[21] See page 485. Descendants of the Abbasids subsequently took up their abode in Egypt. Through them the claim to the caliphate passed in 1538 A.D. to the Ottoman Turks. The Sultan at Constantinople still calls himself caliph of the Moslem world. However, in 1916 A.D. the Grand Sherif of Mecca, a descendant of Mohammed, led a revolt against the Turks, captured Mecca and Medina, and proclaimed Arab independence. Should the European war end in favor of the Allies, the caliphate will undoubtedly go back to the Arabs.
[22] Popularly called the Arabian Nights.
[23] See page 126.
[24] The European names of some common articles reveal the Arabic sources from which they were first derived. Thus, damask comes from Damascus, muslin from Mosul, gauze from Gaza, cordovan (a kind of leather) from Cordova, and morocco leather from North Africa.
[25] See page 133.
[26] See page 275.
[27] See page 131.
[28] Many words in European languages beginning with the prefix al (the definite article in Arabic) show how indebted was Europe to the Arabs for scientific knowledge. In English these words include alchemy (whence chemistry), alcohol, alembic, algebra, alkali, almanac, Aldebaran (the star), etc.
[29] The translation of the Rubáiyát by Edward Fitzgerald is almost an English classic.
[30] See page 564.