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Mesopotamia

===Astronomy===
{{main|Babylonian astronomy}}
{{see|Babylonian astrology|Babylonian calendar}}

The Babylonian astronomers were very interested in studying the stars and sky, and most could already predict eclipses and solstices. People thought that everything had some purpose in astronomy. Most of these related to religion and omens. Mesopotamian astronomers worked out a 12 month calendar based on the cycles of the moon. They divided the year into two seasons: summer and winter. The origins of astronomy as well as [[Babylonian astrology|astrology]] date from this time.

Babylonian astronomy was the basis for much of what was done in [[Greek astronomy|Greek and Hellenistic astronomy]], in classical [[Indian astronomy]], in [[Sassanid Empire|Sassanian]], [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] and [[Syria]]n astronomy, in medieval [[Islamic astronomy]], and in [[Central Asia]]n and [[Western Europe]]an astronomy.<ref name=dp1998>{{Harvtxt|Pingree|1998}}</ref>

===Mathematics===
{{Main|Babylonian mathematics}}
{{see|Babylonian calendar}}

The Mesopotamians used a [[sexagesimal]] (base 60) [[numeral system]]. This is the source of the current 60-minute hours and 24-hour days, as well as the 360 [[Degree (angle)|degree]] circle. The Sumerian calendar also measured weeks of seven days each. This mathematical knowledge was used in [[History of cartography|mapmaking]].


Medicine===
The oldest Babylonian texts on [[medicine]] date back to the [[Old Babylonian]] period in the first half of the [[2nd millennium BC]]. The most extensive Babylonian medical text, however, is the ''Diagnostic Handbook'' written by the physician Esagil-kin-apli of [[Borsippa]],<ref name=Stol-99/> during the reign of the [[List of Kings of Babylon|Babylonian king]] Adad-apla-iddina (1069-1046 BC).<ref>Marten Stol (1993), ''Epilepsy in Babylonia'', p. 55, [[Brill Publishers]], ISBN 9072371631.</ref>

Along with contemporary [[ancient Egyptian medicine]], the Babylonians introduced the concepts of [[diagnosis]], [[prognosis]], [[physical examination]], and [[prescription]]s. In addition, the ''Diagnostic Handbook'' introduced the methods of [[therapy]] and a[[etiology]] and the use of [[empiricism]], [[logic]] and [[rationality]] in diagnosis, prognosis and therapy. The text contains a list of medical [[symptom]]s and often detailed empirical [[observation]]s along with logical rules used in combining observed symptoms on the body of a [[patient]] with its diagnosis and prognosis.<ref>H. F. J. Horstmanshoff, Marten Stol, Cornelis Tilburg (2004), ''Magic and Rationality in Ancient Near Eastern and Graeco-Roman Medicine'', p. 97-98, [[Brill Publishers]], ISBN 9004136665.</ref>

The symptoms and diseases of a patient were treated through therapeutic means such as [[bandage]]s, [[Cream (pharmaceutical)|cream]]s and [[pill]]s. If a patient could not be cured physically, the Babylonian physicians often relied on [[exorcism]] to cleanse the patient from any [[curse]]s. Esagil-kin-apli's ''Diagnostic Handbook'' was based on a logical set of [[axiom]]s and assumptions, including the modern view that through the examination and [[inspection]] of the symptoms of a patient, it is possible to determine the patient's [[disease]], its aetiology and future development, and the chances of the patient's recovery.<ref name=Stol-99>H. F. J. Horstmanshoff, Marten Stol, Cornelis Tilburg (2004), ''Magic and Rationality in Ancient Near Eastern and Graeco-Roman Medicine'', p. 99, [[Brill Publishers]], ISBN 9004136665.</ref>

Esagil-kin-apli discovered a variety of [[illness]]es and diseases and described their symptoms in his ''Diagnostic Handbook''. These include the symptoms for many varieties of [[epilepsy]] and related [[ailment]]s along with their diagnosis and prognosis.<ref>Marten Stol (1993), ''Epilepsy in Babylonia'', p. 5, [[Brill Publishers]], ISBN 9072371631.</ref>

===Technology===
Mesopotamian people invented many technologies, most notably the [[wheel]], which some consider the most important [[Mechanical engineering|mechanical]] invention in history.<ref>[[Ahmad Y Hassan]]. [http://www.history-science-technology.com/Notes/Notes%203.htm The Crank-Connecting Rod System in a Continuously Rotating Machine].</ref> Other Mesopotamian inventions include [[metalwork]]ing, [[copper]]-working, [[glass]]making, [[lamp (fixture)|lamp]] making, [[textile|textile weaving]], flood control, water storage, as well as [[irrigation]].They were the first to make different things from technology

They were also one of the first [[Bronze age]] people in the world. Early on they used [[copper]], [[bronze]] and [[gold]], and later they used [[iron]]. Palaces were decorated with hundreds of kilograms of these very expensive metals. Also, copper, bronze, and iron were used for [[armor]] as well as for different weapons such as [[sword]]s, [[dagger]]s, [[spear]]s, and [[Mace (club)|maces]].

The earliest type of [[pump]] was the [[Archimedes screw]], first used by [[Sennacherib]], King of [[Assyria]], for the [[Domestic water system|water systems]] at the [[Hanging Gardens of Babylon]] and [[Nineveh]] in the 7th century BC, and later described in more detail by [[Archimedes]] in the 3rd century BC.<ref>Stephanie Dalley and John Peter Oleson (January 2003). "Sennacherib, Archimedes, and the Water Screw: The Context of Invention in the Ancient World", ''Technology and Culture'' '''44''' (1).</ref> Later during the [[Parthia]]n or [[Sassanid Empire|Sassanid]] periods, the [[Baghdad Battery]], which may have been the first [[Battery (electricity)|batteries]], were created in Mesopotamia.<ref name=BBC>{{cite web |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4450052.stm |last=Twist |first=Jo |title=Open media to connect communities |publisher=[[BBC News]] |date=20 November 2005 |accessdate=2007-08-06}}</ref>


=== Family life ===

.... As for schooling, only royal offspring and sons of the rich and professionals such as scribes, physicians, temple administrators, and so on, went to school. Most boys were taught their father's trade or were apprenticed out to learn a trade.<ref>{{cite book|author=Rivkah Harris|title=Gender and Aging in Mesopotamia|date=2000}}</ref> Girls had to stay home with their mothers to learn [[housekeeping]] and [[cooking]], and to look after the younger children. Some children would help with crushing grain, or cleaning birds. Unusual for that time in history, women in Mesopotamia had [[rights]]. They could own [[property]] and, if they had good reason, get a [[divorce]].


=== Music, songs and instruments ===
Some songs were written for the gods but many were written to describe important events. Although music and songs amused [[Monarch|kings]], they were also enjoyed by ordinary people who liked to sing and dance in their homes or in the [[marketplace]]s. Songs were sung to children who passed them on to their children. Thus songs were passed on through many [[generation]]s until someone wrote them down. These songs provided a means of passing on through the [[century|centuries]] highly important [[information]] about [[history|historical events]] that were eventually passed on to modern historians.

The [[Oud]] (Arabic:العود) is a small, stringed musical instrument. The oldest pictorial record of the Oud dates back to the [[Uruk]] period in Southern Mesopotamia over 5000 years ago.


=== Laws ===
[[Hammurabi|King Hammurabi]], as mentioned above, was famous for his set of laws, [[Code of Hammurabi|The Code of Hammurabi]]
(created ca. 1780 BC), which is one of the earliest sets of laws found and one of the best preserved examples of this type of document from ancient Mesopotamia. He made over 200 laws for Mesopotamia ''For more information, see [[Hammurabi]] and [[Code of Hammurabi]].'' ''See also: [[Laws of Eshnunna]], [[Code of Ur-Nammu]].''


The '''Code of Hammurabi''' ('''''Codex Hammurabi''''' ) is the best preserved ancient [[law code]], created ca.&nbsp;[[1760 BC]] ([[middle chronology]]) in ancient [[Babylon]]. It was enacted by the sixth Babylonian king, [[Hammurabi]].<ref name="louvre1">{{cite book |author= |title=Louvre ( Arts and Architecture) |publisher=Könemann |location=Köln |year= |pages= |isbn=3-8331-1943-8 |oclc= |doi=}}</ref> Only one example of the Code survives today, inscribed on a seven foot, four inch tall [[basalt]] stone slab or [[stele]]. Originally, a number of such stele would have been displayed in temples in various parts of the empire.<ref name="claw">{{Cite web|url=http://www.commonlaw.com/Hammurabi.html|title=Code of Hammurabi|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=September 14|publisher=commonlaw.com|author=commonlaw.com; C. H. W. Johns |language=English}}</ref><ref name="louvre2">{{Cite web|url=http://www.louvre.fr/llv/oeuvres/detail_notice.jsp?CONTENT%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198673226487&CURRENT_LLV_NOTICE%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198673226487&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=9852723696500800&bmUID=1156475018923&bmLocale=en|title=Near Eastern Antiquities: Mesopotamia|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=September 14|publisher=The Louvre Museum|year=2006|author=The Louvre Museum|language=English}}</ref>

==Description==
At the top of the [[stele]] is a ''[[bas-relief]]'' image of a Babylonian god (either [[Marduk]] or [[Shamash]]), with the king of Babylon presenting himself to the god, with his right hand raised to his mouth as a mark of respect.<ref name="louvre1" /> The text covers the bottom portion with the laws written in [[Akkadian language|Old Babylonian]] [[cuneiform]] script. The text has been broken down by translators into 282 laws, but this division is arbitrary, since the original text contains no divisional markers.

==Hammurabi==
{{Main|Hammurabi}}
Hammurabi (ruled ca. 1796 BC – 1750 BC)



==Mesopotamia==

In Early Mesopotamia (around mid 4th millennium BC) [[cuneiform script]] was invented. Cuneiform literally means "wedge-shaped", due to the triangular tip of the stylus used for impressing signs on wet clay. The standardized form of each cuneiform sign appear to have been developed from [[pictograms]]. The earliest texts (7 archaic tablets) come from the [[E (temple)|E]]-anna super sacred precinct dedicated to the goddess Inanna at Uruk, Level III, from a building labeled as Temple C by its excavators.

The early [[logographic]] system of cuneiform script took many years to master. Thus only a limited number of individuals were hired as [[scribes]] to be trained in its reading and writing. It was not until the widespread use of a [[syllabic]] script was adopted under Sargon's rule{{Fact|date=March 2008}} that significant portions of Mesopotamian population became learned in literacy. Massive archives of texts were recovered from the archaeological contexts of Old Babylonian scribal schools, through which literacy was disseminated.

===Literature and mythology===
{{Main|Babylonian literature|Mesopotamian mythology}}

In Babylonian colonies times there were libraries in most towns and temples; an old [[Sumer]]ian proverb averred that "he who would excel in the school of the scribes must rise with the dawn." Women as well as men learned to read and write, and for the Semitic Babylonians, this involved knowledge of the extinct [[Sumerian language]], and a complicated and extensive syllabary.

A considerable amount of Babylonian literature was translated from Sumerian originals, and the language of religion and law long continued to be the old agglutinative language of Sumer. Vocabularies, grammars, and interlinear translations were compiled for the use of students, as well as commentaries on the older texts and explanations of obscure words and phrases. The characters of the syllabary were all arranged and named, and elaborate lists of them were drawn up.

There are many Babylonian literary works whose titles have come down to us. One of the most famous of these was the [[Epic of Gilgamesh]], in twelve books, translated from the original Sumerian by a certain [[Sin-liqe-unninni]], and arranged upon an astronomical principle. Each division contains the story of a single adventure in the career of [[Gilgamesh]]. The whole story is a composite product, and it is probable that some of the stories are artificially attached to the central figure.

==European history==

from
Early Middle Ages

by the sixth century teaching and learning moved to monastic and cathedral schools, with the center of education being the study of the Bible.<ref>Pierre Riché, ''Education and Culture in the Barbarian West: From the Sixth through the Eighth Century'', (Columbia: Univ. of South Carolina Pr., 1976), pp. 100-129).</ref> Education of the laity survived modestly in Italy, Spain, and the southern part of Gaul, where Roman influences were most long-lasting. However, in the seventh century, learning began to emerge in Ireland and the Celtic lands, where Latin was a foreign language and Latin texts were eagerly studied and taught.<ref>Pierre Riché, ''Education and Culture in the Barbarian West: From the Sixth through the Eighth Century'', (Columbia: Univ. of South Carolina Pr., 1976), pp. 307-323).</ref>

In the ancient world, Greek was the primary language of science. Advanced scientific research and teaching was mainly carried on in the [[Hellenistic]] side of the Roman empire, in Greek.


The leading scholars of the early centuries were [[clergy]]man for whom the study of [[nature]] was but a small part of their interest. The study of nature was pursued more for practical reasons than as an abstract inquiry: the need to care for the sick led to the study of medicine and of ancient texts on drugs,<ref>Linda E. Voigts, "Anglo-Saxon Plant Remedies and the Anglo-Saxons," ''Isis'', 70(1979):250-268; reprinted in M. H. Shank, ed., ''The Scientific Enterprise in Antiquity and the Middle Ages'', (Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Pr., 2000).</ref> the need for monks to determine the proper time to pray led them to study the motion of the stars,<ref>Stephen C. McCluskey, "Gregory of Tours, Monastic Timekeeping, and Early Christian Attitudes to Astronomy," ''Isis'', 81(1990):9-22; reprinted in M. H. Shank, ed., ''The Scientific Enterprise in Antiquity and the Middle Ages'', (Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Pr., 2000).</ref> the need to compute the date of Easter led them to study and teach rudimentary mathematics and the motions of the Sun and Moon.<ref>Stephen C. McCluskey, ''Astronomies and Cultures in Early Medieval Europe,'' (Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Pr., 1998), pp. 149-57.</ref> Modern readers may find it disconcerting that sometimes the same works discuss both the technical details of natural phenomena and their symbolic significance.<ref>Faith Wallis, "'Number Mystique' in Early Medieval Computus Texts," pp. 179-99 in T. Koetsier and L. Bergmans, eds. ''Mathematics and the Divine: A Historical Study'', (Amsterdam: Elsevier, 2005).</ref>

see also
[[History of science in the Middle Ages]]

====Carolingian Renaissance====
Around 800, there was renewed interest in [[Classical Antiquity]] as part of the [[Carolingian Renaissance]]. [[Charlemagne|Charles the Great]] carried out a reform in [[education]]. The [[England|English]] monk [[Alcuin|Alcuin of York]] elaborated a project of scholarly development aimed at resuscitating classical knowledge by establishing programmes of study based upon the seven [[liberal arts]]: the ''trivium'', or literary education ([[grammar]], [[rhetoric]] and [[dialectic]]) and the ''quadrivium'', or scientific education ([[arithmetic]], [[geometry]], [[astronomy]] and [[music]]). From the year [[787]] on, [[decree]]s began to circulate recommending, in the whole empire, the restoration of old schools and the founding of new ones. Institutionally, these new schools were either under the responsibility of a [[monastery]], a [[cathedral]] or a [[noble court]]. The real significance of these measures would only be felt centuries later. The teaching of dialectic (a discipline that corresponds to today's [[logic]]) was responsible for the rebirth of the interest in speculative inquiry; from this interest would follow the rise of the [[Scholasticism|Scholastic]] tradition of [[Christian philosophy]]. In the [[12th century|12th]] and [[13th century]], many of those schools founded under the auspices of Charles the Great, especially ''cathedral'' schools, would become [[Medieval university|universities]].

===Byzantium and its golden age===
[[Image:Paris psaulter gr139 fol1v.jpg|thumb|225px|left|Miniature from the [[Paris Psalter]], a striking testimony to the tenth-century Byzantine cultural revival.]]
Byzantium's great intellectual achievement was the [[Corpus Juris Civilis]] ("Body of Civil Law"), a massive compilation of [[Roman law]] made under [[Justinian]] (r. 528-65). The work includes a section called the ''[[Pandects|Digesta]]'' which abstracts the principles of Roman law in such a way that they can be applied to any situation. The level of literacy was considerably higher in the Byzantine Empire than in the Latin West. Elementary education was much more widely available, sometimes even in the countryside. Secondary schools still taught the ''[[Iliad]]'' and other classics. As for higher education, a Neoplatonic school in [[Athens]] was closed in 526 for paganism. There was also a school in Alexandria which remained open until the Arab conquest (640). The [[University of Constantinople]], originally founded by Emperor [[Theodosius II]] (425), may have dissolved around this time. It was refounded by Emperor [[Michael III]] in 849. Higher education in this period focused on rhetoric, although [[Aristotle]]'s logic was covered in simple outline. Under the Macedonian dynasty (867–1025), Byzantium enjoyed a golden age and a revival of classical learning. There was little original research, but many lexicons, anthologies, encyclopaedias, and commentaries.

Contribution of Islam

In the course of the 11th century, Islam's scientific knowledge began to reach Western Europe. The [[astrolabe]], invented in classical times, was reintroduced to Europe and the works of [[Euclid]] and [[Archimedes]], lost in the West, were translated from Arabic to Latin in Spain. The modern Hindu-[[Arabic numerals]], including a notation for zero, was developed by Hindu mathematicians in the fifth and sixth centuries. Muslim mathematicians learned of it in the seventh century and added a notation for decimal factions in the ninth and tenth centuries. Around 1000, Gerbert of Aurillac (later [[Pope Sylvester II]]) made an abacus with counters engraved with Hindu-Arabic numbers. A treatise by Al-Khwārizmī on how to perform calculations with these numerals was translated into Latin in Spain in the 12th century.



In 1000 CE,

Europe remained a backwater compared to Islam, with its vast network of caravan trade, or China, at this time the world's most populous empire under the [[Song Dynasty]]. Constantinople had a population of about 300,000, but Rome had a mere 35,000 and Paris 20,000.[http://www.irows.ucr.edu/research/citemp/estcit/estcit.htm][http://sumbur.n-t.org/sg/ua/ddk.htm] In contrast, Islam had over a dozen major cities stretching from [[Córdoba, Spain|Córdoba]], Spain, at this time the world's largest city with 450,000 inhabitants, to central Asia. The [[Vikings]] had a trade network in northern Europe, including a [[Trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks|route connecting the Baltic to Constantinople]] through Russia. But it was modest affair compared to the caravan routes that connected the great Muslim cities of Cordoba, Alexandria, [[Cairo]], Baghdad, [[Basra]], and [[Mecca]].

monastries

Irish monastic rules specify a stern life of prayer and discipline in which prayer, poverty, and obedience are the central themes. Yet Irish monks did not fear [[paganism|pagan]] learning. Irish monks needed to learn a foreign language, Latin, which was the language of the Church. Thus they read Latin texts, both spiritual and secular, with an enthusiasm that their contemporaries on the continent lacked. By the end of the seventh century, Irish monastic schools were attracting students from [[England]] and from Europe.

Irish monasticism spread widely, first to [[Scotland]] and [[Northern England]], then to Gaul and Italy. [[Columba]] and his followers established monasteries at [[Bangor Abbey|Bangor]], on the northeastern coast of Ireland, at [[Iona Abbey|Iona]], an island north-west of Scotland, and at [[Lindisfarne]], which was founded by Aidan, an Irish monk from Iona, at the request of King [[Oswald of Northumbria]].

==Science==
::{{main|History of science in the Middle Ages|Medieval medicine}}

[[Image:Map of Medieval Universities.jpg|left|thumb|Map of [[Medieval university|Medieval Universities]].]]

Philosophical and scientific teaching of the [[Early Middle Ages]] was based upon few copies and commentaries of ancient Greek texts that remained in Western Europe after the collapse of the [[Western Roman Empire]]. Most of them were studied only in the Latin as knowledge of Greek was very limited.

This scenario changed during the [[Renaissance of the 12th century]]. The intellectual revitalization of Europe started with the birth of [[Medieval university|medieval universities]]. The increased contact with the Islamic world in [[Al-Andalus|Spain]] and [[History of Islam in southern Italy|Sicily]], and during the [[Reconquista]] and the [[Crusades]], allowed Europeans access to scientific [[Arabic language|Arabic]] and [[Greek language|Greek]] texts, including the works of [[Aristotle]], [[Ibn al-Haytham|Alhazen]], and [[Averroes]]. The European universities aided materially in the [[Latin translations of the 12th century|translation and propagation of these texts]] and started a new infrastructure which was needed for scientific communities.

[[Image:Hugh specs.jpg|frame|right|Detail of a portrait of Hugh de Provence, painted by Tomasso da Modena in 1352]]

At the beginning of the 13th century there were reasonably accurate Latin translations of the main works of almost all the intellectually crucial ancient authors,<ref>Franklin , J., [http://web.maths.unsw.edu.au/~jim/renaissance.html "The Renaissance myth"], Quadrant 26 (11) (Nov, 1982), 51-60. (Retrieved on-line at 06-07-2007)</ref> allowing a sound transfer of scientific ideas via both the universities and the monasteries. By then, the natural science contained in these texts began to be extended by notable [[scholastics]] such as [[Robert Grosseteste]], [[Roger Bacon]], [[Albertus Magnus]] and [[Duns Scotus]]. Precursors of the modern [[scientific method]] can be seen already in Grosseteste's emphasis on mathematics as a way to understand nature, and in the empirical approach admired by Bacon, particularly in his ''[[Opus Majus]]''.


Late Middle Ages

Despite these crises, the 14th century was also a time of great progress within the arts and sciences. A renewed interest in ancient [[Ancient Greece|Greek]] and [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] texts led to what has later been termed the [[Italian Renaissance]]. The absorption of Latin texts had started in the twelfth-century Renaissance through contact with [[Arab]]s during the [[Crusades]], but the availability of important Greek texts accelerated with the capture of [[Constantinople]] by the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman Turks]], when many [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] scholars had to seek refuge in the West, particularly [[Italy]].<ref>Cantor, p. 594.</ref> Combined with this influx of classical ideas was the invention of [[printing]] which facilitated dissemination of the printed word and democratized learning.

===Philosophy, science and technology===
{{main|Medieval philosophy|History of science in the Middle Ages|Medieval technology}}
[[Image:Printer in 1568-ce.png|thumb|left|200px|16th century [[printing press]]. [[Johann Gutenberg|Gutenberg]]'s invention had a great impact on social and political developments.]]
The predominant school of thought in the thirteenth century was the [[Thomism|Thomistic]] reconciliation of the teachings of [[Aristotle]] with [[Christian theology]].<ref>Jones, p. 42; Koenigsberger, p. 242.</ref> The [[Condemnations (University of Paris)#Condemnation of 1277|Condemnation of 1277]], enacted at the [[University of Paris]], placed restrictions on ideas that could be interpreted as heretical; restrictions that had implication for [[Aristotelianism|Aristotelian]] thought.<ref name="SEP 1277">{{cite web|url=http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/condemnation/|title=Condemnation of 1277|publisher=[[Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy]]|author=Hans Thijssen|year=2003|accessdate=2008-04-21}}</ref> An alternative was presented by [[William of Ockham]], who insisted that the world of reason and the world of faith had to be kept apart. Ockham introduced the principle of parsimony&nbsp;– or [[Occam's razor]]&nbsp;– whereby a simple theory is preferred to a more complex one, and speculation on unobservable phenomena is avoided.<ref>Grant, p. 142; Nicholas, p. 134.</ref> This new approach liberated scientific speculation from the dogmatic restraints of Aristotelian science, and paved the way for new approaches. Particularly within the field of theories of [[Motion (physics)|motion]] great advances were made, when such scholars as [[Jean Buridan]], [[Nicole Oresme]] and the [[Oxford Calculators]] challenged the work of Aristotle.<ref>Grant, pp. 100–3, 149, 164–5.</ref> Buridan developed the theory of ''impetus'' as the cause of the motion of projectiles, which was an important step towards the modern concept of [[inertia]].<ref>Grant, pp. 95–7.</ref> The works of these scholars anticipated the [[Heliocentrism|heliocentric]] worldview of [[Nicolaus Copernicus]].<ref>Grant, pp. 112–3.</ref>

Certain technological inventions of the period&nbsp;– whether of [[Arab]] or [[China|Chinese]] origin, or unique European innovations&nbsp;– were to have great influence on political and social developments, in particular [[gunpowder]], the [[printing press]] and the [[compass]]. The introduction of gunpowder to the field of battle affected not only military organisation, but helped advance the nation state. [[Johann Gutenberg|Gutenberg]]'s [[movable type]] [[printing press]] made possible not only the [[Protestant Reformation|Reformation]], but also a dissemination of knowledge that would lead to a gradually more egalitarian society. The [[compass]], along with other innovations such as the [[cross-staff]], the [[mariner's astrolabe]], and advances in shipbuilding, enabled the navigation of the [[World Ocean]]s, and the early phases of [[colonialism]] .<ref>Jones, pp. 11–2; Koenigsberger, pp. 297–8; Nicholas, p. 165.</ref> Other inventions had a greater impact on everyday life, such as [[Glasses|eyeglasses]] and the weight-driven [[clock]].<ref>Grant, p. 160; Koenigsberger, p. 297.</ref>

religious training
music
architecture
construction of buildings
masonry
military weapons, defences, fortifications, tactics, training of soldiers and officers, see[Military History]]
ship building
navies
engineering

===Medieval period===
In [[Middle Ages|medieval Europe]], education for girls and women was at best patchy, and was controversial in the light of pronouncements of some religious authorities.<ref>[http://www.csupomona.edu/~plin/ls201/medieval3.html medieval women<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> [[Shulamith Shahar]] writes<ref>''The Fourth Estate: A history of women in the Middle Ages'' (1983), p. 141.</ref>, of the situation in the nobility, that ''Among girls there was an almost direct transition from childhood to marriage, with all it entails.''

Education was also seen as stratified in the way that society itself was: in authors such as [[Vincent of Beauvais]], the emphasis is on educating the daughters of the nobility for their social position to come.

===Early modern period, humanist attitudes===

In [[early modern]] Europe, the question of female education had become a standard commonplace one, in other words a [[literary topos]] for discussion. Around 1405 [[Leonardo Bruni]] wrote ''De studies et letteris''<ref>[http://history.hanover.edu/texts/bruni.html Online English text]</ref>, addressed to Baptista di Montefeltro, the daughter of [[Antonio II da Montefeltro]], [[Duke of Urbino]]; it commends the study of Latin, but warns against arithmetic, geometry, astrology and rhetoric. In discussing the classical scholar [[Isotta Nogarola]], however, [[Lisa Jardine]]<ref>''Women Humanists: Education for What?'', pp. 48-81 in ''Feminism and Renaissance Studies'' (1999), edited by [[Lorna Hudson]].</ref> notes that (in the middle of the [[fifteenth century]]), ''‘Cultivation’ is in order for a noblewoman; formal competence is positively unbecoming.'' [[Christine de Pisan]]'s ''Livre des Trois Vertus'' is contemporary with Bruni's book, and ''sets down the things which a lady or baroness living on her estates ought to be able to do''<ref>[[Eileen Power]], ''The Position of Women'', p. 418, in ''The Legacy of the Middle Ages'' (1926), edited by [[G. C. Crump]] and [[E. F. Jacob]].</ref>.

[[Erasmus]] wrote at length about education in ''De pueris instituendis'' (1529, written two decades before); not mostly concerned with female education<ref>J. K. Sowards, ''Erasmus and the Education of Women'' Sixteenth Century Journal, Vol. 13, No. 4 (Winter, 1982), pp. 77-89.</ref>, in this work he does mention with approbation the trouble [[Thomas More]] took with teaching his whole family<ref>See ''The Erasmus Reader'' (1990), edited by Erika Rummel, p. 88.</ref>. In 1523 [[Juan Luis Vives]], a follower of Erasmus, wrote in Latin his ''De institutione foeminae Christianae''<ref>[[Gloria Kaufman]], ''Juan Luis Vives on the Education of Women'', Signs, Vol. 3, No. 4 (Summer, 1978), pp. 891-896. In print as ''The Instruction of a Christian Woman'', edited by Virginia Walcott Beauchamp, Elizabeth H. Hageman and Margaret Mikesell, ISBN-13: 978-0-252-02677-5, ISBN-10: 0-252-02677-2.</ref>, translated<ref>In 1524, by [[Richard Hyrde]]; [http://www.valpo.edu/english/emtexts/vives1.html excerpt]</ref> for the future Queen [[Mary of England]] as ''Education of a Christian Woman''. This is in line with traditional [[didactic literature]], taking a strongly religious direction<ref>[http://www.ibe.unesco.org/publications/ThinkersPdf/vivese.pdf PDF], p. 9.</ref>.

[[Elizabeth I of England]] had a strong humanist education, and was praised by her tutor [[Roger Ascham]]<ref>Kenneth Charleton, ''Education in Renaissance England'' (1965), p. 209.</ref>. She fits the pattern of education for leadership, rather than for the generality of women. Schooling for girls was rare; the assumption was still that education would be brought to the home environment. [[Comenius]] was an advocate of formal education for women.<ref>[http://www.comeniusfoundation.org/comenius.htm]</ref>

===Modern period===

The issue of female education in the large, as emancipatory and rational, is broached seriously in [[the Enlightenment]]. [[Mary Wollstonecraft]] is a writer who dealt with it in those terms.

Actual progress in institutional terms, for secular education of women, began in the West in the nineteenth century, with the founding of colleges offering single-sex education to young women. These appeared in the middle of the century. ''The Princess: A Medley'', a narrative poem by [[Alfred Lord Tennyson]], is a satire of women's education, still a controversial subject in 1848, when [[Queen's College, London|Queen's College]] first opened in London. [[Emily Davies]] campaigned for women's education in the 1860s, and founded [[Girton College]] in 1869.

[[W. S. Gilbert]] parodied the poem and treated the themes of women's higher education and feminism in general with ''[[The Princess (play)|The Princess]]'' in (1870) and ''[[Princess Ida]]'' in 1883. Once women began to graduate from institutions of higher education, there steadily developed also a stronger academic stream of schooling, and the [[teacher training]] of women in larger numbers, principally to provide primary education. Women's access to traditionally all-male institutions took several generations to become complete.

In the developed world, women have surpassed men at many levels of education. For example, in the United States in 2005/2006, women earned 62% of Associate's degrees, 58% of Bachelor's degrees, 60% of Master's degrees, and 50% of Doctorates.<ref>[http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d07/tables/dt07_178.asp Historical summary of faculty, students, degrees, and finances in degree-granting institutions: Selected years, 1869-70 through 2005-06<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

==The Catholic tradition==

In the [[Roman Catholic]] tradition, concern for female education has expressed itself in the foundation of [[religious order]]s, with ministries addressing the area. These include the [[Ursulines]] (1535) and the [[Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary]] (1849)<ref>Others are [[Society of the Holy Child Jesus]], the [[Sisters of St. Joseph]], [[Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary]], [[School Sisters of Notre Dame]], [[Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur]], [[Salesian Sisters of Don Bosco]].</ref>. A ''convent education'' is an education for girls by nuns, within a [[convent]] building. This idea arose in France in the seventeenth century, and spread world-wide. Contemporary convent schools are not restricted to Catholic pupils. Students in contemporary convent education may be boys (particularly in India).

===Historical literature===
*[[Bathsua Makin]] (1673), ''An Essay to Revive the Ancient Education of Gentlewomen, in Religion, Manners, Arts & Tongues''
*Anna Julia Cooper (1892), ''The Higher Education of Women''
*[[Alice Zimmern]] (1898), ''Renaissance of Girls' Education in England''
*Thomas Woody (1929), ''A History of Women's Education in the United States'', 2 vols.





In India the classical education system is based upon the study and understanding of the ancient texts the [[Vedas]], a discipline called [[Vedanga]], and subjects based upon that foundation, referred to as [[Upaveda]] and incorporating medicine ([[Ayurveda]]), music, archery and other martial arts.
above from
[[Classical education movement]]

Similarly, in China the fulcrum of a classical education was the study and understanding of a core canon, the [[Four Books and Five Classics]].
above from
[[Classical education movement]]



following is from

{{redirect|Medieval}}




Next is from
[[Education in the Middle East and North Africa]]


==The status of education in the Middle East==
===Background===

The Middle East and North Africa ([[MENA]]) region comprises the countries of [[Algeria]], [[Bahrain]], [[Djibouti]], [[Egypt]], [[Iran]], [[Iraq]], [[Jordan]], [[Kuwait]], [[Lebanon]], [[Libya]], [[Malta]], [[Mauritania]], [[Morocco]], [[Oman]], [[Qatar]], [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Sudan]], [[Syria]], [[Tunisia]], [[Turkey]], the [[United Arab Emirates]] (UAE), [[West Bank and Gaza]] (Palestine), and [[Yemen]]<ref>World Bank ,''Education in the Middle East and North Africa: A strategy towards learning for development'',(Washington, DC: The World Bank,1999).</ref>. Despite that [[Israel]] is geographically situated in the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region, this article focuses on the countries that are bounded by an [[Islamic religion]] and [[Arabic language]] majority, except Iran where [[Persian language|Persian]], is the official language.


Although [[MENA]] countries share common [[identity formation]] features - [[Islam]] as the main religion and [[Arabic]] as a common language, they differ in [[ethnicity]], [[tradition]], [[history]] and spoken dialects of Arabic. Economic development strategies also vary between the oil-producing states such as Kuwait and United Arab Emirates and the non-oil producing countries such as [[Tunisia]] and [[Jordan]].<ref>Akkari Abdeljalil, 'Education in the Middle East and North Africa: The Current Situation and Future Challenges', ''International Educational Journal'', Vol.5, N°2, 2004.</ref>


During the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth centuries, most countries of the region were under European colonization. Though the colonizing authorities were the first to introduce a compulsory education, access to modern (European-style) education was restricted to a select elite. Colonial education in many ways was designed to shape local intellectual development and to limit their ability of local actors in challenging the colonizers’ political control, while enhancing the rule of the colonial administrations.<ref>Edward Said,''Culture and Imperialism'', New York, Knopf, 1993.</ref>

Prior to and during the same period, the native formal education system in the region was based on the inculcation of the [[Qur'an]] in the Islamic school, or [[Madrasa]]. This system increasingly competed with the newly introduced European educational system, though remained an important educational experience for many. Competition, however, was not due to [[Islamic]] refutation of Western culture, but it resulted from the colonizer’s willingness to advance a dominant and superior western culture while annexing further territories in the [[MENA]] region and imposing restrictions on nationals.<ref>Ibid.</ref>


Colonies such as [[Tunisia]] and [[Egypt]] invested in educational missions that sent elite students to Europe where they could study technologies and modes of life and ultimately transfer their acquired knowledge to their countries of origin.<ref>Ibid.</ref> Such measures resulted in the creation of modern schools in the nineteenth century such as the polytechnic school of Bardo (est. 1830) and represented the French ''Ecole Polytechnique'' in Tunisia.<ref>Akkari Abdeljalil, 'Education in the Middle East and North Africa: The Current Situation and Future Challenges', ''International Educational Journal'', Vol. 5, N°2, 2004.</ref>


By the late nineteenth century, there was widespread awareness of Western culture's impact. The new Ottoman ruling élite, referred to as [[intelligentsia]], was trained in specialized schools under the tutelage of European specialists. Governments seeking reforms trained the intelligentsia élite as officials, doctors, engineers and police officers.
In [[Cairo]], lawyers were trained at a French law school in order to be able to work in mixed courts. In [[Tunisia]], the French colonizers controlled both primary and secondary schools such as the ''Sadiqiyya'',a secondary school established as a model of a French highschool, the ''lycée.''<ref>Albert Hourani, ''A History of the Arab People'', (England:Clays Ltd,2002),pp.302-4.</ref>

===Post-colonial period===

'''1-Historical perspective''':

In the Middle East and North Africa, during the post-colonial era, education spread as result of the significant social changes and the rise of indigenous élite as a ruling power. The willigness of national governments to build a strong nation made the acquisition of literacy a necessary skill for maximizing human potential.<ref>Albert Hourani, ''A History of the Arab Peoples'',( England:Clays Ltd,2002),p.389.</ref>Most scholars and policy makers in the region have argued that education is the cornerstone of society’s economic growth and expansion. They stress the importance of investing in education in order to promote sustained economic development, although despite significant expansion of educational reach and services, unemployment remains high<ref>World Bank, ''Claiming the Future: Choosing Prosperity in the Middle East and North Africa'',(Washington, DC: The World Bank, October 1995).</ref><ref>The Brookings Institution, Middle East Youth Initiative, "Inclusion: Meeting the 100 Million Youth Challenge, 2007).</ref>


In the post-colonial period, the dominant pattern has been governments’ control of education.<ref>Akkari Abdeljalil, 'Education in the Middle East and North Africa: The Current Situation and Future Challenges', ''International Educational Journal'', Vol. 5, N°2, 2004.</ref> Free education was promoted by many leaders, including Egypt's [[Gamal Abdel Nasser]], as a critical aspect of nation-building, and promised that each graduate would find a position in the public sector. The expansion of primary, secondary and tertiary education has paralleled the rapid population growth since the 1960's. Between 1965 and 1990, the percentage of students enrolled in primary education increased from 61% to 98%.<ref>World Bank,’ Claiming the Future: Choosing Prosperity in the Middle East and North Africa’,(Washington, DC:The World Bank, October 1995,p.3).</ref>


Despite the introduction of higher education colonialism, the pace of enrollment at the university level increased significantly immediately following independence. In 1939, there were no more than nine regional universities, and by 1960, twenty. States with the highest numbers of enrolled students included [[Egypt]], [[Syria]], [[Lebanon]], and [[Iraq]].<ref>Ibid.,p.398.</ref>


In the conservative regimes of [[Saudi Arabia]] and [[Yemen]], European-style education was slow to emerge. Regimes were careful to expose the students to doctrines that might contradict with the Islamic culture, although Kuwait served as an exception. The Gulf states have since introduced far-reaching educational reforms, with the awareness that only by investing in their own human capital will they see economic development continue beyond the oil boom years.<ref>Albert Hourani, ''A History of the Arab Peoples'',(England: Clays Ltd,2002),p.391.</ref> Recently, Saudi Arabia's [[King Abdullah]] has been featured in the international press for his efforts to establish multiple centers of learning, with a mixed-gender Western model<ref>Saudi King Tries to Grow Modern Ideas in Desert, The New York Times, http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/26/world/middleeast/26saudi.html?_r=1&oref=slogin</ref>.


'''Post-independence Challenges:'''

Problems in expanding access to education were common to all MENA countries in the post-independence years. Affordable education did not necessarily reduce the number of uneducated children as a result of the population boom. Similarly, the educational system proved to be inadequate as classrooms, led by overworked and often underqualified teachers, were crowded with children. Students who moved through the strictly exam-based system were, and often continue to be, ill-equipped with skills necessary for university-level education and employment.<ref>Ibid.p.391.</ref>


Other problems emerged as the state attempted to unify multiple systems under the state: European-style and Islamic, public and private, instruction in Arabic and others in a foreign language, usually French or English. As a result, while some Islamic schools were closed, others became part of larger universities. As an example, the ''Zaytuna'', a traditional Islamic school in Tunis, was incorporated to the school of ''Shari'a'' of the University of Tunis.<ref>Ibid.pp390-392.</ref>


Another pattern seen under post-colonial government control of education was the Arabization of educational institutions. Schools that during colonial rule taught through the medium of a foreign language, began to teach in Arabic. As a consequence, students' opportunities to master a foreign language decreased in countries such as [[Syria]] where introduction to a European second language occurred only in the secondary schools, not during primary education.<ref>Ibid.</ref>


Students who wanted to pursue their studies abroad had to rely on family wealth or government scholarships. Those who were not able to master a foreign language faced serious obstacles. However, as the best-quality education could only be obtained in private schools, a wealthy educated élite remained. The intelligentsia class continued to master foreign languages and to enjoy employment advantages. By contrast, the larger part of society had to rely on the government's educational facilities and dwindling opportunities in public sector positions.<ref>Ibid.p392.</ref>


'''Women in Post-colonial Societies:'''

The spread of education in the region has engendered many social changes that influenced the position of women in MENA countries. Most importantly, even in the conservative regimes, women had access to education.
Throughout the region, while the percentage of girls in primary schools was as important as that of boys, female access to higher education was steadily rising. Correspondingly, due to their improved level of literacy, educated women could work as lawyers, doctors, and employees in social services. In countries such as Tunisia and Iraq where the state governments were willing to rapidly modernize their societies, women held offices in government.<ref>Ibid.p440.</ref>


Next is from
[[Charlemagne]]

'''Charlemagne''' ({{pronEng|ˈʃɑrlɨmeɪn}}; {{lang-la|Carolus Magnus'' or ''Karolus Magnus}}, meaning '''Charles the Great''') ([[747]] – [[28 January]] [[814]]) was [[List of Frankish kings|King of the Franks]] from 768 to his death. He expanded the Frankish kingdoms into a [[Carolingian Empire|Frankish Empire]] that incorporated much of [[Western Europe|Western]] and [[Central Europe]]. During his reign, he conquered [[Kingdom of Italy (medieval)|Italy]] and was crowned {{lang|la|''Imperator Augustus''}} by [[Pope Leo III]] on [[25 December]] [[800]] as a rival of the [[Byzantine Emperor]] in [[Constantinople]]. His rule is also associated with the [[Carolingian Renaissance]], a revival of art, religion, and culture through the medium of the [[Roman Catholic Church|Catholic Church]]. Through his foreign conquests and internal reforms, Charlemagne helped define both [[Western Europe]] and the [[Middle Ages]]. He is numbered as '''Charles I''' in the regnal lists of [[List of French monarchs|France]], [[Germany]], and the [[Holy Roman Emperors|Holy Roman Empire]].

Today he is regarded not only as the founding father of both [[List of French monarchs|French]] and [[List of German monarchs|German]] monarchies, but also as ''the father of Europe'': his empire united most of Western Europe for the first time since the Romans, and the Carolingian renaissance encouraged the formation of a common European identity.<ref>Riché, Preface xviii</ref> Pierre Riché reflects:
{{cquote|. . . he enjoyed an exceptional destiny, and by the length of his reign, by his conquests, legislation and legendary stature, he also profoundly marked the history of western Europe.<ref>Riché, xviii.</ref>}}
{{TOClimit|limit=3}}


===Education reforms===
A part of Charlemagne's success as warrior and administrator can be traced to his admiration for learning. His reign and the era it ushered in are often referred to as the [[Carolingian Renaissance]] because of the flowering of [[scholarship]], [[literature]], [[art]], and [[architecture]] which characterise it. Charlemagne, brought into contact with the culture and learning of other countries (especially Visigothic Spain, Anglo-Saxon England and Lombard Italy) due to his vast conquests, greatly increased the provision of monastic schools and scriptoria (centres for book-copying) in Francia. Most of the surviving works of classical Latin were copied and preserved by Carolingian scholars. Indeed, the earliest manuscripts available for many ancient texts are Carolingian. It is almost certain that a text which survived to the Carolingian age survives still. The pan-European nature of Charlemagne's influence is indicated by the origins of many of the men who worked for him: [[Alcuin]], an [[Anglo-Saxons|Anglo-Saxon]] from [[York]]; [[Theodulf]], a [[Visigoths|Visigoth]], probably from [[Septimania]]; [[Paul the Deacon]], [[Lombard]]; [[Peter of Pisa]] and [[Saint Paulinus II|Paulinus of Aquileia]], [[Italians]]; and [[Angilbert]], [[Angilramm]], [[Einhard]] and [[Waldo of Reichenau]], Franks.

Charlemagne took a serious interest in scholarship, promoting the [[liberal arts]] at the court, ordering that his children and grandchildren be well-educated, and even studying himself under the tutelage of Paul the Deacon, from whom he learned grammar, Alcuin, with whom he studied rhetoric, dialect and astronomy (he was particularly interested in the movements of the stars), and Einhard, who assisted him in his studies of arithmetic. His great scholarly failure, as Einhard relates, was his inability to write: when in his old age he began attempts to learn – practicing the formation of letters in his bed during his free time on books and wax tablets he hid under his pillow – "his effort came too late in life and achieved little success", and his ability to read – which Einhard is silent about, and which no contemporary source supports – has also been called into question.<ref>Dutton, Paul Edward, ''Charlemagne's Mustache''</ref>

fOLLOWING IS FROM
[[Education in France]]
==History==
[[Image:Julesferry.jpg|thumb|180px|left|Jules Ferry]]

{{main|Jules Ferry laws}}
While the French trace the development of their educational system to [[Charlemagne]], the modern era of French education begins at the end of the nineteenth century. [[Jules Ferry]], a lawyer holding the office of Minister of Public Instruction in the 1880s, is widely credited for creating the modern Republican school (''l'école républicaine'') by requiring all children under the age of 15 -- boys and girls -- to attend. He also made public instruction [[Free education|free of charge]] and [[secular education|secular]] (''[[Laïcité|laïque]]'').

Following is from
[[Madrasah]]

'''Madrasah''' ([[Arabic language|Arabic]]: مدرسة, ''madrasa'' [[plural|pl.]] ''madāris'' مدارس) is the Arabic word for any type of [[school]], secular or religious (of any religion). It is variously [[Arabic transliteration|transliterated]] as '''madrasah''', '''madarasaa''', '''medresa''', '''madrassa''', '''madraza''', '''madarsa''', etc.

*''Madrasa Islamia'' translates as 'Islamic school'.
*''Madrasa deeneya'' translates as 'religious school'.
*''Madrasa khasa'' translates as 'private school'.

==Definition==
[[Image:Madrasah pupils in Mauritania.jpg|thumb|300px|Young madrasah pupils in [[Mauritania]]. They learn parts of the Qur'an from wooden tablets.]]
The word ''madrasah'' is derived from the [[triconsonantal]] root د-ر-س ('''d-r-s'''), which relates to ''learning'' or ''teaching'', through the ''wazn'' (form/stem) (مفعل(ة ''mafʻal(a)'', meaning "a place where X is done." Therefore, ''madrasah'' literally means "a place where learning/teaching is done". The word is also present as a [[loanword]] with the same innocuous meaning in many Arabic-influenced languages, such as: [[Urdu language|Urdu]], [[Bengali language|Bengali]], [[Hindi language|Hindi]], [[Persian language|Persian]], [[Turkish language|Turkish]], [[Kurdish language|Kurdish]], [[Indonesian language|Indonesian]], [[Malay language|Malay]] and [[Bosnian language|Bosnian]].<ref name="Word Any Where">{{cite web|url = http://www.wordanywhere.com/cgi-bin/fetch.pl?&word=madrasah&words=madarasaa%2CHindi%2CEnglish%2C%2Fimages%2Fh2e%2Fmadarasaa.gif&words=madhuraaj%2CHindi%2CEnglish%2C%2Fimages%2Fh2e%2Fmadhuraaj.gif&words=madhuraasav%2CHindi%2CEnglish%2C%2Fimages%2Fh2e%2Fmadhuraasav.gif&words=madhuraaxar%2CHindi%2CEnglish%2C%2Fimages%2Fh2e%2Fmadhuraaxar.gif&words=madhurikaa%2CHindi%2CEnglish%2C%2Fimages%2Fh2e%2Fmadhurikaa.gif&words=madras%2CEnglish%2CHindi%2C&words=madrigal%2CEnglish%2CHindi%2C&words=matrix%2CEnglish%2CHindi%2C&words=mattress%2CEnglish%2CHindi%2C&words=meteoric%2CEnglish%2CHindi%2C&words=metric%2CEnglish%2CHindi%2C&words=metrical%2CEnglish%2CHindi%2C&words=muutraashay%2CHindi%2CEnglish%2C%2Fimages%2Fh2e%2Fmuutraashay.gif&num_items=16&related=true&pos=0| title = Madarasaa |publisher = WordAnywhere|accessdate = 2007-06-23}}</ref> In the Arabic language, the word مدرسة (madrasah) simply means the same as ''school'' does in the English language, whether that is private, public or parochial school, as well as for any primary or secondary school whether [[Islam|Muslim]], non-Muslim, or [[secular]]. Unlike the understanding of the word ''school'' in British English, the word ''madrasah'' is like the term ''school'' in American English, in that it can refer to a university-level or post-graduate school as well. For example, in the [[Ottoman Empire]] during the [[Early Modern Period]], Madrasahs had lower schools and specialized schools where the students became known as danismends. <ref>Inalcik, Halil. 1973. “Learning, the Medrese, and the Ulema.” In ''The Ottoman Empire: The Classical Age 1300-1600''. New York: Praeger, pp. 165-178.</ref>The correct Arabic word for a university, however, is {{lang|ar|جامعة}}'' ([[jāmaʿat]])''. The [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] [[cognate]] ''[[midrasha]]'' also connotes the meaning of a place of learning.


A typical Islamic school usually offers two courses of study: a ''[[Hafiz (Quran)|hifz]]'' course; that is memorisation of the [[Qur'an]] (the person who commits the entire Qur'an to memory is called a [[Hafiz (Quran)|hafiz]]); and an [['alim]] course leading the candidate to become an accepted scholar in the community. A regular curriculum includes courses in [[Arabic language|Arabic]], [[Tafsir]] (Qur'anic interpretation), [[shari'ah]] (Islamic law), [[Hadith]] (recorded sayings and deeds of Prophet [[Muhammad]]), [[Mantiq]] (logic), and [[Muslim History]]. In the [[Ottoman Empire]], during the [[Early Modern Period]], the learning of the Hadith was introduced by Suleyman I.<ref>Inalcik, Halil. 1973. “Learning, the Medrese, and the Ulema.” In ''The Ottoman Empire: The Classical Age 1300-1600''. New York: Praeger, pp. 165-178.</ref> Depending on the educational demands, some madrasahs also offer additional advanced courses in [[Arabic literature]], English and other foreign languages, as well as science and world history. Ottoman madrasahs along with religious teachings also taught "styles of writing, grammary, syntax, poetry, composition, natural sciences, political sciences, and etiquette."<ref>Inalcik, Halil. 1973. “Learning, the Medrese, and the Ulema.” In ''The Ottoman Empire: The Classical Age 1300-1600''. New York: Praeger, pp. 165-178.</ref>
People of all ages attend, and many often move on to becoming [[imam]]s. The certificate of an ''‘alim'' for example, requires approximately twelve years of study. A good number of the [[Hafiz (Quran)|huffaz]] (plural of hafiz) are the product of the madrasahs. The madrasahs also resemble colleges, where people take evening classes and reside in dormitories. An important function of the madrasahs is to admit orphans and poor children in order to provide them with education and training. Madrasahs may enroll female students; however, they study separately from the men.

In [[South Africa]], the madrasahs also play a socio-cultural role in giving after-school religious instruction to Muslim children who attend government or private non-religious schools. However, increasing numbers of more affluent Muslim children attend full-fledged private ''Islamic Schools'' which combine secular and religious education. Among Muslims of [[Asians in South Africa|Indian]] origin, madrasahs also used to provide instruction in [[Urdu]], although this is far less common today than it used to be.

==History==
[[Image:MedresaVisoko.jpg|thumb|300px|Madrassa ''Osman ef. Redžović'' in Visoko, Bosnia was rebuilt shortly after the [[Bosnian war]].]]
Madrasahs did not exist in the early beginnings of Islam. Their formation can probably be traced to the early Islamic custom of meeting in mosques to discuss religious issues. At this early stage, people seeking religious knowledge tended to gather around certain more knowledgable Muslims. These informal teachers later became known as [[shaykhs]]; and these shaykhs began to hold regular religious education sessions called ''[[majlis|majalis]]''.

Established in [[859]], [[University of Al Karaouine|Jami'at al-Qarawiyyin]] (located in Al-Qarawiyyin Mosque) in the city of [[Fes, Morocco|Fas]] (Fez), is considered the oldest madrasah in the Muslim world. It was founded by [[Fatima Al-Fihri]], the daughter of a wealthy merchant named Mohammed Al-Fihri.

During the late [[Abbasid]] period, the [[Seljuk dynasty|Seljuk]] vizier [[Nizam al-Mulk]] created the first major official academic institution known in history as the [[Madrasah Nizamiyah]], based on the informal ''majalis'' (sessions of the shaykhs). Al-Mulk, who would later be murdered by the [[Assassins (sect)|Assassins]] (''Hashshashin''), created a system of state madrasahs (in his time they were called, the Nizamiyyahs, named after him) in various Abbasid cities at the end of the 11th century.

During the rule of the [[Fatimid]]<ref>Jonathan Berkey, The Transmission of Knowledge in Medieval Cairo (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1992), ''passim''</ref> and [[Mamluk]]<ref>Ira Lapidus, Muslim Cities in the Later Middle Ages (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1984), ''passim''</ref> dynasties and their successor states in the medieval Middle East, many of the ruling elite founded madrasahs through a religious endowment known as the [[Waqf|waq'f]]. Not only was the madrasah a potent symbol of status but it was an effective means of transmitting wealth and status to their descendants. Especially during the [[Mamluk]] period, when only former slaves could assume power, the sons of the ruling Mamluk elite were unable to inherit. Guaranteed positions within the new madrasahs thus allowed them to maintain status. Madrasahs built in this period include the [[Mosque-Madrasah of Sultan Hasan]] in [[Cairo]].

The following excerpt provides a brief synopsis of the historical origins and starting points for the teachings that took place in the Ottoman madrasahs in the [[Early Modern Period]]:
<blockquote>
"Taşköprülüzâde's concept of knowledge and his division of the sciences provides a starting point for a study of learning and medrese education in the [[Ottoman Empire]]. Taşköprülüzâde recognizes four stages of knowledge - spiritual, intellectual, oral and written. Thus all the sciences fall into one of these seven categories: calligraphic sciences, oral sciences, intellectual sciences, spiritual sciences, theoretical rational sciences, practical rational sciences. The First Ottoman medrese was created in Iznik in 1331, when a converted Church building was assigned as a medrese to a famous scholar, Dâvûd of Kayseri.Suleyman made an important change in the hierarchy of Ottoman medreses. He established four general medreses and two more for specialized studies, one devoted to the hadith and the other to medicine. He gave the highest ranking to these and thus established the hierarchy of the medreses which was to continue until the end of the empire."<ref>Inalcik, Halil. 1973. “Learning, the Medrese, and the Ulema.” In ''The Ottoman Empire: The Classical Age 1300-1600''. New York: Praeger, pp. 165-178.</ref>
</blockquote>

===Colleges and Universities===
{{see also|Ijazah}}

The origins of the [[college]] and [[university]] lie in the [[Islamic Golden Age|medieval Islamic world]]. The madrasah was a medieval Islamic college of [[Sharia|law]] and [[Kalam|theology]], usually affiliated with a [[mosque]], and was funded by an early [[charitable trust]] known as ''[[Waqf]]'', the origins of the [[trust law]]. While [[Early Islamic philosophy|philosophy]] and the [[Islamic science|rational sciences]] were often excluded from the [[curriculum]],<ref name="Huff">Toby E. Huff (2003), ''The Rise of Early Modern Science: Islam, China and the West'', [[Cambridge University Press]], pp. 77-8</ref> this varied among different institutions, with some only choosing to teach the "religious sciences", and others teaching both the religious and the "rational sciences", usually [[Logic in Islamic philosophy|logic]], [[Islamic mathematics|mathematics]] and [[Islamic philosophy|philosophy]]. Some ''madrasahs'' further extended their curriculum to [[Early Muslim sociology|history]], [[politics]], [[Islamic ethics|ethics]], [[Islamic music|music]], [[metaphysics]], [[Islamic medicine|medicine]], [[Islamic astronomy|astronomy]] and [[Alchemy and chemistry in Islam|chemistry]].<ref name=Alatas/>

The first [[University|universities]], in the sense of institutions of [[higher education]] and [[research]] which issue [[academic degree]]s at all levels ([[Bachelor's degree|bachelor]], [[Master's degree|master]] and [[doctorate]]),<ref name=Makdisi>{{citation|last=Makdisi|first=George|title=Scholasticism and Humanism in Classical Islam and the Christian West|journal=Journal of the American Oriental Society|volume=109|issue=2|date=April-June 1989|pages=175-182 [175-77]}}</ref> were the ''Jami'ah'' ("university" in Arabic) founded in the 9th century. In contrast to the madrasah, the ''Jami`ah'' was a larger institution housing a number of madrasahs.<ref name=Alatas/> The [[University of Al Karaouine]] in [[Fez, Morocco]] is thus recognized by the [[Guinness World Records|Guinness Book of World Records]] as the oldest degree-granting university in the world with its founding in 859 by [[Fatima al-Fihri]].<ref>''The Guinness Book Of Records'', 1998, p. 242, ISBN 0-5535-7895-2</ref> [[Al-Azhar University]], founded in [[Cairo]], [[Egypt]] in 975, was a ''Jami'ah'' which offered a variety of post-graduate degrees (''[[ijazah]]''),<ref name=Alatas/> and had individual [[Faculty (university)|faculties]]<ref>{{citation|title=A History of Christian-Muslim Relations|first=Hugh|last=Goddard|year=2000|publisher=[[Edinburgh University Press]]|isbn=074861009X|page=99}}</ref> for a theological [[seminary]], [[Sharia|Islamic law]] and [[Fiqh|jurisprudence]], [[Arabic grammar]], [[Islamic astronomy]], [[early Islamic philosophy]] and [[logic in Islamic philosophy]].<ref name=Alatas>{{citation|title=From Jami`ah to University: Multiculturalism and Christian–Muslim Dialogue|first=Syed Farid|last=Alatas|journal=Current Sociology|volume=54|issue=1|pages=112-32}}</ref> Another early university was the [[Al-Nizamiyya of Baghdad]] (founded 1091), considered the "largest [[Medieval university|university of the Medieval world]]".<ref>[http://taylorandfrancis.metapress.com/index/1F7AAVLC25YV4PF2.pdf A European Civil Project of a Documentation Center on Islam]</ref> The first universities in Europe were influenced in many ways by the madrasahs in [[Al-Andalus|Islamic Spain]] and the [[Emirate of Sicily]] at the time, and in the [[Middle East]] during the [[Crusades]].<ref name=Makdisi/>

In the [[Ottoman Empire]] during the [[Early Modern Period]], "Madrasahs were divided into lower and specialized levels, which reveals that there was a sense of elevation in school. Students who studied in the specialized schools after completing courses in the lower levels became known as danismends."<ref>Inalcik, Halil. 1973. “Learning, the Medrese, and the Ulema.” In ''The Ottoman Empire: The Classical Age 1300-1600''. New York: Praeger, pp. 165-178.</ref>

Some of the terms and concepts now used in modern universities which have Islamic origins include "the fact that people still talk of [[professor]]s holding the '[[Chair (official)|Chair]]' of their subject" is historically based on the "traditional Islamic pattern of teaching where the professor sits on a chair and the students sit around him" The term '[[Study circle|academic circles]]' is derived from the way in which Islamic students "sat in a circle around their professor", and terms such as "having '[[fellow]]s', 'reading' a subject, and obtaining 'degrees', can all be traced back" to the Islamic concepts of ''Ashab'' ("[[Sahaba|companions]], as of the prophet [[Muhammad]]"), ''Qara'a'' ("reading aloud the [[Qur'an]]") and ''[[Ijazah]]'' ("license to teach") respectively. George Makdisi has listed eighteen such parallels in terminology which can be traced back to their roots in Islamic education. Some of the practices now common in modern universities that also have Islamic origins include "practices such as delivering [[Inauguration|inaugural]] [[lecture]]s, wearing [[Academic dress|academic robes]], obtaining [[doctorate]]s by defending a [[Dissertation|thesis]], and even the idea of [[academic freedom]] are also modelled on Islamic custom." Islamic influence was also "certainly discernible in the foundation of the first deliberately-planned university" in Europe, the [[University of Naples Federico II]] founded by [[Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor]] in 1224.<ref>{{citation|title=A History of Christian-Muslim Relations|first=Hugh|last=Goddard|year=2000|publisher=[[Edinburgh University Press]]|isbn=074861009X|page=100}}</ref>

====Law schools====
{{see also|Sharia|Fiqh}}

Madrasahs were the first to have [[law school]]s, and it is likely that the "law schools known as [[Inns of Court]] in England" may have been derived from the Madrasahs which taught [[Sharia|Islamic law]] and [[Fiqh|jurisprudence]].<ref name=Makdisi>{{citation|last=Makdisi|first=John A.|title=The Islamic Origins of the Common Law|journal=[[North Carolina Law Review]]|year=1999|date=June 1999|volume=77|issue=5|pages=1635-1739}}</ref>

====Medical schools====
{{see also|Bimaristan}}

While most Madrasahs were usually law schools and some were universities (''Jami'ah''), there were also several madrasah [[medical school]]s dedicated to the teaching of [[Islamic medicine]], though this was most often taught at the [[Bimaristan]] teaching hospitals. For example, from the 155 madrasah [[college]]s in 15th century [[Damascus]], three of them were medical schools.<ref>{{citation|last=Gibb|first=H. A. R.|contribution=The University in the Arab-Moslem World|editor-last=Bradby|editor-first=Edward|title=The University Outside Europe: Essays on the Development of University|pages=281-298 [281]|year=1970|publisher=Ayer Publishing|isbn=0836915488}}</ref>

In the [[Early Modern Period]] in the [[Ottoman Empire]], "Suleyman I added new curriculums to the Ottoman medreses of which one was medicine, which alongside studying of the [[Hadith]] was given highest rank."<ref>Inalcik, Halil. 1973. “Learning, the Medrese, and the Ulema.” In ''The Ottoman Empire: The Classical Age 1300-1600''. New York: Praeger, pp. 165-178.</ref>

==Ottoman Madrasahs in the Early Modern Period==
“The first Ottoman Medrese was created in [[Iznik]] in 1331 and most Ottoman medreses followed the traditions of [[sunni]] [[Islam]]."<ref>Inalcik, Halil. 1973. “Learning, the Medrese, and the Ulema.” In ''The Ottoman Empire: The Classical Age 1300-1600''. New York: Praeger, pp. 165-178.</ref> “When an Ottoman sultan established a new medrese, he would invite scholars from the Islamic world - for example, Murad II brought scholars from Persia, such as Ala al-Din and Fakhr al-Din who helped enhance the reputation of the Ottoman medrese”<ref>Inalcik, Halil. 1973. “Learning, the Medrese, and the Ulema.” In ''The Ottoman Empire: The Classical Age 1300-1600''. New York: Praeger, pp. 165-178.</ref>. This reveals that the Islamic world was interconnected in the [[early modern period]] as they traveled around to other Islamic states exchanging knowledge. This sense that the Ottoman Empire was becoming modernized through [[globalization]] is also recognized by Hamadeh who says: "Change in the eighteenth century as the beginning of a long and unilinear march toward westernization reflects the two centuries of reformation in sovereign identity."<ref>Hamadeh, Shirine. “Ottoman Expressions of Early Modernity and the “Inevitable” Question of Westernization.” The Journal of Architectural Historians 63.1 (2004): 32-51.</ref>
Inalcik also mentions that while scholars from for example Persia, traveled to the Ottomans in order to share their knowledge, Ottomans traveled as well to receive education from scholars of these Islamic lands, such as Egypt, Persia and Turkestan.<ref>Inalcik, Halil. 1973. “Learning, the Medrese, and the Ulema.” In ''The Ottoman Empire: The Classical Age 1300-1600''. New York: Praeger, pp. 165-178. </ref>

===Curriculums===
As is previously mentioned, religion dominated much of the knowledge and teachings that were endowed upon students. "Relgious learning as the only true science, whose sole aim was the understanding of God's word."Inalcik, Halil. 1973. “Learning, the Medrese, and the Ulema.” In ''The Ottoman Empire: The Classical Age 1300-1600''. New York: Praeger, pp. 165-178. Thus, it is important to keep this impulse in mind when going over the curriculum that was taught.

The Following is taken from Inalcik.<ref>Inalcik, Halil. 1973. “Learning, the Medrese, and the Ulema.” In ''The Ottoman Empire: The Classical Age 1300-1600''. New York: Praeger, pp. 165-178.</ref>
<blockquote>
*A) Calligraphic sciences - such as styles of writing.
*B) Oral sciences - such as the Arabic language, grammar, syntax.
*C) Intellectual sciences - logic.
*D) Spiritual sciences - theoretical such as general theology, and mathematics, and practical, such as ethics and politics.
</blockquote>

===Social Life and the Medrese in the Ottoman Empire===
As with any other country during the [[Early Modern Period]], such as Italy and Spain in Europe, the Ottoman social life was also interconnected with the medrese. Medreses were built in as part of a Mosque Complex where many programs, such as aid to the poor through soup kitchens were held under the infrastructure of a mosque, which reveals the interconnectedness of religion and social life during this period. "The mosques to which medreses were attached, dominated the social life in Ottoman cities."<ref>Goffman, Daniel. The Ottoman Empire and Early Modern Europe. United Kingdom: U of Cambridge P, 2002. </ref> Social life was not dominated by religion only in the muslim world of the [[Ottoman Empire]]; however, was also quite similar to the social life of Europe during this period. As Goffman says: "Just as mosques dominated social life for the Ottomans, churches and synagogues dominated life for the Christians and Jews as well."<ref>Goffman, Daniel. The Ottoman Empire and Early Modern Europe. United Kingdom: U of Cambridge P, 2002. </ref> Hence, social life and the medrese were closely linked, since medreses as is previously mentioned taught many curriculums, such as religion, which highly governed social life in terms of establishing orthodoxy. "They tried moving their developing state toward Islamic orthodoxy."<ref>Goffman, Daniel. The Ottoman Empire and Early Modern Europe. United Kingdom: U of Cambridge P, 2002. </ref> Overall, the fact that mosques contained medreses comes to show the relevance of education to religion in the sense that education took place within the framework of religion and religion established social life by trying to create a common religious orthodoxy. Hence, medreses were simply part of the social life of society as students came to learn the fundamentals of their societal values and beliefs.




Following is
about an important old religious university in Egypt
from
[[Al-Azhar University]]
'''Al-Azhar University''' ({{lang-ar|الأزهر الشريف}}; ''{{ISOtranslit|Al-ʾAzhar al-Šarīf}}'', "the Noble Azhar"), is an [[Egypt]]ian institution of higher learning. It is connected to Al-Azhar [[mosque]] in Old [[Cairo]]. Al-Azhar (in Arabic: the most flourished and shining) was so called either because it was surrounded by great glittering palaces,{{Fact|date=August 2007}} or as a hopeful disposition, or after the name of Sayeda Fatima Al-Zahra', daughter of the Prophet Mohammed. The mosque was built in two years from 969 AD, the year in which its foundation was laid. The [[Madrasah]] connected with it was founded in 988 AD. Studies began in Al-Azhar in the month of Ramadan by October 975 AD, when Chief Justice Abul Hasan Ali ibn Al-No'man started teaching the book "Al-Ikhtisar", on Shiite [[jurisprudence]].

According to [[Encyclopedia Britannica]], "Al-Azhar was founded by the [[Fatimids]], but [[Saladin]], after ousting the Fatimids, consecrated it to [[Sunni]] learning in the 12th century"<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/eb/topic-46851/al-Azhar-University Britannica article]</ref> <ref>[[Encyclopedia Britannica]] p.37 1993 edition ISBN:0852295715</ref>. It is the [[List of oldest universities in continuous operation|oldest operating]] [[university|university]] in the world.

Al-Azhar University was initially founded as a ''Jami'ah'' ("university" in Arabic) which issued [[academic degree]]s,<ref name=Alatas/> and had individual [[Faculty (university)|faculties]]<ref>{{citation|title=A History of Christian-Muslim Relations|first=Hugh|last=Goddard|year=2000|publisher=[[Edinburgh University Press]]|isbn=074861009X|page=99}}</ref> for a [[madrasah]] and theological [[seminary]], [[Sharia|Islamic law]] and [[Fiqh|jurisprudence]], [[Arabic grammar]], [[Islamic astronomy]], [[early Islamic philosophy]] and [[logic in Islamic philosophy]].<ref name=Alatas>{{citation|title=From Ja¯mi`ah to University: Multiculturalism and Christian–Muslim Dialogue|first=Syed Farid|last=Alatas|journal=Current Sociology|volume=54|issue=1|pages=112-32}}</ref>

==Reputation==
Among the university's stated objectives is the propagation of Islamic religion and culture and the [[Arabic language]] (the language of the [[Qur'an]].) To that end, it maintains a committee of [[ulema]]s (Islamic scholars) to judge on individual Islamic questions, operates a printing establishment for printing the Qur'an, and trains government-appointed preachers in proselytization (''[[da'wa]]'').

following is from [[Education in Norway]]
==History of education in Norway==

Organized education in Norway dates as far back as [[Middle Ages|medieval times]]. Shortly after Norway became an [[Diocese|archdiocese]] in 1152, [[cathedral school]]s were constructed to educate priests in [[Trondheim]], [[Oslo]], [[Bergen, Norway|Bergen]] and [[Hamar]].

After the [[Lutheranism|reformation]] of Norway in 1537, (Norway entered a [[Denmark-Norway|personal union]] with [[Denmark]] in 1536) the cathedral schools were turned into Latin schools, and it was made mandatory for all [[market town]]s to have such a school.

In 1736 training in reading was made compulsory for all children, but was not effective until some years later. In 1827, Norway introduced the ''folkeskole'', a primary school which became mandatory for 7 years in 1889 and 9 years in 1969. In the 1970s and 1980s, the ''folkeskole'' was abolished, and the ''grunnskole'' was introduced.



Next is from [[History of education in Japan]]

The '''history of [[education in Japan]]''' dates back at least to the sixth century, when Chinese learning was introduced at the [[Yamato period|Yamato]] court. Foreign civilizations have often provided new ideas for the development of Japan's own culture.

==6th to 15th century==
Chinese teachings and ideas flowed into Japan from the sixth to the ninth century. Along with the introduction of [[Buddhism]] came the [[Chinese system of writing]] and its [[Chinese literature|literary tradition]], and [[Confucianism]].

By the ninth century, Heian-kyo (today's [[Kyoto]]), the imperial capital, had five institutions of higher learning, and during the remainder of the [[Heian period]], other schools were established by the nobility and the imperial court. During the medieval period (1185-1600), [[Zen]] Buddhist [[monastery|monasteries]] were especially important centers of learning, and the [[Ashikaga]] School, [[Ashikaga Gakko]], flourished in the fifteenth century as a center of higher learning.

==16th century==
In the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, Japan experienced intense contact with the major European powers. [[Jesuit]] missionaries, who accompanied [[Portugal|Portuguese]] traders, preached [[Christianity]] and opened a number of religious schools. Japanese students thus began to study [[Latin]] and [[Western music]], as well as their own language.

''see:'' [[Nanban trade period]]

==[[Edo period]]==
By 1603 Japan had been reunified by the [[Tokugawa shogunate|Tokugawa]] regime (1600- 1867), and by 1640 foreigners had been ordered out of Japan, Christianity banned, and virtually all foreign contact prohibited. The nation then entered a period of isolation and relative domestic tranquillity, which was to last 200 years. When the Tokugawa period began, few common people in Japan could read or write. By the period's end, learning had become widespread. Tokugawa education left a valuable legacy: an increasingly literate populace, a [[meritocratic]] ideology, and an emphasis on discipline and competent performance. Under subsequent [[Meiji period|Meiji]] leadership, this foundation would facilitate Japan's rapid transition from [[feudal]] country to modern nation.

One of the things that amazed [[Europe]]ans that arrived in Japan at the end of the [[Edo period]] was that the Japanese were very well educated and that popular cultures also existed that were widely believed at that time to be something that could not exist without an [[industrial revolution]]. It is estimated that the [[literacy]] rate was already over 80% for men and somewhere in the 60s or 70s for women and much higher in cities like [[Edo]] and [[Osaka]].

During the Tokugawa period, the role of many of the ''[[Samurai#Etymology_of_samurai_and_related_words|bushi]]'', or [[samurai]], changed from [[warrior]] to [[Academic administration|administrator]], and as a consequence, their formal education and their [[literacy]] increased proportionally. Samurai curricula stressed morality and included both military and literary studies. [[Confucian classics]] were memorized, and reading and recitating them were common methods of study. [[Arithmetic]] and [[calligraphy]] were also studied. Most samurai attended schools sponsored by their [[Han (Japan)|han]] (domains), and by the time of the [[Meiji Restoration]] of 1868, more than 200 of the 276 han had established schools. Some samurai and even commoners also attended private academies, which often specialized in particular Japanese subjects or in [[Western medicine]], modern [[military science]], [[gun]]nery, or [[Rangaku]] (Dutch studies), as [[European studies]] were called.

Education of commoners was generally practically oriented, providing basic training in [[reading (activity)|reading]], [[writing]], and [[arithmetic]], emphasizing [[calligraphy]] and use of the [[abacus]]. Much of this education was conducted in so-called temple schools ([[terakoya]]), derived from earlier Buddhist schools. These schools were no longer religious institutions, nor were they, by 1867, predominantly located in temples. By the end of the Tokugawa period, there were more than 11,000 such schools, attended by 750,000 students. Teaching techniques included reading from various textbooks, memorizing, abacus, and repeatedly copying [[Chinese characters]] and Japanese script.

==[[Meiji period]]==
''See:'' [[Education in the Empire of Japan]]<br>

After 1868 new leadership set Japan on a rapid course of [[modernization]]. The Meiji leaders established a public education system to help Japan catch up with the West and form a modern nation. Missions like the [[Iwakura mission]] were sent abroad to study the education systems of leading Western countries. They returned with the ideas of [[decentralization]], local [[school board]]s, and teacher autonomy. Such ideas and ambitious initial plans, however, proved very difficult to carry out. After some trial and error, a new national education system emerged. As an indication of its success, elementary school enrollments climbed from about 40 or 50 percent of the school-age population in the 1870s to more than 90 percent by 1900, despite strong public protest, especially against school fees.

By the 1890s, after earlier intensive preoccupation with Western, particularly [[United States]], educational ideas, a much more [[American conservatism|conservative]] and traditional orientation evolved. [[Confucianism|Confucian]] precepts were stressed, especially those concerning the hierarchical nature of human relations, service to the new state, the pursuit of learning, and morality. These ideals, embodied in the 1890 [[Imperial Rescript on Education]], along with highly centralized government control over education, largely guided Japanese education until the end of [[World War II]].

==Pre-war 20th century==
In the early [[twentieth century]], education at the primary level was [[egalitarian]] and virtually universal, but at higher levels it was multitracked, highly selective, and [[elitist]]. [[College]] education was largely limited to the few [[Imperial university|imperial universities]], where German influences were strong. Three of the imperial universities admitted women, and there were a number of women's colleges, some quite prestigious, but women had relatively few opportunities to enter higher education. During this period, a number of universities were founded by Christian missionaries, who also took an active role in expanding educational opportunities for women, particularly at the secondary level.

After 1919 several of the private universities received official status and were granted government recognition for programs they had conducted, in many cases, since the 1880s. In the 1920s, the tradition of [[liberal education]] briefly reappeared, particularly at the [[kindergarten]] level, where the [[Montessori]] method attracted a following. In the 1930s, education was subject to strong military and nationalistic influences.


==History of Women's Education==
Education for females, which often bound with religious constraints, had become an issue as far back as in the [[Heian period]] over a thousand years ago. But the [[Sengoku period]] finally made it clear that women had to be educated because they must defend the country when their husbands died. It also helped that both [[Buddhism]] and [[Shintoism]] did not look down on females and instead treated them as their equals. ''[[The Tale of Genji]]'' was written by a well-educated female from the Heian period and writings by women blossomed throughout Japanese history.


Next is from
[[Education in the Soviet Union]]

In [[Imperial Russia]], according to the 1897 [[Census|Population Census]], [[literate]] people made up 28.4 percent of the [[population]]. During the 8th [[Party Congress]] of 1919, the creation of the new [[Socialist]] system of education was proclaimed the major aim of the [[Sovnarkom|Soviet government]]. The abolition of [[illiteracy]] became the primary task in the [[Russian SFSR]].

In accordance with the [[Sovnarkom]] decree of [[December 26]] [[1919]], signed by its head [[Vladimir Lenin]], the new [[policy]] of [[likbez]], was introduced. The new system of universal [[compulsory education]] was established for [[child]]ren. Millions of illiterate adult people all over the country, including residents of small towns and villages, were enrolled in special [[literacy school]]s. [[Komsomol]] members and [[Young Pioneer organization of the Soviet Union|Young Pioneer]] detachments played an important role in the education of illiterate people in [[villages]]. The most active phase of ''likbez'' lasted until 1939. In 1926, the [[literacy rate]] was 56.6 percent of the population. By 1937, according to [[Soviet Census (1937)|census data]], the literacy rate was 86% for men and 65% for women, making a total literacy rate of 75%. <ref>Fitzpatrick, S. (1994). ''Stalin's peasants: resistance and survival in the Russian village after collectivization''. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 225-6 & fn. 78 p. 363. {{OCLC|28293091}}.</ref>

An important aspect of the early campaign for literacy and education was the policy of "indigenization" ([[korenizatsiya]]). This policy, which lasted essentially from the mid-1920s to the late 1930s, promoted the development and use of non-Russian languages in the government, the media, and education. Intended to counter the historical practices of Russification, it had as another practical goal assuring native-language education as the quickest way to increase educational levels of future generations. A huge network of so-called "national schools" was established by the 1930s, and this network continued to grow in enrollments throughout the Soviet era. Language policy changed over time, perhaps marked first of all in the government's mandating in 1938 the teaching of Russian as a required ''subject'' of study in every non-Russian school, and then especially beginning in the latter 1950s a growing conversion of non-Russian schools to Russian as the main medium of instruction.

Next is from
[[Aztec]]

'''Aztec''' is a term used to refer to certain ethnic groups of central [[Mexico]], particularly those groups who spoke the [[Nahuatl language]] and who achieved political and military dominance over large parts of [[Mesoamerica]] in the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries, a period referred to as the Late post-Classic period in [[Mesoamerican chronology]].

===Education===
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image:Educacion azteca.jpg|thumb|Representation of Aztec education. {{deletable image-caption}}]] -->
Until the age of fourteen, the education of children was in the hands of their parents, but supervised by the authorities of their ''calpōlli''. Part of this education involved learning a collection of sayings, called ''huēhuetlàtolli'' ("sayings of the old"), that embodied the Aztecs' ideals. Judged by their language, most of the ''huēhuetlatolli'' seemed to have evolved over several centuries, predating the Aztecs and most likely adopted from other Nahua cultures.

At 15, all boys and girls went to school. The Mexica, one of the Aztec groups, were one of the first people in the world to have mandatory education for nearly all children, regardless of gender, rank, or station. There were two types of schools: the ''telpochcalli'', for practical and military studies, and the ''[[calmecac]]'', for advanced learning in writing, astronomy, statesmanship, theology, and other areas. The two institutions seem to be common to the Nahua people, leading some experts to suggest that they are older than the Aztec culture.

Aztec teachers (''tlatimine'') propounded a spartan regime of education with the purpose of forming a stoical people.

Girls were educated in the crafts of home and child raising. They were not taught to read or write. All women were taught to be involved in religion; there are paintings of women presiding over religious ceremonies, but there are no references to female priests.

Next is from
[[Inca Empire]]

The '''Inca Empire''' (or '''Inka Empire''') was the largest empire in [[pre-Columbian America]].<ref>Terence D'Altroy, ''The Incas'', pp. 2&ndash;3.</ref> The administrative, political and military center of the empire was located in [[Cusco]]. The Inca Empire arose from the highlands of [[Peru]] sometime in early 13th century. From 1438 to 1533, the Incas used a variety of methods, from conquest to peaceful assimilation, to incorporate a large portion of western South America, centered on the [[Andes|Andean]] mountain ranges, including large parts of modern [[Ecuador]], [[Peru]], western and south central [[Bolivia]], northwest [[Argentina]], north and north-central [[Chile]], and southern [[Colombia]]. The Incas identified their king as "child of the sun."

The [[Quechua]] name for the empire was '''Tawantinsuyu'''<ref name="fn_1">'''Tawantin suyu''' derives from the Quechua "tawa" (''four''), to which the suffix "-ntin" (''together'' or ''united'') is added, followed by "suyu" (''region'' or ''province''), which roughly renders as "''The four lands together''". The four '''suyos''' were: Chinchay Suyo (North), Anti Suyo (East. The Amazon jungle), Colla Suyo (South) and Conti Suyo (West).</ref> which can be translated as ''The Four Regions'' or ''The Four United Regions''. Before the [[Quechuan and Aymaran spelling shift|Quechua spelling reform]] it was written in [[Spanish language|Spanish]] as '''Tahuantinsuyo'''. ''Tawantin'' is a group of four things (''tawa'' "four" with the suffix ''-ntin'' which names a group); ''suyu'' means "region" or "province". The empire was divided into four ''Suyus'', whose corners met at the capital, [[Cusco]] (''Qosqo''), in modern-day [[Peru]]. The official language of the empire was [[Quechua]], although dozens if not hundreds of local languages were spoken.

There were many local forms of worship, most of them concerning local sacred "[[Huaca]]s", but the Inca leadership encouraged the worship of [[Inti]] &mdash; the sun god &mdash; and imposed its sovereignty above other cults such as that of [[Pachamama]].<ref>[http://www.allempires.com/article/index.php?q=inca The Inca - All Empires<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>


Next is from [[Inca education]]

'''Inca education''' during the time of the [[Inca Empire]] was divided into two principal spheres: education for the upper classes and education for the general population. The royal classes and a few specially-chosen individuals from the [[Provinces of Peru|provinces]] of the Empire were formally educated by the '''''Amautas''''' (wise men), while the general population were passed on knowledge and skills by their immediate forbears.

The Amautas constituted a special class of wise men similar to the [[bards]] of [[Great Britain]]. They included illustrious [[philosophers]], [[poets]], and [[priests]] who kept the oral histories of the Incas alive by imparting the knowledge of their culture, history, customs and traditions throughout the kingdom. Considered the most highly-educated and respected men in the Empire, the Amautas were largely entrusted with educating those of [[royal family|royal]] blood, as well as other young members of [[Cultural periods of Peru|conquered cultures]] specially-chosen to administer the regions. Thus, education throughout the territories of the Incas was socially discriminatory, barring the [[rank and file]] from the formal education that royalty received. The Amautas did ensure that the general population learn [[Quechua]] as the language of the Empire, much in the same way the [[Ancient Rome|Romans]] promoted [[Latin]] throughout [[Europe]]; however, this was done more for political reasons than educational ones.

== Education of the Inca nobility ==

According to [[Fray Martín de Murúa]], a chronicler of the time, the education of the young novices (''yachakuq runa'', in [[Quechua]]) received from the Amautas began at age 13 in the houses of knowledge (''yachaywasi'' in [[Quechua]]) located in [[Cusco|Cuzco]]. The Amautas used their erudition to teach the young novices of the empire about Inca religion, history and government, and moral norms. They also ensured a thorough understanding of the [[Quipu]], the Incas' unique logical-numerical system which used knotted strings to keep accurate records of troops, supplies, population data, and agricultural inventories. In addition, the young men were given careful training in physical education and military techniques.

Most Inca novices finished their education at around age 19. After passing their examinations, the young men would receive their ''wara'' (a special type of underwear) as proof of their maturity and virility. Their education ended with a special ceremony, attended by the Empire’s oldest and most illustrious Incas and Amautas, at which the new young nobles, as future rulers, demonstrated their physical prowess and warrior skills and proved their masculinity. The candidates were also presented to the Inca sovereign, who pierced their ears with large pendants and congratulated the young aspirants on the proficiency they had shown, reminding them of the responsibilities attached to their station (and birth, in the case of members of the royalty) and calling them the new "Children of the Sun."

Some historians and authors have pointed to feminine schools ("Aqlla wasi", in Quechua) for Inca princesses and other women. It is believed the education given at the Acllahuasi in Cuzco was much different from that given at the other Acllahuasis in the [[Provinces of Peru|provinces]] of the empire. The women learned Inca lore and the art of womanhood as well as skills related to governance, but on a limited scale in comparison to the men. Other skills included [[Spinning (textiles)|spinning]], [[weaving]], and [[chicha]] brewing. When the Spanish chroniclers and [[Spanish conquest of Peru|conquistadors]] arrived they viewed these institutions as the Inca version of the European [[nunnery]]. Like the men, women were brought in to the Acllahuasis from faraway villages throughout the empire after being specifically chosen by Inca agents. After finishing their training, some women would stay to train newly-arrived girls, while lower-ranking women might be chosen to be secondary wives of the [[Sapa Inca]], if he wished it, or be sent as rewards to other men who had done something to please the sovereign.

== Popular Education ==

The general population of the Inca Empire did not go to formal schools like the Inca nobility did, and thus did not have access to the scientific or theoretical knowledge of the Amautas. The education of the common person was largely based on the knowledge transmitted by their elders, such as practical education in the aspects of agriculture, hunting, fishing, and stonework, as well as religion, arts and morality. This type of knowledge was passed on by the fathers and eldest family members through the generations. Even without the benefit of Amauta knowledge, it was the general population that was responsible for building most of the [[Inca road system]], [[Inca rope bridges|rope bridges]], water fountains, agricultural development, irrigation systems, massive stone buildings, fortress temples and the rest of the impressive architectural and engineering marvels for which the Incas are still renowned today.

Next is Native Americans

The '''Inca Empire''' (or '''Inka Empire''') was the largest empire in [[pre-Columbian America]].<ref>Terence D'Altroy, ''The Incas'', pp. 2&ndash;3.</ref> The administrative, political and military center of the empire was located in [[Cusco]]. The Inca Empire arose from the highlands of [[Peru]] sometime in early 13th century. From 1438 to 1533, the Incas used a variety of methods, from conquest to peaceful assimilation, to incorporate a large portion of western South America, centered on the [[Andes|Andean]] mountain ranges, including large parts of modern [[Ecuador]], [[Peru]], western and south central [[Bolivia]], northwest [[Argentina]], north and north-central [[Chile]], and southern [[Colombia]]. The Incas identified their king as "child of the sun."

The [[Quechua]] name for the empire was '''Tawantinsuyu'''<ref name="fn_1">'''Tawantin suyu''' derives from the Quechua "tawa" (''four''), to which the suffix "-ntin" (''together'' or ''united'') is added, followed by "suyu" (''region'' or ''province''), which roughly renders as "''The four lands together''". The four '''suyos''' were: Chinchay Suyo (North), Anti Suyo (East. The Amazon jungle), Colla Suyo (South) and Conti Suyo (West).</ref> which can be translated as ''The Four Regions'' or ''The Four United Regions''. Before the [[Quechuan and Aymaran spelling shift|Quechua spelling reform]] it was written in [[Spanish language|Spanish]] as '''Tahuantinsuyo'''. ''Tawantin'' is a group of four things (''tawa'' "four" with the suffix ''-ntin'' which names a group); ''suyu'' means "region" or "province". The empire was divided into four ''Suyus'', whose corners met at the capital, [[Cusco]] (''Qosqo''), in modern-day [[Peru]]. The official language of the empire was [[Quechua]], although dozens if not hundreds of local languages were spoken.

There were many local forms of worship, most of them concerning local sacred "[[Huaca]]s", but the Inca leadership encouraged the worship of [[Inti]] &mdash; the sun god &mdash; and imposed its sovereignty above other cults such as that of [[Pachamama]].<ref>[http://www.allempires.com/article/index.php?q=inca The Inca - All Empires<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

The gender role of the Native Americans, when it came to agriculture, varied from region to region. In the southwest area, men would prepare the soil with [[Hoe (tool)|hoes]]. The women were in charge of planting, weeding, and harvesting the crops. In most other regions, the women were in charge of doing everything including clearing the land. Clearing the land was an immense chore since the Native Americans rotated fields frequently. There have been stories about how [[Squanto]] showed pilgrims to put fish in fields and this would acts like a fertilizer, but this story is not true. They did plant beans next to corn; the beans would replace the [[nitrogen]] the corn took from the ground. They also had controlled fires to burn weeds and this would put nutrients back into the ground. If this did not work they would simply abandon the field and go find a new spot for their field.

Some of the tools the Native Americans used were the [[Hoe (tool)|hoe]], the [[maul]], and the [[dibber]]. The hoe was the main tool used to till the land and prepare it for planting and then used for weeding. The first versions were made out of wood and stone. When the settlers brought iron, Native Americans switched to iron hoes and hatches. The dibber was essentially a digging stick, and was used to plant the seed. Once the plants were harvested they were prepared by the women for eating. The maul was used to grind the corn into mash ate that way or made into corn bread.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.answers.com/topic/agriculture-american-indians? |work=Answers.com|title=American Indian Agriculture |accessmonthday=February 8 |accessyear=2008}}</ref>

===Gender roles===

[[Image:Doctor.susan.la.flesche.picotte.jpg|175px|thumb|right|Dr. [[Susan La Flesche Picotte]] was the first [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]] woman to become a [[physician]] in the [[United States]].]]

Most Native American tribes had traditional [[gender roles]]. In some tribes, such as the [[Iroquois]] nation, social and clan relationships were [[Matrilineality|matrilineal]] and/or [[Matriarchy|matriarchal]], although several [[Kinship and descent|different systems]] were in use. One example is the Cherokee custom of wives owning the family property. Men hunted, traded and made war, while women gathered plants, cared for the young and the elderly, fashioned clothing and instruments and cured meat. The [[cradleboard]] was used by mothers to carry their baby while working or traveling.<ref>[http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/naind/html/na_013100_gender.htm Gender], Encyclopedia of North American Indians, by Beatrice Medicine. URL accessed on February 99, 2006.</ref> However, in some (but not all) tribes a kind of [[transgender]] was permitted; see [[Two-Spirit]].

At least several dozen tribes allowed [[polygyny]] to sisters, with procedural and economic limits.<ref name=Morgan1907 />

Apart from making home, women had many tasks that were essential for the survival of the tribes. They made weapons and tools, took care of the roofs of their homes and often helped their men hunt [[American bison|buffalos]].<ref>[http://www.indians.org/articles/native-american-women.html], Native American Women, Indians.org. URL accessed on January 11, 2007.</ref>
In some of the Plains Indian tribes there reportedly were medicine women who gathered herbs and cured the ill.<ref>[http://www.bluecloud.org/medicine.html], Medicine Women, Bluecloud.org. URL accessed on January 11, 2007.</ref>




==Notes & References==
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==See also==
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*[[Education of females]]
*[[Education of women and girls]]



[[Category:Education in Africa]]
[[Category:Education in the Middle East]]
[[Category:Education in the Middle East and North Africa]]

Latest revision as of 02:09, 12 July 2016

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