History of the Middle East - 600 A.D. to Today

A comprehensive overview of the Middle East and its social, cultural, religious, military, and political history.

4.45 (196 reviews)

Udemy

platform

English

language

Humanities

What you will learn

By the end of this course you will know as much about Middle East history and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as you would after a year-long college course but in a fraction of the time and money.

You will get 25 lectures and over six hours of content!

Why take this course?

Become highly informed on the past and present of the Middle East in minutes a day with this introductory history course.

Know as much about Middle East history as a history major
Learn in a fraction of the time and money
Understand the intricacies of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
Sound highly knowledgeable about world affairs to your friends and associates.
Learn history through highly entertaining videos and audio lectures

To most Westerners the Middle East and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict appear utterly bewildering. Palestinians want to bomb Israelis that force them at gunpoint to live in restricted parts of the country. Arab leaders are furious about this situation and want Israelis “wiped off the map” and their land given back to Palestinians, even though the real estate of the Holy Land looks something like rural Utah. And nearly all the world’s leaders see fit to chime in on this dispute over the two tiny lands.

To untangle the modern Middle East conflict and the 2,000 years behind it, this course is divided into 25 concise lectures. Each one is devoted to a major theme in Middle East history, such as the beginning of Islam, the Crusades, Genghis Khan, and the beginning of Israel in 1948. Each lecture is 10-20 minutes, giving you a fast overview of the issues to understand how they connect Middle East current events.

STUDENT TESTIMONIALS:

"The instructor clearly demonstrates the relevance of the topic to ongoing conflicts and issues in our world today. If you want to better understand the world or just like learning something new, do yourself a favor and buy this course!" -- Raj Lulla

Reviews

Efe

February 17, 2022

Istanbul was named as Constantinople in the Byzantine Empire, however in Ottoman Empire and in Turkey it was usually called as Istanbul.

Jana

January 20, 2022

The lector has a nice, calm voice that help to understang the main topic of the lecture. in total 25 lectures was the perfect amount to learn about both historic and the main key facts that help to understand the Middle Eastern region today. Thank you for an amazing opportunity to learn as much through our those lectures

Jaxon

December 15, 2021

I am going definitely going to learn a lot my good friend, thank you for blessing me with your knowledge!!!

Sivadasan

July 30, 2020

It was not audible To begin with low voice was there Gradually it was going down to the point of death I complained, nobody attended me ..a fraud course

Soh

April 12, 2020

very useful and enriching information. I am so glad I get to learn so much from you and did not regret signing up this course. Please ignore my comments regarding the slides btw. Be safe and healthy! Looking forward to your next module. Regards!

Hasan

December 27, 2019

This is a whirlwind tour of Middle East history yet it is a detailed and informative account of the Middle East. I enjoyed these lectures and even more I enjoyed the quizzes. The tutor is obviously very knowledgable about the region, and these lectures are an important guide and useful introduction to anyone interested in Middle East history. Thank you for a wonderful course.

Maureen

September 10, 2017

Great use of graphics to complement/ summarise the speaking.Fascinating information put in an interesting way: development of culture, anthropology and other factors , explaining that the Middle East is very diverse in culture ,religion and tradition. The instructor uses an overview perspective of other empires , make this a very engaging course. i enjoyed the factor ot how trade is important to the development of issues and politics surrounding the Middle East, due to trade , equally money, power and control.. very pertinent , today. I liked the mini quizzes,to recap knowledge . i feel i have an overview of Middle Eastern history and context . The chapters link up very well: be it the Arab Spring or the Ottoman Empire. One can see how things evolved. I would love to learn more about the sociology/ anthropology/ cultures of the Middle East . It took me a few months to go through the course,given a busy job etc. But material gives plenty of food for thought. Excellent course !

Eric

May 14, 2017

Good information and structure but the presentation especially of the early history of Islam could be improved.

Austin

April 18, 2017

I have just finished the first lesson. Very informative. Gives me a clear frame of the history of middle east. Looking forward to coming lessons.

Robert

August 15, 2016

I feel like this is the first time I've gotten a clear, unbiased lesson on the history of the Middle East. Understanding the history makes some sense of current events and improves chances of bridging the gap one day.

William

July 7, 2015

I found the course very informative but as i do not have an in-depth background in Middle East studies my opinion must be considered a non-expert evaluation.

Mateen

June 29, 2015

The lecturer did a great job producing the slides and the audio, although the audio needed to be louder and the slides cut off sometimes. However, the course was very engaging and did not drain you out from the heavy material. Unfortunately the course did not go too in depth, but was a great (and essential) primer in understanding the Middle East conflicts. There were parts of the course that were questionable and were somewhat incorrect, but the history itself was very well documented. The course focusing on the historic aspects were great, however it would have been nice to have a few sources. Overall, the course was honestly great. It taught me a lot and helped me get a better understanding of Middle Eastern conflicts. There are MANY things in this course that are not focused on in current events that need to be there, especially when trying to understand the current geographical and ideological standpoints in the region.

Brian

April 30, 2015

As I am interested in middle eastern history I enjoyed this class, however I cannot give it a 4 or 5 stars as I feel some essential items were missing. Positives: Michael does a good job staying neutral and simply telling the history, based on his information. Negatives: There are virtually no sources (texts, or articles), information is simply put on slides and you have to just assume that it is true. The pre-islamic section appears to be quite weak, especially in understanding the middle east. This becomes evident in the introduction slide where the Persian Sasanian empire is listed as spanning from 550BC to 650CE, when in fact the Sassanian Empire began around 224 AD. The old Achaemenid Persian Empire began in 550 BC and was considerably different than the Sassanian. To understand more about the complex history of the Sassanian empire I would suggest reading "Decline and Fall of the Sassanain Empire" by Parvaneh Pourshariati. The slides appear to have been made very quickly and some even have images covering the text. Virtually no information is given on Zoroastrianism (The religion of all the Persian Empires) other than calling them fire worshipers. All the religious complexities that make the middle east what it is today are left out, giving the impression that it is simply Islamic, Jewish, or Christian, all of which are very similar religions.

Jordan

August 6, 2014

This course took us from the basics and built up our knowledge, giving a well-rounded understanding of the Middle East. Highly recommended.

August 6, 2014

Michael Rank’s presentation of the history of Islam is concise and accessible. I now have a much better handle on the cultural circumstances underpinning today's Middle East.