1.	Focus Questions:  How does Islam confront moderizing Europe?  What was the strength and the weakness of the Ottoman empire?
	In 1600 what was the apparent position of Islamic civilization in compared to other civilizations? To which linguistic group did the Ottomans belong? When did Constantinople fall to the Ottomans? How was the Ottoman state organized? What measures did the Ottomans use to ensure the strength of the sultan? What was the purpose of the "religious institution?" What was the purpose of the devshirme? Under which leader did the Ottoman state reach its peak of power? By 1600 what were the indications of internal decline of the empire?  Why did the Turkish attitude of toleration towards its Christian population change?  What was the affect of this new attitude?  Which European power came to dominate Hungary at the Ottomans' expense? Which European power claimed to represent the interests of Orthodox Christians within the Turkish empire after 1774?  What economic reality undermined Turkish resistance strength?
2.	Focus Questions:  What was the nature of the Safavid empire?  What were its strengths and weaknesses?
	What were the origins of the Safavid empire in Iran?  To which Islamic sect did the Safavids originally belong?  Who were the Safavids' chief enemies? How did religion help unify Islamic the Safavid empire?  What tactics did Shah Abbas I and several other Safavid rulers use to help them in their struggle against the Ottoman Turks?  In what area was Safavid most successful? Why did the empire go into decline?  What were the lasting legacies of Safavid rule? What was the focus of Safavid Shiite piety?
3.	Focus Questions: What was the nature of the Mugal empire?  What were its strengths and weaknesses?
	Who were the Mughals and from where did the originate?  What were Akbar the Great's main policies toward the Hindu population?  What were his main accomplishments?  What was the fate of his empire, why did it fail? Who are the Sikhs?  Why did they develop into a formidable military power?  Who were the Marathas and to which religious group did they belong? When did the Mughal line officially come to an end? Between 1500-1650, India experienced a "reform" movement in various religious groups.  What direction did these movements take?
4.	Focus Question:  How did islam spread into Central Asia?  What caused fractures in Islamic unity and what was the result for Islam?
	When did Islam begin to gain a solid foothold in Central Asia?  What slowed the spread of Islam eastward? To which ethnic group did the Uzbeks and Chaghatays belong?  Whose decedents ruled these peoples?  How had they been converted to Islam?  What were the most important elements that united all Islamic states? What were the main consequences of the Shiíite schism?  Why did Persian decline as the linga franca of the Islamic world?   Why did Central Asian Islam develop mostly in isolation?
5.	Focus Question:  How and why was Islam so successful in the South Sea areas of Asia as a religion was unable to halt Christian military domination?
	How did Islam spread throughout the South Seas?  How did Islam typically spread from urban centers inland?  What was the chief religious group the Muslims displaced?  Why were outside powers attracted to the South Seas lands?  Which European power first penetrated the Southern Seas?  Why were the European powers able to win out in the long struggle for control in the area?  Why did the Christian religion and culture fail to penetrate this area to the same degree as the Muslim?  Where was the only place that a substantial population became Christian?  Who were the main enemies of the Acheh state?  What assistance did Acheh request and receive from other Islamic states?  Who replaced the Portuguese in the area and when was Acheh finally subjugated?
	Sufi Shari'a Imam ghazis jihad Suleyman the Magnificent Grand Mufti ulama devshirme Janissaries "Qur'an" or Koran = the reciting (the angel Gabriel recites the teaching of the Quran to Muhammad)