How Did Islamic Culture Influence Western Civilization

6. From the middle of the eighth century until Muslims were exiled from Spain in 1492, Islamic culture and civilization exerted broad and lasting influences on Western culture. This period, known as the Islamic Golden Age, saw advances in science, philosophy, medicine and education. Great centers of Muslim learning under the Abbasid dynasty, started knowledge and scientific development that spread from Alexandria and Baghdad to Europe. The architecture flourished in Muslim Spain, later influencing Spanish colonial settlements around the world. Muslim philosophers translated the works of classical Greek philosophers and added their own significant contributions, preserving and enriching texts and traditions that could have otherwise been lost. Ancient Greek ideas sifted through the translations and works of Muslim philosophers. Manuscripts facilitated the scholarship of ancient texts throughout the middle Ages, especially in monasteries where monks could study all branches of knowledge. These important ideas, sometimes transmitted only through …show more content…
"Arabic became the almost universal language of arts, sciences and letters between 750 and 1250," explains Arthur Goldschmidt, Jr., in his book "A Concise History of the Middle East." A long list of Arabic words entered Western languages at this time, and were part of both scientific and philosophical lexicons, and the language of trade and commerce. They include: al-kuhl (alcohol), al-miral (admiral), sukkar (sugar) and qahwah (coffee). Arabic's prominent use in Muslim Spain caused cross-fertilization of languages, leaving effects that remained long after Muslims left Spain. In architecture, the forms and rich surface decoration blended with European styles, especially in Spain and Portugal. This style was brought to the New World and expressed in the rich Spanish colonial architectures in North and South