Question

S.P Scott writes in “The History of the Moorish Empire in Europe” that:

“There were knowledge and learning everywhere except in Catholic Europe. At a time when even kings could not read or write, a Moorish* king had a private library of 600,000 books. At a time when 99 percent of the Christian people were wholly illiterate [could not read], the Moorish city of Cordova had 800 public schools, and there was not a village within the limits of the empire where the blessings of education could not be enjoyed by the children of the most indigent* peasant… and it was difficult to encounter even a Moorish peasant who could not read and write.”

*Moorish: refers to things related to the Moors, a medieval Muslim people of North African origins (primarily Berbers and Arabs) who played a significant role in the history of the Iberian Peninsula (modern-day Spain and Portugal) during the Middle Ages.
*indigent: poor
Based only on this document, what were the effects of Islamic Civilization in the Middle Ages?

Answer 1

Based only on this document, the effects of Islamic civilization in the Middle Ages were:

- Widespread knowledge and learning throughout the society.
- High literacy levels, extending even to peasants (it was “difficult to encounter even a Moorish peasant who could not read and write”).
- Strong support for scholarship among rulers (example: a Moorish king with a private library of 600,000 books).
- Development of institutional education: many public schools (Cordova is said to have had 800 public schools).
- Broad access to education across social classes, including the poorest (“the children of the most indigent peasant” could enjoy education).
- A cultural/intellectual advantage relative to Catholic Europe, which the passage describes as largely illiterate at the time.

Overall, the passage portrays Islamic civilization as creating an extensive, accessible, and elite-supported educational and intellectual culture in the Middle Ages.