What is an Islamic City and Where has the Idea Come From Essay

What is an Islamic City and Where has the Idea Come From - Essay Example As the report stresses that the idea of Islamic City simply originates from the works of the Western Orientalists, who purported to describe the essence of the Islamic cities that emerged on the eve of westernization to try and make sense of the ancient Arabic cities . It is the work of these Western Orientalists that spread the idea of Islamic City as it is known today. The city has been associated with the convergence of people with different ideas, life perspectives and philosophies of life that results in the generation of different fundamental ideologies that shapes the world. Religion is one of the fundamental principles that shapes different world cultures, and for that reason, it is also associated with urbanization and the city. This paper declares that Islam has been characterized as an urban religion since the days of Prophet Muhammad. This argument has been advanced by the western orientalists, who mainly for lack of full knowledge and understanding of the Islam and then whole Muslim culture made assertions that may not hold true in the true context of understanding the Muslim religion and culture. The western orientalists argued that Islam is an urban religion, due to the fact that the requirement that the solemnization of the Friday Islamic prayers be done at a congressional mosque made urbanization for the advent Muslim faithful a necessity. The early mosques, just like the early churches and synagogues, were mainly built in the urban areas, effectively making Islam an urban religion.