Monthly Archives: March 2017

ABU AL-QASIM AL-ZAHRAVI (Albucasis) (936 - 1013 C.E.) Abul Qasim Al-Zahravi, known in the West as Albucasis, was undoubtably the greatest surgeon of the Middle Ages. He is best known for several original breakthroughs in surgery, as an inventor of several surgical instruments, and for his famous Medical Encyclopedia. Al-Zahravi is considered as Father of Modern Surgery. His full name was Abul Qasim Khalaf ibn al-Abbas al-Zahravi. He was born and brought up in Zahra, the royal suburb of Cordova (Arabic Qurtuba), the capital of Muslim Spain. As we know from the history, Zahra competed in grandeur and magnificence with Baghdad and Constantinople. Al-Zahravi served in the capacity of [...]

MUHAMMAD BIN MUSA AL-KHWARIZMI (Algorizm) (770 - 840 C.E.) Abu Abdullah Muhammad Ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi was born at Khwarizm (Kheva), a town south of river Oxus in present Uzbekistan. (Uzbekistan, a Muslim country for over a thousand years, was taken over by the Russians in 1873.) His parents migrated to a place south of Baghdad when he was a child. The exact date of his birth is not known. It has been established from his contributions that he flourished under Khalifah (Calif) Al-Mamun at Baghdad during 813 to 833 C.E. and died around 840 C.E. He is best known for introducing the mathematical concept Algorithm, which is [...]

ABU ALI HASAN IBN AL-HAITHAM (ALHAZEN) (965 - 1040 C.E.) Al-Haitham, known in the West as Alhazen, is considered as the father of modern Optics. Abu Ali Hasan Ibn al-Haitham was one of the most eminent physicists, whose contributions to optics and the scientific methods are outstanding. Ibn al-Haitham was born in 965 C.E. in Basrah (present Iraq), and received his education in Basrah and Baghdad. He traveled to Egypt and Spain. He spent most of his life in Spain, where conducted research in optics, mathematics, physics, medicine and development of scientific methods. Al-Haitham conducted experiments on the propagation of light and colors, optic illusions and reflections. He examined the refraction [...]

THABIT IBN QURRAH (THEBIT) (836 - 901 C.E.) Thabit ibn Qurrah, known in the West as Thebit, is known for his work on mechanics, astronomy, pure mathematics and geometry. Thabit ibn Qurrah ibn Marwan al-Harrani was born in 836 C.E. at Harran (present Turkey) and died in Baghdad in 901 C.E. He joined the scientific team of the great Muslim mathematician Muhammad Ibn Musa Ibn Shakir at Baghdad, which was established by the Abbasid Caliphs. Thabit was a pioneer in extending the concept of traditional geometry to geometrical algebra and proposed theories that led to the development of non-Euclidean geometry, spherical trigonometry, integral calculus and real numbers. [...]

Of the greatest proofs on the prophethood of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) from the Qur'an and the Sunnah are the following: The narrations reported before the mission of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and informing of events that took place during the time of the Prophet (peace be upon him), events shall take place after the Prophet's death, and events shall take place before the establishment of the Hour. These are proofs on the truthfulness of the Prophet (peace be upon him) that he informed the Companions of events that shall take place in the future. [...]

ABU AL-HASAN AL-MAWARDI (ALBOACEN) (972 - 1058 C.E.) Al-Mawardi was one of the most famous thinkers in political science in the middle Ages. He was also a great sociologist, jurist, and mohaddith. He served as Chief Justice at Baghdad and as an ambassador of the Abbasid Caliph to several important and powerful Muslim states. Al-Mawardi is most famous for his book ‘Al-Havi’ on jurisprudence. His full name was Abu al-Hasan Ali Ibn Muhammad Ibn Habib al-Mawardi. Al-Mawardi was born in 972 C.E. at Basrah. He received his early education in Fiqah (Islamic jurisprudence) from the famous jurist Abu al-Wahid al-Simari. Subsequently, [...]

ABU ISHAQ IBRAHIM IBN YAHYA AL-ZARQALI (Arzachel) (1028 - 1087 C.E.) Abu Ishaq Ibrahim ibn Yahya al-Zarqali, known in the West as Arzachel, was a Spanish Arab. He was the foremost astronomer of his time. Al-Zarqali carried out a series of astronomical observations at Toledo (Arabic Al Tulaytalah) and compiled them in what is known as his famous Toledan Tables. He corrected the geographical data from Ptolemy and Al-Khwarizmi. Specifically, Al-Zarqali corrected Ptolemy's estimate of the length of the Mediterranean sea from 62 degrees to approximately correct value of 42 degrees. The Toledo Tables were translated into Latin in the Twelfth century. Al-Zarqali was the [...]

ABU ABDULLAH AL-BATTANI (ALBATEGNIUS) (858 - 929 C.E.) Al-Battani, known in the West as Albategnius, was a famous astronomer and mathematician. He has been recognized as the greatest astronomer of his time and one of the greatest of the Middle Ages. Abu Abdullah Muhammad Ibn Jabir Ibn Sinan al-Battani was born around 858 C.E. in or near Battan, a state of Harran. He belonged to the princely Sa'bifamily of Harran and he was a Muslim. Al-Battani was first educated by his father Jabir Ibn Sin'an al-Battani, who was also a well-known scientist. He then moved to Raqqa, situated on the bank of the Euphrates, where he received advanced education in sciences. At [...]

OMAR AL-KHAYYAM (1044 - 1123 C.E.) Omar Al-Khayyam was an outstanding mathematician and astronomer. He was also well known as a poet, philosopher, and physician. In the "History of Western Philosophy", Bertrand Russell remarks that Omar Khayyam was the only man known to him who was both a poet and a mathematician. Omar Khayyam reformed the solar calendar in 1079 C.E. His work on Algebra was highly valued throughout Europe in the Middle Ages. In the West, he is best known for his poetic work ‘Rubaiyat’ (quatrains) which was translated by Edward Fitzgerald in 1859. His full name was Ghiyath al-Din Abul Fateh Omar [...]