic word for God, 82 00:03:46,049 --> 00:03:49,007 whether you're Christian or Jewish or Muslim, is Allah. 83 00:03:49,007 --> 00:03:51,909 Second, Salat, or ritual prayer five times a day, 84 00:03:51,909 --> 00:03:56,266 at dawn, noon, afternoon, sunset, and late evening, 85 00:03:56,266 --> 00:03:58,960 which are obligatory unless you haven't hit puberty, 86 00:03:58,960 --> 00:04:01,178 are too sick, or are menstruating. 87 00:04:01,178 --> 00:04:03,146 Keep it PG, thought bubble. 88 00:04:03,146 --> 00:04:05,695 Third, Sawm, the month-long fast during the month of Ramadan, 89 00:04:05,695 --> 00:04:09,748 in which Muslims do not eat or drink or smoke cigarettes during daylight hours. 90 00:04:09,748 --> 00:04:13,505 Since Ramadan is a lunar calendar month, it moves around the seasons, 91 00:04:13,505 --> 00:04:16,935 and obviously, it's most fun during the winter when the days are shorter, 92 00:04:16,935 --> 00:04:20,502 and least fun during the summer when days are both long and hot. 93 00:04:20,502 --> 00:04:23,973 Fourth is Zakat, or alms giving, in which non-poor Muslims 94 00:04:23,973 --> 00:04:26,823 are required to give a percentage of their income to the poor. 95 00:04:26,823 --> 00:04:30,169 And lastly, Hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca 96 00:04:30,169 --> 00:04:33,177 that Muslims must try to fulfill at least once in their lives, 97 00:04:33,177 --> 00:04:35,390 provided they are healthy and have enough money. 98 00:04:35,390 --> 00:04:37,695 There's also more to understanding Islam than just knowing the Koran, 99 00:04:37,695 --> 00:04:39,802 like Judaism, with its tall mood, 100 00:04:39,802 --> 00:04:43,034 and Christianity with its lives of saints and writings of church fathers, 101 00:04:43,034 --> 00:04:45,816 Islam has supplementary sacred texts, 102 00:04:45,816 --> 00:04:49,114 chief among which is the Hadith, a collection of sayings 103 00:04:49,114 --> 00:04:52,100 and stories about the prophet. Thanks, thought bubble. 104 00:04:52,100 --> 00:04:53,347 Oh, it's time for the open letter? 105 00:04:53,347 --> 00:04:57,565 (instrumental harp) Magic. 106 00:04:57,565 --> 00:04:59,496 An open letter to the 72 virgins. 107 00:04:59,496 --> 00:05:01,712 Oh, but first, let's check what's in the secret compartment. 108 00:05:01,712 --> 00:05:05,957 Oh, it's Andre the Giant. Did you know that Andre the Giant 109 00:05:05,957 --> 00:05:08,921 died a virgin is a fact that I made up? 110 00:05:08,921 --> 00:05:11,736 Dear 72 virgins, hey there. It's me, John Green. 111 00:05:11,736 --> 00:05:14,205 Did you know that not all hadiths were created equal? 112 00:05:14,205 --> 00:05:16,560 Some sayings of the prophet are really well sourced, 113 00:05:16,560 --> 00:05:20,661 like for instance, a good friend or a relative heard the prophet say something, 114 00:05:20,661 --> 00:05:22,551 and then it ended up as a hadith. 115 00:05:22,551 --> 00:05:24,553 But, some hadiths are terribly sourced, like not to be a reverend; 116 00:05:24,553 --> 00:05:26,648 but some of it is like middle school gossip, 117 00:05:26,648 --> 00:05:30,058 like Rachel told Rebekah that her sister's brother's friend 118 00:05:30,058 --> 00:05:32,606 kissed Justin Bieber on the face. 119 00:05:32,606 --> 00:05:33,696 And the vast majority of Muslims 120 00:05:33,696 --> 00:05:35,903 don't treat terribly sourced hadiths as scripture, 121 00:05:35,903 --> 00:05:39,496 and the idea that you go heaven and get 72 virgins is not in the Koran, 122 00:05:39,496 --> 00:05:41,153 it's in a terribly sourced hadith, 123 00:05:41,153 --> 00:05:44,583 so it is my great regret to inform you, 72 virgins, 124 00:05:44,583 --> 00:05:48,557 that in the eyes of almost all Muslims, you do not exist. 125 00:05:48,557 --> 00:05:50,503 Best wishes, John Green. 126 00:05:50,503 --> 00:05:54,510 One more thing about Islam, like Christianity and Judaism, it has a body of law. 127 00:05:54,510 --> 00:05:57,064 You might have heard of it, it's called Sharia; 128 00:05:57,064 --> 00:05:59,439 although we tend to think of Sharia as a single set of laws 129 00:05:59,439 --> 00:06:02,111 that all Muslims follow. That's ridiculous. 130 00:06:02,111 --> 00:06:04,660 There are numerous competing ideas about Sharia, 131 00:06:04,660 --> 00:06:07,094 just as there are within any legal tradition. 132 00:06:07,094 --> 00:06:09,305 So, people who embrace this world view were called Muslims, 133 00:06:09,305 --> 00:06:11,143 because they submitted to the will of God, 134 00:06:11,143 --> 00:06:14,625 and they became part of the Ummah, or community of believers. 135 00:06:14,625 --> 00:06:16,607 This would be a good moment for an Uma Therman joke, 136 00:06:16,607 --> 00:06:19,555 but sadly, she is no longer famous. 137 00:06:19,555 --> 00:06:21,607 I'm sorry if you're watching this, Uma Therman. 138 00:06:21,607 --> 00:06:23,487 Being part of the Ummah trumped all other ties, 139 00:06:23,487 --> 00:06:26,930 including tribal ties, which got Muhammad into some trouble 140 00:06:26,930 --> 00:06:29,573 and brings us, at last, back to history. 141 00:06:29,573 --> 00:06:31,313 So, as Muhammad's following in Mecca grew, 142 00:06:31,313 --> 00:06:32,822 the Ummah aroused the suspicion 143 00:06:32,822 --> 00:06:35,133 of the most powerful tribe in Mecca, the Quraysh. 144 00:06:35,133 --> 00:06:38,043 And it didn't matter that Muhammad himself was born into the Quraysh tribe, 145 00:06:38,043 --> 00:06:41,077 because he wouldn't shut up about how there was only one God, 146 00:06:41,077 --> 00:06:43,166 which was really bad news to the Quraysh tribe 147 00:06:43,166 --> 00:06:46,638 because they managed the pilgrimage trade in Mecca, 148 00:06:46,638 --> 00:06:50,925 and if all those gods were false, it would be a disaster economically. 149 00:06:50,925 --> 00:06:52,585 Although, come to think of it, in the end 150 00:06:52,585 --> 00:06:55,104 the Meccan pilgrimage business turned out just fine. 151 00:06:55,104 --> 00:06:59,237 So, the Quraysh forced Muhammad and his followers out of Mecca in 622 CE, 152 00:06:59,237 --> 00:07:02,169 and they headed to Yathrib, also known as Medina. 153 00:07:02,169 --> 00:07:04,777 This journey, also known as the Hijrah, is so important 154 00:07:04,777 --> 00:07:07,366 that it marks year 0 in the Islamic calendar. 155 00:07:07,366 --> 00:07:09,958 In Medina, Muhammad severed the religion's ties to Judaism, 156 00:07:09,958 --> 00:07:13,919 turning the focus of prayer away from Jerusalem to Mecca. 157 00:07:13,919 --> 00:07:16,172 Also, in Medina, the Islamic community started to look a lot more 158 00:07:16,172 --> 00:07:19,238 like a small empire than like a church. 159 00:07:19,238 --> 00:07:21,381 Like, Jesus never had a country to run, 160 00:07:21,381 --> 00:07:23,222 but Muhammad did almost from the beginning, 161 00:07:23,222 --> 00:07:26,268 and in addition to being an important prophet, he was a good general, 162 00:07:26,268 --> 00:07:29,770 and in 630, the Islamic community took back Mecca. 163 00:07:29,770 --> 00:07:31,626 They destroyed all those idols in the Kaaba, 164 00:07:31,626 --> 00:07:33,886 and soon Islam was as powerful a political force 165 00:07:33,886 --> 00:07:35,903 in the region as it was a religious one; 166 00:07:35,903 --> 00:07:38,859 and it's because the political and religious coexisted from the beginning, 167 00:07:38,859 --> 00:07:41,633 that there's no separate tradition of civic and religious law 168 00:07:41,633 --> 00:07:43,936 like there is in Christianity and Judaism. 169 00:07:43,936 --> 00:07:46,242 So, then when Muhammad died in 632 CE, 170 00:07:46,242 --> 00:07:48,453 there wasn't a religious vacuum left behind. 171 00:07:48,453 --> 00:07:52,744 Muhammad was the final prophet, the revelation of the Koran would continue 172 00:07:52,744 --> 00:07:55,441 to guide the Ummah throughout their lives, 173 00:07:55,441 --> 00:07:57,707 but the community did need a political leader, a caliph, 174 00:07:57,707 --> 00:08:01,509 and the first caliph was Abu Bakr, Muhammad's father-in-law, 175 00:08:01,509 --> 00:08:03,632 who is not without his opponents. 176 00:08:03,632 --> 00:08:06,638 Many people wanted Ali, Muhammad's son-in-law to lead the community, 177 00:08:06,638 --> 00:08:10,501 and although he did become the fourth caliph, that initial disagreement, 178 00:08:10,501 --> 00:08:13,143 to radically over-simplify it because we only have 10 minutes, 179 00:08:13,143 --> 00:08:17,760 began the divide between the two major sects of Islam, Sunni and Shia. 180 00:08:17,760 --> 00:08:19,305 And even today, Sunni Musilims believe 181 00:08:19,305 --> 00:08:21,710 Abu Bakr was rightly elected the first caliph, 182 00:08:21,710 --> 00:08:24,153 and Shia Muslims believe it should have been Ali. 183 00:08:24,153 --> 00:08:25,893 To Sunnis, the first fourth caliphs, 184 00:08:25,893 --> 00:08:30,351 Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali are known as the rightly guided caliphs. 185 00:08:30,351 --> 00:08:33,525 In many of the conservative movements in the Islamic world today, 186 00:08:33,525 --> 00:08:38,232 are all about trying to restore the Islamic world to those glory days, 187 00:08:38,232 --> 00:08:42,457 which like most glory days, were not unambiguously glorious. 188 00:08:42,457 --> 00:08:44,901 Abu Bakr stabilized the community after Muhammad's death 189 00:08:44,901 --> 00:08:47,507 and began the process of recording the Koran in writing, 190 00:08:47,507 --> 00:08:50,937 and started the military campaigns against the Byzantine and Sasanian empires, 191 00:08:50,937 --> 00:08:53,538 that within 116 years would allow 192 00:08:53,538 --> 00:08:57,754 the Islamic Empire to go from this, to this. 193 00:08:57,754 --> 00:09:00,089 His successor, Umar, was both and uncommonly good general 194 00:09:00,089 --> 00:09:03,582 and a brilliant administrator, but like so many other great men, 195 00:09:03,582 --> 00:09:06,755 he proved terrible at avoiding assassination, 196 00:09:06,755 --> 00:09:09,355 which gated the caliphate of Uthman, who standardized the Koran 197 00:09:09,355 --> 00:09:12,372 and continued both his predecessor's tradition of conquest 198 00:09:12,372 --> 00:09:15,282 and his predecessor's tradition of getting assassinated. 199 00:09:15,282 --> 00:09:17,454 Then, Ali finally got his turn as caliph, 200 00:09:17,454 --> 00:09:20,876 but his ascension was very controversial and it ultimately led to a civil war, 201 00:09:20,876 --> 00:09:23,819 which eventually led to the emergence of Uthman's tribe, the Umayyads, 202 00:09:23,819 --> 00:09:25,429 as the dynasty that would rule over 203 00:09:25,429 --> 00:09:28,791 an ever-expanding Islamic Empire for more than 100 years. 204 00:09:28,791 --> 00:09:30,132 It's common to hear that in these early years, 205 00:09:30,132 --> 00:09:34,284 Islam quotes spread by the sword, and that's partly true, unless you are ... 206 00:09:34,284 --> 00:09:36,536 Wait for it: The Mongols. 207 00:09:36,536 --> 00:09:38,930 (classic movie audio) 208 00:09:38,930 --> 00:09:41,019 Actually, as usual, the truth is more complicated. 209 00:09:41,019 --> 00:09:42,878 Many people, including the Mongols, 210 00:09:42,878 --> 00:09:45,543 but also including lots of people in Central and East Asia, 211 00:09:45,543 --> 00:09:48,307 embraced Islam without any military campaigns; 212 00:09:48,307 --> 00:09:51,913 and in fact, the Koran says that religion must not be an act of compulsion, 213 00:09:51,913 --> 00:09:56,920 but this much is true, the early Islamic Empire was really good at winning wars. 214 00:09:56,920 --> 00:09:59,947 And situated, as they were between two very wealthy empires, 215 00:09:59,947 --> 00:10:02,819 the Byzantines and the Sasanians, there was plenty to fight for. 216 00:10:02,819 --> 00:10:06,119 The first to fall with the Sasanians, the last non-Muslim successor 217 00:10:06,119 --> 00:10:09,126 to the Persian Empire, they were relatively easy pickings 218 00:10:09,126 --> 00:10:12,335 because they had been fighting the Byzantines for like 300 years 219 00:10:12,335 --> 00:10:16,462 and they were super tired, also they had recently been struck by plague. 220 00:10:16,462 --> 00:10:19,679 Plague, man, I'm telling you, it's like the red tortoise shell of history. 221 00:10:19,679 --> 00:10:21,181 (slow descending whistle) 222 00:10:21,181 --> 00:10:24,198 But, in those early days, they did pry away some valuable territory 223 00:10:24,198 --> 00:10:27,528 like Egypt, and the Holy Land, and then eventually, they got into Spain, 224 00:10:27,528 --> 00:10:29,801 where various Muslim dynasties would entrench themselves 225 00:10:29,801 --> 00:10:32,236 until being expelled in 1492. 226 00:10:32,236 --> 00:10:33,974 But as good as they were at making war, 227 00:10:33,974 --> 00:10:36,706 it still tempting to chalk up the Arab success to, 228 00:10:36,706 --> 00:10:38,421 you know, the will of God. 229 00:10:38,421 --> 00:10:40,883 And certainly, a lot of the people they conquered felt that way. 230 00:10:40,883 --> 00:10:44,612 Wars in this part of the world didn't just pit people against each other, 231 00:10:44,612 --> 00:10:47,466 they also pitted their gods against each other; 232 00:10:47,466 --> 00:10:50,903 so, while the Islamic Empire didn't require its subjects to convert to Islam, 233 00:10:50,903 --> 00:10:54,133 their stunning successes certainly convinced a lot of people 234 00:10:54,133 --> 00:10:56,340 that this monotheism thing was legit. 235 00:10:56,340 --> 00:11:01,406 Once again, John Green, proving super hip to the slang of today's young'uns. 236 00:11:01,406 --> 00:11:05,696 Also, you paid lower taxes if you converted, and just as taxes on cigarettes 237 00:11:05,696 --> 00:11:07,736 lead to people not wanting to smoke, 238 00:11:07,736 --> 00:11:10,072 taxes on worshiping your idols lead to people 239 00:11:10,072 --> 00:11:12,130 not wanting to worship them many more. 240 00:11:12,130 --> 00:11:14,336 So, in a period of time that was, historically speaking, 241 00:11:14,336 --> 00:11:16,755 both remarkably recent and remarkably short, 242 00:11:16,755 --> 00:11:19,074 a small group of people from an area of the world 243 00:11:19,074 --> 00:11:23,836 with no natural resources managed to create one of the great empires of the world, 244 00:11:23,836 --> 00:11:25,637 and also one of its great religions; 245 00:11:25,637 --> 00:11:28,214 and that very fact may be why people of Western European decent 246 00:11:28,214 --> 00:11:30,746 remain largely ignorant about this period, 247 00:11:30,746 --> 00:11:33,807 not only with the Muslims great conquers, they spawned an explosion 248 00:11:33,807 --> 00:11:36,426 of trade and learning that lasted hundreds of years. 249 00:11:36,426 --> 00:11:39,428 They saved many of the classic texts that form the basis of the so-called 250 00:11:39,428 --> 00:11:42,216 Western Canon, while Europe was ignoring them, 251 00:11:42,216 --> 00:11:43,979 and they paved the way for the Renaissance. 252 00:11:43,979 --> 00:11:46,058 While it's important to remember that much of the world 253 00:11:46,058 --> 00:11:48,731 between Spain and the Indus River wasn't Arabized, 254 00:11:48,731 --> 00:11:52,388 most of it was so thoroughly Islamised that these days we can't think 255 00:11:52,388 --> 00:11:56,452 of the world we now call the Middle East without thinking of it as Islamic. 256 00:11:56,452 --> 00:11:58,630 Like perhaps, the greatest testimony to Islam's power 257 00:11:58,630 --> 00:12:00,893 to organize peoples' lives and their communities 258 00:12:00,893 --> 00:12:03,206 is that in Egypt, five times a day, 259 00:12:03,206 --> 00:12:07,792 millions of people turn away from the pyramids, and toward Mecca. 260 00:12:07,792 --> 00:12:10,869 Egypt, birth place to one of the longest continuous cultures 261 00:12:10,869 --> 00:12:14,979 the world has ever known, is now the largest Arab country in the world. 262 00:12:14,979 --> 00:12:16,744 Next week, we'll talk about the dark ages. 263 00:12:16,744 --> 00:12:17,715 Spoiler alert: 264 00:12:17,715 --> 00:12:19,018 They were darkest in the evening. 265 00:12:19,033 --> 00:12:20,760 Thanks for watching, and we'll see you next time.