The Islamic caliphates: conquests, trade, Baghdad and the House of Wisdom
Grade 7 Social Studies Worksheet - Challenge Me

Circle the best answer.
Which two boxes lead into the House of Wisdom box, Tala asks?
- Al-Khwarizmi's book, and the word algebra itself
- Translations of Aristotle, and a book on equations
- Cheaper books with paid scholars, without other help
- Cheaper books with paid scholars, and works gathered
Cause and effect chain "Watching the sky": [1] an Indian astronomy text reaches the royal court in Baghdad about 770; [2] Ptolemy's Almagest is translated into Arabic; [3] al-Ma'mun sets up observatories, among them one at Shammasiya in Baghdad; [4] the astronomers there set out to fix the positions of the stars; [5] al-Battani observes the sky from 877 to 918 and writes tables of the sun and moon that a later index calls more accurate than the Almagest; [6] later astronomers use his measurements and methods. Arrows: 1 → 3, 2 → 3, 3 → 4, 2 → 5, 5 → 6. Below the chain: al-Ma'mun became caliph in 813. Al-Battani made most of his observations at Antioch and ar-Raqqah. The bookseller Ibn an-Nadim wrote the index in 988. Cause and effect chain "Watching the sky": [1] an Indian astronomy text reaches the royal court in Baghdad about 770; [2] Ptolemy's Almagest is translated into Arabic; [3] al-Ma'mun sets up observatories, among them one at Shammasiya in Baghdad; [4] the astronomers there set out to fix the positions of the stars; [5] al-Battani observes the sky from 877 to 918 and writes tables of the sun and moon that a later index calls more accurate than the Almagest; [6] later astronomers use his measurements and methods. Arrows: 1 → 3, 2 → 3, 3 → 4, 2 → 5, 5 → 6. Below the chain: al-Ma'mun became caliph in 813. Al-Battani made most of his observations at Antioch and ar-Raqqah. The bookseller Ibn an-Nadim wrote the index in 988. Watching the sky [1] an Indian astronomy text reaches the royal court in Baghdad about 770 [2] Ptolemy's Almagest is translated into Arabic [3] al-Ma'mun sets up observatories, among them one at Shammasiya in Baghdad [4] the astronomers there set out to fix the positions of the stars [5] al-Battani observes the sky from 877 to 918 and writes tables of the sun and moon that a later index calls more accurate than the Almagest [6] later astronomers use his measurements and methods Below the chain: al-Ma'mun became caliph in 813. Al-Battani made most of his observations at Antioch and ar-Raqqah. The bookseller Ibn an-Nadim wrote the index in 988. Which two boxes lead into the observatories box, Zee asks?
- Al-Battani's tables, and the later astronomers who used them
- The Indian astronomy text, and the Almagest in Arabic
- The star positions, and the Indian text
- The Almagest in Arabic alone
Why does the observatories box have two arrows leading in, Ari asks?
Use the picture in question 2.
- Two caliphs built it at once
- Two earlier works helped bring it about
- The observatories came before both works
- The Almagest alone brought it about
Which sentence about al-Khwarizmi's book is careful, Bo asks?
Cause and effect chain "From translation to algebra": [1] paper makes books less expensive, and caliphs pay scholars well; [2] Greek, Persian and other works are collected in Baghdad; [3] the House of Wisdom in Baghdad becomes a center for translating and research under al-Ma'mun (caliph 813–833); [4] scholars translate Aristotle, Galen, Euclid and Ptolemy into Arabic; [5] al-Khwarizmi, a scholar there, writes a book on solving equations for al-Ma'mun; [6] the word algebra comes from al-jabr, a step named in the book's title; [7] Latin books of the 1100s based on his arithmetic give us the word algorithm, from his name. Arrows: 1 → 3, 2 → 3, 3 → 4, 3 → 5, 5 → 6, 5 → 7. Below the chain: al-Khwarizmi lived from about 780 to about 850 (one source gives 790 for his birth). Sources differ on the House of Wisdom: one says al-Ma'mun founded it about 828 as a library and translation center, one says it took over from the Persian school at Jundishapur, and one says he set it up as a center for translating and research. Cause and effect chain "From translation to algebra": [1] paper makes books less expensive, and caliphs pay scholars well; [2] Greek, Persian and other works are collected in Baghdad; [3] the House of Wisdom in Baghdad becomes a center for translating and research under al-Ma'mun (caliph 813–833); [4] scholars translate Aristotle, Galen, Euclid and Ptolemy into Arabic; [5] al-Khwarizmi, a scholar there, writes a book on solving equations for al-Ma'mun; [6] the word algebra comes from al-jabr, a step named in the book's title; [7] Latin books of the 1100s based on his arithmetic give us the word algorithm, from his name. Arrows: 1 → 3, 2 → 3, 3 → 4, 3 → 5, 5 → 6, 5 → 7. Below the chain: al-Khwarizmi lived from about 780 to about 850 (one source gives 790 for his birth). Sources differ on the House of Wisdom: one says al-Ma'mun founded it about 828 as a library and translation center, one says it took over from the Persian school at Jundishapur, and one says he set it up as a center for translating and research. From translation to algebra [1] paper makes books less expensive, and caliphs pay scholars well [2] Greek, Persian and other works are collected in Baghdad [3] the House of Wisdom in Baghdad becomes a center for translating and research under al-Ma'mun (caliph 813–833) [4] scholars translate Aristotle, Galen, Euclid and Ptolemy into Arabic [5] al-Khwarizmi, a scholar there, writes a book on solving equations for al-Ma'mun [6] the word algebra comes from al-jabr, a step named in the book's title [7] Latin books of the 1100s based on his arithmetic give us the word algorithm, from his name Below the chain: al-Khwarizmi lived from about 780 to about 850 (one source gives 790 for his birth). Sources differ on the House of Wisdom: one says al-Ma'mun founded it about 828 as a library and translation center, one says it took over from the Persian school at Jundishapur, and one says he set it up as a center for translating and research. - It was the single book he wrote
- It copied a Greek book word for word
- It invented algebra from nothing
- It can be considered the first book on algebra
Which sentence about al-Battani is careful, Esme asks?
Cause and effect chain "Watching the sky": [1] an Indian astronomy text reaches the royal court in Baghdad about 770; [2] Ptolemy's Almagest is translated into Arabic; [3] al-Ma'mun sets up observatories, among them one at Shammasiya in Baghdad; [4] the astronomers there set out to fix the positions of the stars; [5] al-Battani observes the sky from 877 to 918 and writes tables of the sun and moon that a later index calls more accurate than the Almagest; [6] later astronomers use his measurements and methods. Arrows: 1 → 3, 2 → 3, 3 → 4, 2 → 5, 5 → 6. Below the chain: al-Ma'mun became caliph in 813. Al-Battani made most of his observations at Antioch and ar-Raqqah. The bookseller Ibn an-Nadim wrote the index in 988. Cause and effect chain "Watching the sky": [1] an Indian astronomy text reaches the royal court in Baghdad about 770; [2] Ptolemy's Almagest is translated into Arabic; [3] al-Ma'mun sets up observatories, among them one at Shammasiya in Baghdad; [4] the astronomers there set out to fix the positions of the stars; [5] al-Battani observes the sky from 877 to 918 and writes tables of the sun and moon that a later index calls more accurate than the Almagest; [6] later astronomers use his measurements and methods. Arrows: 1 → 3, 2 → 3, 3 → 4, 2 → 5, 5 → 6. Below the chain: al-Ma'mun became caliph in 813. Al-Battani made most of his observations at Antioch and ar-Raqqah. The bookseller Ibn an-Nadim wrote the index in 988. Watching the sky [1] an Indian astronomy text reaches the royal court in Baghdad about 770 [2] Ptolemy's Almagest is translated into Arabic [3] al-Ma'mun sets up observatories, among them one at Shammasiya in Baghdad [4] the astronomers there set out to fix the positions of the stars [5] al-Battani observes the sky from 877 to 918 and writes tables of the sun and moon that a later index calls more accurate than the Almagest [6] later astronomers use his measurements and methods Below the chain: al-Ma'mun became caliph in 813. Al-Battani made most of his observations at Antioch and ar-Raqqah. The bookseller Ibn an-Nadim wrote the index in 988. - A bookseller's index of 988 praised his tables
- His tables were perfect beyond any doubt
- He observed from Baghdad alone
- No astronomer ever used his tables
Cause and effect chain "From translation to algebra": [1] paper makes books less expensive, and caliphs pay scholars well; [2] Greek, Persian and other works are collected in Baghdad; [3] the House of Wisdom in Baghdad becomes a center for translating and research under al-Ma'mun (caliph 813–833); [4] scholars translate Aristotle, Galen, Euclid and Ptolemy into Arabic; [5] al-Khwarizmi, a scholar there, writes a book on solving equations for al-Ma'mun; [6] the word algebra comes from al-jabr, a step named in the book's title; [7] Latin books of the 1100s based on his arithmetic give us the word algorithm, from his name. Arrows: 1 → 3, 2 → 3, 3 → 4, 3 → 5, 5 → 6, 5 → 7. Below the chain: al-Khwarizmi lived from about 780 to about 850 (one source gives 790 for his birth). Sources differ on the House of Wisdom: one says al-Ma'mun founded it about 828 as a library and translation center, one says it took over from the Persian school at Jundishapur, and one says he set it up as a center for translating and research. Cause and effect chain "From translation to algebra": [1] paper makes books less expensive, and caliphs pay scholars well; [2] Greek, Persian and other works are collected in Baghdad; [3] the House of Wisdom in Baghdad becomes a center for translating and research under al-Ma'mun (caliph 813–833); [4] scholars translate Aristotle, Galen, Euclid and Ptolemy into Arabic; [5] al-Khwarizmi, a scholar there, writes a book on solving equations for al-Ma'mun; [6] the word algebra comes from al-jabr, a step named in the book's title; [7] Latin books of the 1100s based on his arithmetic give us the word algorithm, from his name. Arrows: 1 → 3, 2 → 3, 3 → 4, 3 → 5, 5 → 6, 5 → 7. Below the chain: al-Khwarizmi lived from about 780 to about 850 (one source gives 790 for his birth). Sources differ on the House of Wisdom: one says al-Ma'mun founded it about 828 as a library and translation center, one says it took over from the Persian school at Jundishapur, and one says he set it up as a center for translating and research. From translation to algebra [1] paper makes books less expensive, and caliphs pay scholars well [2] Greek, Persian and other works are collected in Baghdad [3] the House of Wisdom in Baghdad becomes a center for translating and research under al-Ma'mun (caliph 813–833) [4] scholars translate Aristotle, Galen, Euclid and Ptolemy into Arabic [5] al-Khwarizmi, a scholar there, writes a book on solving equations for al-Ma'mun [6] the word algebra comes from al-jabr, a step named in the book's title [7] Latin books of the 1100s based on his arithmetic give us the word algorithm, from his name Below the chain: al-Khwarizmi lived from about 780 to about 850 (one source gives 790 for his birth). Sources differ on the House of Wisdom: one says al-Ma'mun founded it about 828 as a library and translation center, one says it took over from the Persian school at Jundishapur, and one says he set it up as a center for translating and research. Sources differ on how the House of Wisdom began. Which reply is careful, Jun asks?
- The sources agree it began at Jundishapur
- They agree on al-Ma'mun's reign but differ on its start
- The sources agree that al-Ma'mun founded it
- No source says al-Ma'mun mattered
How many years did al-Ma'mun rule as caliph, from 813 to 833, Kira asks?
Use the picture in question 6.
- 1,646 years
- 20 years
- 200 years
- 21 years
The Indian text came about 770. About how many years later did al-Ma'mun become caliph in 813, Milo asks?
Cause and effect chain "Watching the sky": [1] an Indian astronomy text reaches the royal court in Baghdad about 770; [2] Ptolemy's Almagest is translated into Arabic; [3] al-Ma'mun sets up observatories, among them one at Shammasiya in Baghdad; [4] the astronomers there set out to fix the positions of the stars; [5] al-Battani observes the sky from 877 to 918 and writes tables of the sun and moon that a later index calls more accurate than the Almagest; [6] later astronomers use his measurements and methods. Arrows: 1 → 3, 2 → 3, 3 → 4, 2 → 5, 5 → 6. Below the chain: al-Ma'mun became caliph in 813. Al-Battani made most of his observations at Antioch and ar-Raqqah. The bookseller Ibn an-Nadim wrote the index in 988. Cause and effect chain "Watching the sky": [1] an Indian astronomy text reaches the royal court in Baghdad about 770; [2] Ptolemy's Almagest is translated into Arabic; [3] al-Ma'mun sets up observatories, among them one at Shammasiya in Baghdad; [4] the astronomers there set out to fix the positions of the stars; [5] al-Battani observes the sky from 877 to 918 and writes tables of the sun and moon that a later index calls more accurate than the Almagest; [6] later astronomers use his measurements and methods. Arrows: 1 → 3, 2 → 3, 3 → 4, 2 → 5, 5 → 6. Below the chain: al-Ma'mun became caliph in 813. Al-Battani made most of his observations at Antioch and ar-Raqqah. The bookseller Ibn an-Nadim wrote the index in 988. Watching the sky [1] an Indian astronomy text reaches the royal court in Baghdad about 770 [2] Ptolemy's Almagest is translated into Arabic [3] al-Ma'mun sets up observatories, among them one at Shammasiya in Baghdad [4] the astronomers there set out to fix the positions of the stars [5] al-Battani observes the sky from 877 to 918 and writes tables of the sun and moon that a later index calls more accurate than the Almagest [6] later astronomers use his measurements and methods Below the chain: al-Ma'mun became caliph in 813. Al-Battani made most of his observations at Antioch and ar-Raqqah. The bookseller Ibn an-Nadim wrote the index in 988. - About 43 years
- About 430 years
- About 1,583 years
- About 33 years
Pia's note says, "The word algorithm comes from the title of al-Khwarizmi's algebra book." Which fix is right?
Cause and effect chain "From translation to algebra": [1] paper makes books less expensive, and caliphs pay scholars well; [2] Greek, Persian and other works are collected in Baghdad; [3] the House of Wisdom in Baghdad becomes a center for translating and research under al-Ma'mun (caliph 813–833); [4] scholars translate Aristotle, Galen, Euclid and Ptolemy into Arabic; [5] al-Khwarizmi, a scholar there, writes a book on solving equations for al-Ma'mun; [6] the word algebra comes from al-jabr, a step named in the book's title; [7] Latin books of the 1100s based on his arithmetic give us the word algorithm, from his name. Arrows: 1 → 3, 2 → 3, 3 → 4, 3 → 5, 5 → 6, 5 → 7. Below the chain: al-Khwarizmi lived from about 780 to about 850 (one source gives 790 for his birth). Sources differ on the House of Wisdom: one says al-Ma'mun founded it about 828 as a library and translation center, one says it took over from the Persian school at Jundishapur, and one says he set it up as a center for translating and research. Cause and effect chain "From translation to algebra": [1] paper makes books less expensive, and caliphs pay scholars well; [2] Greek, Persian and other works are collected in Baghdad; [3] the House of Wisdom in Baghdad becomes a center for translating and research under al-Ma'mun (caliph 813–833); [4] scholars translate Aristotle, Galen, Euclid and Ptolemy into Arabic; [5] al-Khwarizmi, a scholar there, writes a book on solving equations for al-Ma'mun; [6] the word algebra comes from al-jabr, a step named in the book's title; [7] Latin books of the 1100s based on his arithmetic give us the word algorithm, from his name. Arrows: 1 → 3, 2 → 3, 3 → 4, 3 → 5, 5 → 6, 5 → 7. Below the chain: al-Khwarizmi lived from about 780 to about 850 (one source gives 790 for his birth). Sources differ on the House of Wisdom: one says al-Ma'mun founded it about 828 as a library and translation center, one says it took over from the Persian school at Jundishapur, and one says he set it up as a center for translating and research. From translation to algebra [1] paper makes books less expensive, and caliphs pay scholars well [2] Greek, Persian and other works are collected in Baghdad [3] the House of Wisdom in Baghdad becomes a center for translating and research under al-Ma'mun (caliph 813–833) [4] scholars translate Aristotle, Galen, Euclid and Ptolemy into Arabic [5] al-Khwarizmi, a scholar there, writes a book on solving equations for al-Ma'mun [6] the word algebra comes from al-jabr, a step named in the book's title [7] Latin books of the 1100s based on his arithmetic give us the word algorithm, from his name Below the chain: al-Khwarizmi lived from about 780 to about 850 (one source gives 790 for his birth). Sources differ on the House of Wisdom: one says al-Ma'mun founded it about 828 as a library and translation center, one says it took over from the Persian school at Jundishapur, and one says he set it up as a center for translating and research. - Change "algorithm" to "paper"
- Change "title" to "city"
- Leave it: both words come from the title
- Change it: algorithm comes from his name
Ren's note says, "Al-Battani watched the sky only from Baghdad." Which fix is right?
Cause and effect chain "Watching the sky": [1] an Indian astronomy text reaches the royal court in Baghdad about 770; [2] Ptolemy's Almagest is translated into Arabic; [3] al-Ma'mun sets up observatories, among them one at Shammasiya in Baghdad; [4] the astronomers there set out to fix the positions of the stars; [5] al-Battani observes the sky from 877 to 918 and writes tables of the sun and moon that a later index calls more accurate than the Almagest; [6] later astronomers use his measurements and methods. Arrows: 1 → 3, 2 → 3, 3 → 4, 2 → 5, 5 → 6. Below the chain: al-Ma'mun became caliph in 813. Al-Battani made most of his observations at Antioch and ar-Raqqah. The bookseller Ibn an-Nadim wrote the index in 988. Cause and effect chain "Watching the sky": [1] an Indian astronomy text reaches the royal court in Baghdad about 770; [2] Ptolemy's Almagest is translated into Arabic; [3] al-Ma'mun sets up observatories, among them one at Shammasiya in Baghdad; [4] the astronomers there set out to fix the positions of the stars; [5] al-Battani observes the sky from 877 to 918 and writes tables of the sun and moon that a later index calls more accurate than the Almagest; [6] later astronomers use his measurements and methods. Arrows: 1 → 3, 2 → 3, 3 → 4, 2 → 5, 5 → 6. Below the chain: al-Ma'mun became caliph in 813. Al-Battani made most of his observations at Antioch and ar-Raqqah. The bookseller Ibn an-Nadim wrote the index in 988. Watching the sky [1] an Indian astronomy text reaches the royal court in Baghdad about 770 [2] Ptolemy's Almagest is translated into Arabic [3] al-Ma'mun sets up observatories, among them one at Shammasiya in Baghdad [4] the astronomers there set out to fix the positions of the stars [5] al-Battani observes the sky from 877 to 918 and writes tables of the sun and moon that a later index calls more accurate than the Almagest [6] later astronomers use his measurements and methods Below the chain: al-Ma'mun became caliph in 813. Al-Battani made most of his observations at Antioch and ar-Raqqah. The bookseller Ibn an-Nadim wrote the index in 988. - Change "Baghdad" to "Medina"
- Leave it: the observatories stood in Baghdad alone
- Change "sky" to "coins"
- Change it: he observed mostly at Antioch and ar-Raqqah