Teaching about Islam in Latin

This year my school returned to (almost) fully in-person learning. Since some students did a mix of in-person, digital, hybrid, or a combination of all three last year, I decided to begin the year with my Latin IV class with my latest publication, Nasreddin Chogia: Fabellae. Why? The fables present short, but syntactically-dense Latin. The brevity, levity, and relatively concrete subject matter of the fables facilitates quick and light reading. On the other hand, the fables are syntactically-dense (e.g. conditionals; changes in person, mood, tense, inter alia), which will (hopefully) prepare students for readings that may see on the ALIRA (ACTFL Latin Interpretive Reading Assessment), which they will take in the spring to qualify for the Seal of Biliteracy. 

To prepare my students to understand the cultural references within the fables, I began the year by teaching about the religion of Islam, mosque architecture, and important figures and traditions in Muslim communities. In my slides included below, you will find the following:

• The fundamental beliefs in Islam
• Statistics about Muslims worldwide and in the United States
• The Five Pillars of Islam
• Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha
• Mosque features and architecture
• The role of the imam and the muezzin
• Architectural features: minarets, mihrab, minbar, ablution fountains, calligraphy

See my slides below:

What my students did with the material:

• Picture Talks: I facilitated discussions in Latin by projecting images of mosques from around the world. Students and I discussed exterior and interior features and their significance.
• Timed Write: I projected photos of the Sokollu Mehmet Mosque in Istanbul. Students were expected to write as much as they could in Latin about the images by using the photos and their notes from our earlier discussions. 

Why teach about Islam in a Latin class? In my humble opinion, it is an imperative of any humanities course to foster understanding and appreciation for the traditions and communities that exist in the local community and around in the world today. The communities and traditions we examine in a language course should not necessarily belong to that specific language tradition. Although Latin language cultures like ancient Rome and medieval Western Europe continue to be stereotyped and appropriated by white supremacists, ignorance of contemporary communities comes with greater consequences (i.e. Islamophobia). I do not expect my students to become experts on Islam, but if in the future they can at least speak accurately and respectfully about the Muslim traditions and beliefs and the basics of mosque architecture, then I will consider my efforts a success.