Islam in Asia
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Islam in Asia
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Islam began in Asia in the 7th century during the life of Muhammad. The greatest number of adherents of Islam has lived in Asia since the beginning of Islamic history.
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[edit] Medieval times
[edit] Muhammad
Islam was started on the Arabian peninsula by Muhammad in the 7th century. Since then it began spreading rapidly. Till his death (in 632), Muhammad managed to unite the whole of the Arabian peninsule into one country with Islam as the official religion.
[edit] Islamic Golden Age
Some time after the death of Muhammad, the Islamic Golden Age started (approx. 750). It lasted till about 1258. This period witnessed the lives of many great Muslim scientists and physicians such as Al-Kindi or Ibn Sina. It was also the time of the development of Islamic philosophy. Many influential Muslim thinkers lived at that time. The most notable examples are: Al-Kindi ("father" of Islamic philosophy), Al-Farabi, Ibn Sina, Al-Ghazali and the last one Ibn Rushd. At that time Islamic art also developed greatly.
[edit] Today
Today most Muslims live in Asia. The majority of notable Muslim religious leaders are based in Asia. Asian countries with high Muslim population include: Bangladesh, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, India, Turkey, Russia, Yemen, Oman, and Qatar.
One of the important 20th century figures that developed Islam was Muhammad Iqbal - a philosopher. Another important Asian Muslim was Abdullah Yusuf Ali, an Indian Muslim from Mumbai who translated the Qur'an to English.
