History


Toothbrush

Miswak, the first toothbrush in history, was known before Islam, but added a religious aspect to using it. The use of Miswak was popularized by Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) who recommended Muslims to clean their teeth using a Miswak daily. It is a teeth cleaning twing made from the Salvadora persica a tree (lnown as arak in Arabic) and is reputed to have been use for more than 7000 years. The Muslim practice of using a twing of Miswak to scrub one's teeth before each prayer is amongst the credible source which aided in inventing toothbrush.

Miswak not only has the chemicals for oral treatment that can help prevent tooth decay and hum diseases but the twing also acts as a brush that helps remove plaque and fights teeth coloring. This traditional alternative to modern toothbrush not only purifies the mouth, inhibits bad breath and increases salivation but also helps to protect teeth from gum. In 1987, World Health Organization encouraged the use of Miswak for oral hygiene because of tradition, availability and low cost.

Invention of Cheque
Cheque: In history, Muslims were known to be traders, traveling the world, dealing with people of all races and faiths and trading money from one city to an another. The historic evolution of the modern cheque comes from the Arabic sakk, a written vow by Muslim businessmen to honour payment for merchandise upon delivery.
Origination in the eastern Mediterrance as a convenient form of payment between local merchants in order to avoid the dangers and difficulties in  carrying coins, the sakk became the foundation of the modern cheque-based payment system seen today. In the 9th century, during the rule of Harun-al Rashid, a Muslim businessman could cash a sakk in China drawn on his bank in Baghdad under a highly developed "banking system".

By promoting the concept of the bills of exchange, sakk, or cheque, Muslims made the financing of commerce and international trade possible. This system became more versatile in 16th century Europe through the development of negotiability, eventually leading to the development of global cheque payment system. 

Coffee 
The first record of coffee's discovery is from Yemen when an Arab named Khalid noticed that his animals became livelier eating a certain berry. He boiled the berries to create al-qahwa. This brew was later consumed by Muslims to stay awake through nights for prayers.

Sheikh 'Abd-al-Kadir, the Persian Sufi based in Baghdad, wrote the earliest known manuscript on the history of coffee in 1588. Coffee soon spread to rest of the Muslim world by travelers, pilgrims and traders reaching Makkah and Turkey in the late 15th century, from where it made its way to Venice in 1645.

Coffee was first introduced in England by a Turkish merchant named Pasqua Rosee in 1650 and its consumption was largely on the traditional Muslim preparation of the drink. By 1700, there were about 500 coffeehouse in London and nearly 3,000 in the whole of England. The Arabic 'al-qahva' became the Turkish 'kahve' the the Italian 'caffe' and then English 'coffee'. 

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