Social Organization
The Umayyad Caliphate exhibited four main social classes:
1.Muslim Arabs
2.Muslim non-Arabs (clients of the Muslim Arabs)
3.Non-Muslim free persons (Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians)
4.Slaves
The Muslim Arabs were at the top of the society, and saw it as their duty to rule over the conquered areas. Despite the fact that Islam teaches the equality of all Muslims, the Arab Muslims held themselves in higher esteem than Muslim non-Arabs and generally did not mix with other Muslims.
The inequality of Muslims in the empire led to social unrest. As Islam spread, more and more of the Muslim population was constituted of non-Arabs. This caused tension as the new converts were not given the same rights as Muslim Arabs. Also, as conversions increased, tax revenues off non-Muslims decreased to dangerous lows. These issues continued to grow until they helped cause the Abbasid Revolt in the 740s.
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