Wikipedia:Wiki Ed/New York University in Shanghai/Arab-Islamic Influence on the West (Fall)

Are you looking for a fun and interactive selective course to acquire crucial knowledge outside your major? The Arab-Islamic world is an under-taught region for all students. Rarely any high school outside the Middle East offers a course on it, yet it is strategically important to us all. Since many of you aspire to become professionals in diplomacy, business and finance, computer/data science, media and technology, etc., it is vital to have some basic knowledge and an informed understanding about one of the fastest growing regions in these areas so that in the future you can make wise policy recommendations and business decisions!

Have you ever wondered: Why do we use “Arabic” numerals? Why does the English language have words like algebra, algorithm, coffee, sugar, and sabbatical? Why is there a tendency for western textbooks to jump from the Fall of Rome to the Italian Renaissance? Why are there ongoing differentiations between the “East” and the “West” in our increasingly globalized world? This course provides a new approach to studying “Western Civilization” by highlighting the numerous influences that the Arab-Islamic world has on Europe and other western societies. It also explores why many western scholars have chosen to minimize Arab-Islamic contributions in favor of “Western Exceptionalism” narratives.

The course is arranged thematically. Each session centers around an area of Arab-Islamic influence on the “West” with an example of an English (or other European languages) word that can trace its origin back to Arabic (or other Middle Eastern languages).