History
Islam in South Asia
From the Delhi Sultanate to the Mughals
4 min, Intro
Islam reached South Asia first with Arab traders. Then, from the 1200s, it came with dynasties that ruled from Delhi. The Mughals built one of the richest empires on earth. Today about a third of the world's Muslims live in Pakistan, India and Bangladesh.
Draft written with AI help: awaiting scholar review
The thread
Islam reaches South Asia with Arab traders, then with dynasties ruling from Delhi. Among ordinary people, many historians say, it spreads through teachers and settlers more than armies. The Mughals build one of the richest empires on earth. Their power fades under the British. In 1947 partition divides the land.
Traders, Sufis and sultans
The story starts with merchants. Within decades of the Prophet, Muslim traders settled on India's western coast.
In 711 to 712 an Arab army under Muhammad ibn Qasim took Sindh, in today's Pakistan. From 1206, Turkic dynasties ruled much of northern India as the Delhi Sultanate.
But who carried Islam to ordinary people? Historians generally credit Sufi teachers, such as Mu'in al-Din Chishti of Ajmer, more than armies. Others, such as Richard Eaton, stress slow settlement and farming on the frontier, as in Bengal.
Many historians credit teachers and settlers, more than armies, with spreading Islam in South Asia.
The Mughals
In 1526 a man descended from Timur and Genghis Khan founded a new empire. His name was Babur. His empire was the Mughal Empire.
His grandson Akbar ruled from 1556 to 1605. Akbar abolished the tax on non-Muslims and hosted debates among religions.
Shah Jahan built the Taj Mahal in Agra as a tomb for his wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died in 1631.
Then the mood changed. Shah Jahan's son Aurangzeb expanded the empire to its largest and ruled more strictly. He reintroduced the tax on non-Muslims. Historians still argue over his legacy.
Akbar's tolerance and Aurangzeb's strictness both shaped the Mughal Empire.
Partition and today
The Mughal Empire did not last forever. The British took control in stages. In 1857 they ended the last Mughal emperor's rule.
Then, in 1947, British India was partitioned into Hindu-majority India and Muslim-majority Pakistan. Perhaps a million people died. Some fifteen million were displaced. In 1971 East Pakistan became Bangladesh.
India still has one of the world's largest Muslim populations, around two hundred million. And the story reaches South Africa. Many South African Muslims trace their families to Gujarat and other parts of India.
Many South African Muslims trace their families to Gujarat and other parts of India.