Encyclopedia of Islam

Further reading: Abu Bakr Abd al-Razzaq, Circumci-

sion in Islam. Translated by Aisha Bewley (London: 

Dar al-Taqwa, 1998); John G. Kennedy, “Circumcision 

and Excision Ceremonies.” In Nubian Ceremonial Life,

edited by John G. Kennedy, 151–170 (Cairo: American 

University in Cairo Press, 1978); Nahid Touba, Female 

Genital Mutilation: A Call for Global Action (New York: 

Women, Inc., 1993).

cities

The history of i

slam

 as a religion and a civilization 

is one that is centered on urban life and institu-

tions, contrary to stereotypes that exaggerate the 

importance of deserts and nomadic pastoralism. 

Muslims based their first empires in the same 

lands where the ancient Mesopotamians and 

Egyptians built the first cities in history and where 

Hellenistic cities flourished after the conquests of 

a

leXander

 

the

 g

reat

 in the fourth century 

b

.

c

.

e

.

The lives of m

Uhammad

 and the first Muslims 

were lived primarily in the towns of m

ecca

 and 

m

edina

, located in the Hijaz region of the arid 

Arabian Peninsula. The impact of these two cities 

on Islam is reflected in the q

Uran

 itself, which 

distinguishes between Meccan and Medinan chap-

ters. Mecca’s importance is also underscored in the 

F

ive

 p

illars

 of Islam, which require that Muslims 

face toward that city’s Sacred Mosque when they 

do their daily prayers and that they must perform 

the hajj there at least once in their lifetimes if they 

are able.

During their early conquests, Arab Muslim 

armies occupied ancient cities and towns of the 

Middle East, such as J

erUsalem

,  d

amascUs

, and 

Aleppo in s

yria

, Alexandria in e

gypt

, Nishapur 

and Balkh in i

ran

, and Samarqand in Central 

Asia. They did the same when they penetrated the 

Iberian Peninsula, where they settled in the old 

Roman cities of c

ordoba

, Seville, and g

ranada

.

In many regions of the empire, they built new 

garrison towns, some of which grew into major 

urban centers such as Fustat in Egypt, Tunis and 

F

ez

 in North Africa, Basra and Kufa in Iraq, and 

Shiraz in Iran. They built the legendary city of 

b

aghdad

 in i

raq

 in the eighth century, and later, 

when Muslim armies invaded northern India in 

the 12th century, they founded the fortress city 

of  d

elhi

. All of these cities served as important 

political, cultural, religious, and economic cen-

ters. People of different ethnicities, religions, and 

social classes interacted in them on a daily basis.

In an important 10th-century topographic 

encyclopedia, al-Muqaddasi (also known as al-

Maqdisi, d. ca. 990) described hundreds of cities 

and towns in Muslim lands from a

ndalUsia

 to 

Central Asia. These urban systems were con-

K  150  

cities

---

nected by trade routes that spanned mountains, 

deserts, river lands, and sometimes seas, forming 

complex spatial hierarchies, organized vertically 

from the local fortress or commercial center to 

the district capital, the provincial capital, and 

transregional metropolis. Some of these cities 

had specialized functions, such as the holy cities 

of Mecca, Medina, Jerusalem, and k

arbala

; the 

commercial centers of Aleppo (in Syria) and Fus-

tat; and the palace cities of Baghdad, Samarra (in 

Iraq), c

airo

, and Madinat al-Zahra (next to Cor-

doba). A number of cities became famous as cen-

ters of learning and scholarship, such as Baghdad, 

Nishapur, Cairo, and Cordoba. Najaf in Iraq and 

Qumm in Iran became major centers of learning 

for the Shia. All cities were dependent on nearby 

agricultural lands and water systems, and they 

benefited from symbiotic relations with b

edoUin

and other nomadic peoples who provided pasto-

ral animal products, caravan transport, and often 

warriors for the army. Urban populations varied 

in size from a few thousand for the smaller settle-

ments to nearly a million in medieval Baghdad, 

Cairo, and Cordoba at their height, far exceeding 

the populations of European cities at the time. 

Famines, plagues, droughts, wars, and invasions 

severely affected city life, causing population 

levels to fluctuate; smaller towns and cities were 

often abandoned in such situations. i

bn

 k

haldUn

(d. 1406), the famous medieval philosopher of 

history, pointed out that city dwellers became 

unhealthy because of their luxurious diets and 

lack of exercise compared to nomadic peoples, 

who were more abstemious and physically fit.

Typical features in the medieval Islamicate 

urban landscape were the Friday 

mosqUe

, per-

manent marketplace, palace complex or fortress, 

public bath, and residential quarters. Other impor-

tant architectural features were shrines containing 

relics of holy men and women, public fountains, 

caravanserais, religious colleges, and Sufi hos-

pices. Most cities also had non-Muslim religious 

structures such as churches and synagogues. 

Streets were typically narrow and winding. Cem-

eteries were usually located on the outer edges 

of the inhabited areas. Unlike the Greco-Roman 

Hellenistic cities that preceded them, Islamicate 

cities did not have theaters, coliseums, or gridlike 

street patterns.

Cities in Muslim lands have undergone major 

transformations in the modern era. Colonization 

resulted in the creation of European-style quarters 

and suburbs that contrasted greatly with the old 

medieval cities. New street patterns, architectural 

styles, and building materials were introduced by 

colonial architects and native ones who emulated 

the West. Electric lighting, motorized transport, 

and modern communications enhanced the qual-

ity of life for many urban dwellers during the 

20th century. Several of these cities, such as Cairo, 

i

stanbUl

, and New Delhi have become cosmo-

politan centers of global reach and importance, 

where modern skyscrapers stand next to medieval 

heritage sites and buildings displaying modern 

revivals of traditional architectural styles. On the 

other hand, new educational and employment 

opportunities, improved health services, land 

reform, and mechanization have resulted in major 

population shifts from the countryside to the city. 

As a consequence, urban populations increased 

dramatically during the latter part of the 20th cen-

tury, placing great strains on the urban infrastruc-

ture and city services. Millions of people living in 

densely populated urban shanty towns attached to 

the older quarters or juxtaposed to upper-income 

and business districts find themselves faced with 

low incomes or no jobs, substandard housing and 

infrastructure, and poor schooling and health 

care. These slums can be found in such major 

cities as Rabat (Morocco), Cairo, Beirut, Baghdad, 

Tehran, Karachi, and Dhaka and contribute to 

the population of disaffected youths who become 

recruits for Islamic organizations and extremist 

movements.

The metropolitan areas with the largest popu-

lations in Muslim countries today are greater 

Cairo (est. 16.8 million, 2008), Jakarta (Indone-

sia) (13.1 million, 2005), Dhaka (Bangladesh)