Cultural Imperialism

In the lands conquered by Muslim armies, Arabic language and Arabic culture prevailed. From Morocco all the way to Indonesia, many local languages, religion, architecture, customs, even names were mixed with Arab Islamic traditions. Examples include the incorporation of Arabic calligraphy into the design of the Hagia Sofia mosque in Istanbul upon its conversion from a church. A significant amount of independence was kept for local traditions in many places that maintained daily interactions with non-Islamic lands; economically, politically, and culturally. An example is the continued existence of belly-dancing, which according to the stricter rulings of modesty and propriety in Islamic rulings is a fairly taboo practice, however, it is found all across the Middle East. Less cultural tolerance for existing traditions was practiced in lands that were kept more isolated from interactions with the non-Muslim world, such as Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia, where the strictest (to the extent of distortion) practices of Islamic law are shown. Cultural imperialism is also witnessed in Islamic lands gained through the incorporation of the Arabic language into the culture and educational systems.

This dissemination of Arabic may be partly explained by the fact that according to Islamic tradition the Islamic holy book, the Qur’an, is written in Arabic that has never changed the slightest bit in content or language ever since the times of the Prophet Muhammad in the seventh century AD. Furthermore, Islamic tradition has also held that translations of the Qur’an from Arabic, a metaphorical, tri-literal-root, semitic language, into other languages may introduce changes in the nuanced meanings of the words. Thus, wherever Islam spread new adherents were encouraged to master classical Arabic for their Qur’anic studies.