The educational and teaching role of mosques in the Umayyad era

Abstract

This research highlights the educational and teaching role of mosques in the Umayyad era، as mosques represented centers of scientific، cultural and educational radiation in the Islamic community. During that period، the function of mosques was not limited to worship only، but rather turned into comprehensive educational institutions، offering religious sciences such as interpretation، hadith and jurisprudence، in addition to rational sciences such as the Arabic language، logic and philosophy، and even applied sciences such as medicine and astronomy.

Mosques also played a prominent educational role in instilling Islamic values ​​and good morals، and strengthening religious and social affiliation. They contributed to preparing a generation of scholars and leaders who carried the banner of science and spread knowledge throughout the Islamic state.

The research revealed the diversity of mosques in the Umayyad era, and they became like institutes and universities, available to everyone who desired and was interested in matters of knowledge and science. This helped educate society, and the Umayyad state was interested in kuttabs (traditional schools), and established special kuttabs for teaching boys the Holy Quran, writing, arithmetic, and other sciences. This helped spread knowledge through prominent educational figures in science during the Umayyad era, and they worked generation after generation to improve the Quranic script until it reached the pinnacle of beauty and elegance in the late third century AH. We discussed the science of interpretation, the science of hadith, as well as the Arabic language, literature, and the mixing of Muslim Arabs with the conquered lands and regions, and how the people of these lands began to learn the Arabic language, study it, and become educated in many of these sciences, and developed cultural methods that led to progress and expansion of sciences and knowledge among the people.