Answer:
Explanation:
The religion of Islam arose in the Arabian city of Mecca around A.D. 610 through the work of its prophet Muhammad. After Muhammad died in 632, his teachings were carried into Africa by Arab traders, settlers, and soldiers. By conversion and conquest, Islam spread across North Africa, into the eastern Horn of Africa, and even over the SAHARA DESERT into West Africa. The arrival of Islam had a major impact on the political and social development of those regions, and it remains a significant force in Africa today.
THE SPREAD OF ISLAM
Islam first took hold on the continent in the 600s and 700s. It was brought to EGYPT and North Africa by conquering armies and to the East African coast by traders and merchants. West Africa did not encounter Islam until about 800, and the religion spread more slowly there than in the eastern part of the continent.
Islam in Africa
Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia
In 639 an Arab army of some 4,000 men invaded Egypt, which was then under the control of the Byzantine Empire. Despite its small size, this Muslim force succeeded in driving the Byzantines out of Egypt and installing their own ruler, known as emir. Soon afterwards the Arabs began to push south along the NILE RIVER, attacking the Christian kingdoms of NUBIA in what is now northern SUDAN. However, Nubian resistance halted the Arab advance, and in 651 the emir of Egypt signed a peace treaty with the Nubians.
