8. muslims who deny the legitimacy of the first three caliphs and believe that ali and his descendants by muhammad's daughter fatimah are the sole legitimate islamic leaders are called a) sassanid. b) shia. c) sufi. d) sunni. 9. which of these branches of islam has always had the majority of followers since the sunni–shia split? a) shia b) sufi c) sunni d) wahhabi 11. the mountain-dwellers of north africa, who served as the "middle man" of trade for the great trans-saharan commerce, were the a) berbers. b) carthagenians. c) kurds. d) phoenicians. 13. the berbers were influential in islam spread a) in south asia. b) in east africa. c) in north africa. d) in eastern europe. 14. what is one possible reason that merchants were more esteemed in the muslim world than in any other religion during the post-classical time period? a) muhammad himself was a merchant before he founded islam. b) merchants were considered to be an extension of the priesthood. c) the islamic world valued wealth above holiness during this time period. d) merchants were not valued in society but instead were considered to be dishonest.