Ibn al-Nadim
Ibn al-Nadim (Abu'l-Faraj Muhammad bin Is'hāq al-Nadim) (c. 936 - September 17, 995). Shi‘a of Baghdad and the author of an Index of Arabic books. The work, which exists in a shorter recension (a shorter critical revision), is intended to be an index of all books written in Arabic either by Arabs or non-Arabs.
Abu'l-Faraj Muhammad bin Is'hāq al-Nadim, whose father was known as al-Warrāq, was a Shi'ite Muslim scholar and bibliographer. Some scholars regard him as a Persian but this is not certain. He is famous as the author of the Kitāb al-Fihrist (The Index). His choice of the rather rare Persian word pehrest (fehrest/ fehres/fahrasat) for the title of a handbook on Islamic literature is noteworthy in this regard.
Very little is actually known about his life. He was a bookseller, a calligrapher who copied manuscripts for sale, as his father was before him. He lived in Baghdad and sometimes he mentions a sojourn in Mosul. Of his teachers, he mentions al-Sirafi (died 978-9), 'Ali bin Harun bin al-Munazhzhim (died 963) and the philosopher Abu Sulayman al-Mantiqi. He belonged to the circle of a son of 'Ali bin 'Isa, the "Good Vizier" of the Banu al-Jarrah, whom he praises for his profound knowledge of logic and the sciences of the Greeks, Persians and Indians. Ibn al-Nadim also met in his house the Christian philosopher Ibn al-Khammar. With these men, none of whom was an orthodox Sunni, he shared an admiration for philosophy and especially for Aristotle, and the Greek and Hindu sciences of antiquity (before Islam). He admired their breadth of outlook and their air of toleration.
It did not escape his biographers that he was a Shi'ite (Ibn Hajar, l.c.); he uses khassi instead of Shi'ite, 'ammi instead of Sunnite, al-hashwiyya for the Sunnis, Ahl al-Hadith ("People of the Hadith") instead of Ahl al-Sunna ("People of the Tradition"). He inserts the eulogy for prophets (consisting of the words alaihi al-salam, "peace be with him") after the names of the Shi'i Imams and the Ahl al-Bayt (the descendants of Muhammad). He calls the Imam al-Rida mawlana. He asserts that al-Waqidi was a Shi'ite but concealed this fact by taqiyya. He claims most of the (orthodox) 'traditionists' for the Zaydiyya. He speaks of the Mu'tazila as Ahl al-'Adl ("People of the justice"), calls the Ash'arites al-mujbira. That he belonged to the Twelver Shi'a is shown by his distaste for the doctrines of the Sab'iyya and by his criticisms in dealing with their history. He remarks that a certain Shafi'i scholar was secretly a Twelver Shi'ite. He mentions Shi'as among his acquaintances, e.g., Ibn al-Mu'allim, the da'i Ibn Hamdan and the author Khushkunanadh. To the same circle belonged the Jacobite Yahya ibn 'Adi (d. 973) who instructed 'Isa bin 'Ali in philosophy and who was, like Ibn al-Nadim, a copyist and bookseller.
His great book, the Fehrest or Fihrist, gives ample testimony to the knowledge of pre-Islamic Persia and its literature in classical Islamic civilization, but unfortunately only a minute sample of the numerous Persian books listed by Ebn al-Nadīm is extant. According to the Fehrest's brief preface, it is meant to be an index of all books written in Arabic, whether by Persians, Arabs or others. There existed already books (tabaqat) dealing with the biographies of poets. The Fehrest was published in 938. It exists in two manuscript traditions, or "editions": the more complete edition contains ten "discourses" (maqalat). The first six of them are detailed bibliographies of books on Islamic subjects:
1. the Holy Scriptures of Muslims, Jews, and Christians, with emphasis on the Qur'an and hadith;
2. works on grammar and philology;
3. history, biography, genealogy and the like;
4. poetry;
5. dialectical theology (kalam);
6. law (fiqh) and hadith.
The last four discourses deal with secular subjects:
7. philosophy and the 'secular sciences';
8. legends, fables, magic, conjuring, etc.;
9. the doctrines (maqalat) of the non-monotheistic creeds (Manicheans, Hindus, Buddhists and Chinese);
10. alchemy.
Ibn al-Nadim gives the titles only of those books which he had seen himself or whose existence was vouchsafed by a trustworthy person.
The shorter edition contains (besides the preface and the first section of the first discourse on the scripts and the different alphabets) only the last four discourses, in other words, the Arabic translations from Greek, Syriac and other languages, together with Arabic books composed on the model of these translations.
Ibn al-Nadim often mentions the size of a book and the number of pages, so that buyers would not be cheated by copyists passing off shorter versions. Compare the Stichometry of Nicephorus. He refers often to copies written by famous calligraphers, to bibliophiles and libraries, and speaks of a book auction and of the trade in books. In the opening section he deals with the alphabets of 14 peoples and their manner of writing and also with the writing-pen, paper and its different varieties. His discourses contain sections on the origins of philosophy, on the lives of Plato and Aristotle, the origin of The Book of One Thousand and One Nights, thoughts on the pyramids, his opinions on magic, sorcery, superstition, and alchemy etc. The chapter devoted to what the author rather dismissively calls "bed-time stories" and "fables" contains a large amount of Persian material. In the chapter on anonymous works of assorted content there is a section on "Persian, Indian, Byzantine, and Arab books on sexual intercourse in the form of titillating stories", but the Persian works are not separated from the others. The list includes a "Book of Bahrām-doḵt on intercourse." This is followed by books of Persians, Indians, etc. on fortune telling, books of "all nations" on horsemanship and the arts of war, then on horse doctoring and on falconry, some of them specifically attributed to the Persians. Then we have books of wisdom and admonition by the Persians and others, including many examples of Persian andarz literature, e.g. various books attributed to Persian emperors such as Khosrau I and Ardashir I.
As a bookseller, Ibn al-Nadim became known for his celebrated bookshop. The bookshop was said to be on an upper story of a large building where buyers came to examine manuscripts, enjoy refreshments and exchange ideas.
The Fihrist is the greatest work of Ibn al-Nadim. Fihrist literally means "a table of contents" or "an index". The Fihrist is an index of all books written in Arabic by Arabs or non-Arabs. Ibn al-Nadim began to make this catalogue of authors and the names of their compositions for use in his father's bookstore. As he grew older, he became interested in the many subjects he read about in books, or which he learned about from friends and chance acquaintances. So, instead of being merely the catalogue for a book shop, Ibn al-Nadim's Fihrist became an encyclopedia of medieval Islamic culture.
The Fihrist of Ibn al-Nadim listed more than sixty thousand titles on an unlimited range of subjects. The first section of the first chapter of the Fihrist was devoted to various styles of writing, including Chinese, qualities of paper, and "excellencies of penmanship" and "excellencies of the book". After this was a whole range of topics including language and calligraphy; Christian and Jewish scriptures; the Qu'ran and commentaries; linguistic works; histories and genealogies; official government works; court accounts; pre-Islamic and Islamic poetry; works by various schools of Muslim thought; biographies of numerous men of learning; Greek and Islamic philosophy; mathematics; astronomy; Greek and Islamic medicine; literature; popular fiction; travel (India, China and Indochina); magic, and miscellaneous subjects and fables.
Abu'l-Faraj Muhammad bin Is'hāq al-Nadim see Ibn al-Nadim
Ibn al-Nadim (Abu'l-Faraj Muhammad bin Is'hāq al-Nadim) (c. 936 - September 17, 995). Shi‘a of Baghdad and the author of an Index of Arabic books. The work, which exists in a shorter recension (a shorter critical revision), is intended to be an index of all books written in Arabic either by Arabs or non-Arabs.
Abu'l-Faraj Muhammad bin Is'hāq al-Nadim, whose father was known as al-Warrāq, was a Shi'ite Muslim scholar and bibliographer. Some scholars regard him as a Persian but this is not certain. He is famous as the author of the Kitāb al-Fihrist (The Index). His choice of the rather rare Persian word pehrest (fehrest/ fehres/fahrasat) for the title of a handbook on Islamic literature is noteworthy in this regard.
Very little is actually known about his life. He was a bookseller, a calligrapher who copied manuscripts for sale, as his father was before him. He lived in Baghdad and sometimes he mentions a sojourn in Mosul. Of his teachers, he mentions al-Sirafi (died 978-9), 'Ali bin Harun bin al-Munazhzhim (died 963) and the philosopher Abu Sulayman al-Mantiqi. He belonged to the circle of a son of 'Ali bin 'Isa, the "Good Vizier" of the Banu al-Jarrah, whom he praises for his profound knowledge of logic and the sciences of the Greeks, Persians and Indians. Ibn al-Nadim also met in his house the Christian philosopher Ibn al-Khammar. With these men, none of whom was an orthodox Sunni, he shared an admiration for philosophy and especially for Aristotle, and the Greek and Hindu sciences of antiquity (before Islam). He admired their breadth of outlook and their air of toleration.
It did not escape his biographers that he was a Shi'ite (Ibn Hajar, l.c.); he uses khassi instead of Shi'ite, 'ammi instead of Sunnite, al-hashwiyya for the Sunnis, Ahl al-Hadith ("People of the Hadith") instead of Ahl al-Sunna ("People of the Tradition"). He inserts the eulogy for prophets (consisting of the words alaihi al-salam, "peace be with him") after the names of the Shi'i Imams and the Ahl al-Bayt (the descendants of Muhammad). He calls the Imam al-Rida mawlana. He asserts that al-Waqidi was a Shi'ite but concealed this fact by taqiyya. He claims most of the (orthodox) 'traditionists' for the Zaydiyya. He speaks of the Mu'tazila as Ahl al-'Adl ("People of the justice"), calls the Ash'arites al-mujbira. That he belonged to the Twelver Shi'a is shown by his distaste for the doctrines of the Sab'iyya and by his criticisms in dealing with their history. He remarks that a certain Shafi'i scholar was secretly a Twelver Shi'ite. He mentions Shi'as among his acquaintances, e.g., Ibn al-Mu'allim, the da'i Ibn Hamdan and the author Khushkunanadh. To the same circle belonged the Jacobite Yahya ibn 'Adi (d. 973) who instructed 'Isa bin 'Ali in philosophy and who was, like Ibn al-Nadim, a copyist and bookseller.
His great book, the Fehrest or Fihrist, gives ample testimony to the knowledge of pre-Islamic Persia and its literature in classical Islamic civilization, but unfortunately only a minute sample of the numerous Persian books listed by Ebn al-Nadīm is extant. According to the Fehrest's brief preface, it is meant to be an index of all books written in Arabic, whether by Persians, Arabs or others. There existed already books (tabaqat) dealing with the biographies of poets. The Fehrest was published in 938. It exists in two manuscript traditions, or "editions": the more complete edition contains ten "discourses" (maqalat). The first six of them are detailed bibliographies of books on Islamic subjects:
1. the Holy Scriptures of Muslims, Jews, and Christians, with emphasis on the Qur'an and hadith;
2. works on grammar and philology;
3. history, biography, genealogy and the like;
4. poetry;
5. dialectical theology (kalam);
6. law (fiqh) and hadith.
The last four discourses deal with secular subjects:
7. philosophy and the 'secular sciences';
8. legends, fables, magic, conjuring, etc.;
9. the doctrines (maqalat) of the non-monotheistic creeds (Manicheans, Hindus, Buddhists and Chinese);
10. alchemy.
Ibn al-Nadim gives the titles only of those books which he had seen himself or whose existence was vouchsafed by a trustworthy person.
The shorter edition contains (besides the preface and the first section of the first discourse on the scripts and the different alphabets) only the last four discourses, in other words, the Arabic translations from Greek, Syriac and other languages, together with Arabic books composed on the model of these translations.
Ibn al-Nadim often mentions the size of a book and the number of pages, so that buyers would not be cheated by copyists passing off shorter versions. Compare the Stichometry of Nicephorus. He refers often to copies written by famous calligraphers, to bibliophiles and libraries, and speaks of a book auction and of the trade in books. In the opening section he deals with the alphabets of 14 peoples and their manner of writing and also with the writing-pen, paper and its different varieties. His discourses contain sections on the origins of philosophy, on the lives of Plato and Aristotle, the origin of The Book of One Thousand and One Nights, thoughts on the pyramids, his opinions on magic, sorcery, superstition, and alchemy etc. The chapter devoted to what the author rather dismissively calls "bed-time stories" and "fables" contains a large amount of Persian material. In the chapter on anonymous works of assorted content there is a section on "Persian, Indian, Byzantine, and Arab books on sexual intercourse in the form of titillating stories", but the Persian works are not separated from the others. The list includes a "Book of Bahrām-doḵt on intercourse." This is followed by books of Persians, Indians, etc. on fortune telling, books of "all nations" on horsemanship and the arts of war, then on horse doctoring and on falconry, some of them specifically attributed to the Persians. Then we have books of wisdom and admonition by the Persians and others, including many examples of Persian andarz literature, e.g. various books attributed to Persian emperors such as Khosrau I and Ardashir I.
As a bookseller, Ibn al-Nadim became known for his celebrated bookshop. The bookshop was said to be on an upper story of a large building where buyers came to examine manuscripts, enjoy refreshments and exchange ideas.
The Fihrist is the greatest work of Ibn al-Nadim. Fihrist literally means "a table of contents" or "an index". The Fihrist is an index of all books written in Arabic by Arabs or non-Arabs. Ibn al-Nadim began to make this catalogue of authors and the names of their compositions for use in his father's bookstore. As he grew older, he became interested in the many subjects he read about in books, or which he learned about from friends and chance acquaintances. So, instead of being merely the catalogue for a book shop, Ibn al-Nadim's Fihrist became an encyclopedia of medieval Islamic culture.
The Fihrist of Ibn al-Nadim listed more than sixty thousand titles on an unlimited range of subjects. The first section of the first chapter of the Fihrist was devoted to various styles of writing, including Chinese, qualities of paper, and "excellencies of penmanship" and "excellencies of the book". After this was a whole range of topics including language and calligraphy; Christian and Jewish scriptures; the Qu'ran and commentaries; linguistic works; histories and genealogies; official government works; court accounts; pre-Islamic and Islamic poetry; works by various schools of Muslim thought; biographies of numerous men of learning; Greek and Islamic philosophy; mathematics; astronomy; Greek and Islamic medicine; literature; popular fiction; travel (India, China and Indochina); magic, and miscellaneous subjects and fables.
Abu'l-Faraj Muhammad bin Is'hāq al-Nadim see Ibn al-Nadim
Ibn al-Nafis Damashqui
Ibn al-Nafis Damashqui (Ala-al-Din Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn Abi al-Hazm al-Qarshi ibn al-Nafis al-Damashqui) (Ala al-Din Abu al-Hassan Ali ibn Abi-Hazm al-Qurashi al-Dimashqi) (1213-1288). Physician and many-sided author from Damascus. He wrote an encyclopedia of medicine, a comprehensive record of the whole knowledge of the Arabs in ophthalmology, which was also translated into Hebrew and Turkish, a medical commentary on the Aphorisms of Hippocrates, and an extensive commentary on the Canon of Avicenna, part of which was translated into Latin. His most important achievement in the field of medicine is his theory of the lesser or pulmonary circulation of the blood, boldly contradicting the accepted ideas of Galen and of Ibn Sina and anticipating part of William Harvey’s discovery.
Ibn al-Nafis was a reputed physician and a renowned expert on Shafi‘i School of Jurisprudence. He is famous for the discovery of the blood’s circulatory system, and was the first to describe the constitution of lungs, bronchi, and the coronary arteries. Ala-al-Din Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn Abi al-Hazm al-Qarshi ibn al-Nafis al-Damashqui was born in 1213 in Damascus. He was educated at the Medical College and hospital founded by Nur al-Din Zangi. Ibn al-Nafis studied medicine under the famous physician Muhazzab al-Din Abd al-Rahim. He also studied jurisprudence, literature and theology.
His expertise and reputation in medicine and jurisprudence was rewarded by an appointment as the principal of the famous Nasri Hospital in Cairo. There he trained many medical specialists, including the famous surgeon Ibn al-Quff al-Masihi. Subsequently, he served at the Mansuriyya School at Cairo. As part of his will, Ibn al-Nafis donated his house, library and clinic to the Mansuriyya Hospital. He died in 1288.
Ibn al-Nafis made major contributions in medicine. He wrote detailed commentaries and critiques on the medical knowledge available up to his time, and added to it many original contributions. His greatest original contribution was the discovery of the blood’s circulatory system, which was rediscovered three centuries later. Ibn al-Nafis was the first to correctly describe the constitution of lungs and gave a description of the bronchi and the interaction between the human body’s vessels for air and blood. Also, he elaborated the function of the coronary arteries as feeding the cardiac muscle.
Ibn al-Nafis‘ Al-Shamil fi al-Tibb was an encyclopedia comprising 300 volumes, but it could not be completed as planned due to his death. This manuscript is preserved as special collections in Damascus. His book on ophthalmology is primarily an original contribution and is also extant. Among his books Mujaz al-Qanun became most famous and later several commentaries were written on it. He wrote another famous book Kitab al-Mukhtar fi al-Aghdhiya that deals with the effects of diet on health. He also wrote several commentaries on Hippocrates‘ book and on Ibn Sina’s Qanun, which are still extant.
Ibn al-Nafis‘ work exerted great influence on the development of medical science, both in the Islamic world and Europe. His work integrated the medical knowledge with great clarity and emphasized precision. Initially, only one of his books was translated into Latin. Consequently, much of his work remained unknown to Europe for several centuries.
Ala-al-Din Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn Abi al-Hazm al-Qarshi ibn al-Nafis al-Damashqui see Ibn al-Nafis Damashqui
Ala al-Din Abu al-Hassan Ali ibn Abi-Hazm al-Qurashi al-Dimashqi see Ibn al-Nafis Damashqui
Ibn al-Nafis Damashqui (Ala-al-Din Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn Abi al-Hazm al-Qarshi ibn al-Nafis al-Damashqui) (Ala al-Din Abu al-Hassan Ali ibn Abi-Hazm al-Qurashi al-Dimashqi) (1213-1288). Physician and many-sided author from Damascus. He wrote an encyclopedia of medicine, a comprehensive record of the whole knowledge of the Arabs in ophthalmology, which was also translated into Hebrew and Turkish, a medical commentary on the Aphorisms of Hippocrates, and an extensive commentary on the Canon of Avicenna, part of which was translated into Latin. His most important achievement in the field of medicine is his theory of the lesser or pulmonary circulation of the blood, boldly contradicting the accepted ideas of Galen and of Ibn Sina and anticipating part of William Harvey’s discovery.
Ibn al-Nafis was a reputed physician and a renowned expert on Shafi‘i School of Jurisprudence. He is famous for the discovery of the blood’s circulatory system, and was the first to describe the constitution of lungs, bronchi, and the coronary arteries. Ala-al-Din Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn Abi al-Hazm al-Qarshi ibn al-Nafis al-Damashqui was born in 1213 in Damascus. He was educated at the Medical College and hospital founded by Nur al-Din Zangi. Ibn al-Nafis studied medicine under the famous physician Muhazzab al-Din Abd al-Rahim. He also studied jurisprudence, literature and theology.
His expertise and reputation in medicine and jurisprudence was rewarded by an appointment as the principal of the famous Nasri Hospital in Cairo. There he trained many medical specialists, including the famous surgeon Ibn al-Quff al-Masihi. Subsequently, he served at the Mansuriyya School at Cairo. As part of his will, Ibn al-Nafis donated his house, library and clinic to the Mansuriyya Hospital. He died in 1288.
Ibn al-Nafis made major contributions in medicine. He wrote detailed commentaries and critiques on the medical knowledge available up to his time, and added to it many original contributions. His greatest original contribution was the discovery of the blood’s circulatory system, which was rediscovered three centuries later. Ibn al-Nafis was the first to correctly describe the constitution of lungs and gave a description of the bronchi and the interaction between the human body’s vessels for air and blood. Also, he elaborated the function of the coronary arteries as feeding the cardiac muscle.
Ibn al-Nafis‘ Al-Shamil fi al-Tibb was an encyclopedia comprising 300 volumes, but it could not be completed as planned due to his death. This manuscript is preserved as special collections in Damascus. His book on ophthalmology is primarily an original contribution and is also extant. Among his books Mujaz al-Qanun became most famous and later several commentaries were written on it. He wrote another famous book Kitab al-Mukhtar fi al-Aghdhiya that deals with the effects of diet on health. He also wrote several commentaries on Hippocrates‘ book and on Ibn Sina’s Qanun, which are still extant.
Ibn al-Nafis‘ work exerted great influence on the development of medical science, both in the Islamic world and Europe. His work integrated the medical knowledge with great clarity and emphasized precision. Initially, only one of his books was translated into Latin. Consequently, much of his work remained unknown to Europe for several centuries.
Ala-al-Din Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn Abi al-Hazm al-Qarshi ibn al-Nafis al-Damashqui see Ibn al-Nafis Damashqui
Ala al-Din Abu al-Hassan Ali ibn Abi-Hazm al-Qurashi al-Dimashqi see Ibn al-Nafis Damashqui
Ibn al-Najjar
Ibn al-Najjar (1183-1245). Historian and leading Shafi‘i transmitter of Prophetic traditions. He wrote a histories of Medina and Baghdad.
Ibn al-Najjar (1183-1245). Historian and leading Shafi‘i transmitter of Prophetic traditions. He wrote a histories of Medina and Baghdad.
Ibn al-Nattah
Ibn al-Nattah (Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Salih ibn Mihran lah an-Nattah) (d. 866). Traditionist, genealogist and historian. He is likely the author of an important extant work on the ‘Abbasids.
Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Salih ibn Mihran lah an-Nattah, better known as Ibn an-Nattah was a genealogist and historian of Basra in the ninth century. He is author of a history of the Abbasids and other works of history.
He died in 866.
Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Salih ibn Mihran lah an-Nattah see Ibn al-Nattah
Ibn al-Nattah (Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Salih ibn Mihran lah an-Nattah) (d. 866). Traditionist, genealogist and historian. He is likely the author of an important extant work on the ‘Abbasids.
Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Salih ibn Mihran lah an-Nattah, better known as Ibn an-Nattah was a genealogist and historian of Basra in the ninth century. He is author of a history of the Abbasids and other works of history.
He died in 866.
Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Salih ibn Mihran lah an-Nattah see Ibn al-Nattah
Ibn al-Qadi, Shihab al-Din
Ibn al-Qadi, Shihab al-Din (Shihab al-Din ibn al-Qadi) (Abu l-Abbas Ahmad Ibn Muhammad Ibn al-Qadi al-Miknasi) (1553-1616). Moroccan polygraph of Fez. He composed two collections of biographies of great documentary value.
Abu l-Abbas Ahmad Ibn Muhammad Ibn al-Qadi al-Miknasi was the leading writer from Ahmad al-Mansur's court next to Abd al-Aziz al-Fishtali. He was also a renowned judge and mathematician.
A number of Ibn al-Qadi's works survive to this day. His primary panegyric work is entitled Al-Muntaqa al-maqsur 'ala ma'athir al-khilafat Abi al-Abbas al-Mansur. This work consists mainly of a meditation upon the great character qualities of al-Mansur which, the scholar argues, showed him to be the rightful caliph of Islam. He also composed two collections of biographies of great documentary value: Jadwat al Iqtibas Fi-man halla min al'alam madinata fas and Durrat al-hidjāl fī asmā’ al-ridjāl.
Ahmad Ibn al-Qadi studied with Abd al-Wahid al-Sijil Masi, the famous Moroccan mufti and Ahmad Baba al-Sudani. The jurisdiction of Salé was assigned to him. At the age of 34 he undertook a journey to the east, but his ship was captured by Christians. Ibn al-Qadi spent eleven months in captivity and was released thanks to sultan Ahmad al-Mansur who paid as ransom the equivalent of 20 thousand ounces of gold.
Shihab al-Din ibn al-Qadi see Ibn al-Qadi, Shihab al-Din
Abu l-Abbas Ahmad Ibn Muhammad Ibn al-Qadi al-Miknasi see Ibn al-Qadi, Shihab al-Din
Ibn al-Qadi, Shihab al-Din (Shihab al-Din ibn al-Qadi) (Abu l-Abbas Ahmad Ibn Muhammad Ibn al-Qadi al-Miknasi) (1553-1616). Moroccan polygraph of Fez. He composed two collections of biographies of great documentary value.
Abu l-Abbas Ahmad Ibn Muhammad Ibn al-Qadi al-Miknasi was the leading writer from Ahmad al-Mansur's court next to Abd al-Aziz al-Fishtali. He was also a renowned judge and mathematician.
A number of Ibn al-Qadi's works survive to this day. His primary panegyric work is entitled Al-Muntaqa al-maqsur 'ala ma'athir al-khilafat Abi al-Abbas al-Mansur. This work consists mainly of a meditation upon the great character qualities of al-Mansur which, the scholar argues, showed him to be the rightful caliph of Islam. He also composed two collections of biographies of great documentary value: Jadwat al Iqtibas Fi-man halla min al'alam madinata fas and Durrat al-hidjāl fī asmā’ al-ridjāl.
Ahmad Ibn al-Qadi studied with Abd al-Wahid al-Sijil Masi, the famous Moroccan mufti and Ahmad Baba al-Sudani. The jurisdiction of Salé was assigned to him. At the age of 34 he undertook a journey to the east, but his ship was captured by Christians. Ibn al-Qadi spent eleven months in captivity and was released thanks to sultan Ahmad al-Mansur who paid as ransom the equivalent of 20 thousand ounces of gold.
Shihab al-Din ibn al-Qadi see Ibn al-Qadi, Shihab al-Din
Abu l-Abbas Ahmad Ibn Muhammad Ibn al-Qadi al-Miknasi see Ibn al-Qadi, Shihab al-Din
Ibn al-Qalanisi
Ibn al-Qalanisi (Hamza ibn Asad abu Ya'la ibn al-Qalanisi (1073-March 18, 1160). Historian from Damascus. His history of his native town is of great importance for the events in central Syria during the first half century of the period of the Crusades.
Hamza ibn Asad abu Ya'la ibn al-Qalanisi was an Arab politician and chronicler in Damascus in the 12th century. He was descended from the Banu Tamim tribe, and was among the well-educated nobility of the city of Damascus. He studied literature, theology, and law, and served, firstly, as a secretary in, and later the head of, the chancery of Damascus (the Diwan al-Rasa'il). He served twice as ra'is of the city, an office equivalent to mayor.
His chronicle, the Dhail or Mudhayyal Ta'rikh Dimashq (Continuation of the Chronicle of Damascus) was an extension of the chronicle of Hilal bin al-Muhassin al-Sabi', covering the years 1056 to al-Qalanisi's death in 1160. This Chronicle is one of the few contemporary accounts of the First Crusade and its immediate aftermath from the Muslim perspective, making it not only a valuable source for modern historians, but also for later 12th-century chronicles, including Ibn al-Athir.
Hamza ibn Asad abu Ya'la ibn al-Qalanisi (c. 1070-March 18, 1160) see Ibn al-Qalanisi
Ibn al-Qalanisi (Hamza ibn Asad abu Ya'la ibn al-Qalanisi (1073-March 18, 1160). Historian from Damascus. His history of his native town is of great importance for the events in central Syria during the first half century of the period of the Crusades.
Hamza ibn Asad abu Ya'la ibn al-Qalanisi was an Arab politician and chronicler in Damascus in the 12th century. He was descended from the Banu Tamim tribe, and was among the well-educated nobility of the city of Damascus. He studied literature, theology, and law, and served, firstly, as a secretary in, and later the head of, the chancery of Damascus (the Diwan al-Rasa'il). He served twice as ra'is of the city, an office equivalent to mayor.
His chronicle, the Dhail or Mudhayyal Ta'rikh Dimashq (Continuation of the Chronicle of Damascus) was an extension of the chronicle of Hilal bin al-Muhassin al-Sabi', covering the years 1056 to al-Qalanisi's death in 1160. This Chronicle is one of the few contemporary accounts of the First Crusade and its immediate aftermath from the Muslim perspective, making it not only a valuable source for modern historians, but also for later 12th-century chronicles, including Ibn al-Athir.
Hamza ibn Asad abu Ya'la ibn al-Qalanisi (c. 1070-March 18, 1160) see Ibn al-Qalanisi
Ibn al-Qatta‘, ‘Ali ibn Ja‘far
Ibn al-Qatta‘, ‘Ali ibn Ja‘far (‘Ali ibn Ja‘far ibn al-Qatta‘) (1041-1121). Anthologist, historian, grammarian and lexicographer of Sicily. He wrote an anthology of Arabo-Sicilian poetry.
'Ali ibn Ja'far ibn al-Qatta' see Ibn al-Qatta‘, ‘Ali ibn Ja‘far
Ibn al-Qatta‘, ‘Ali ibn Ja‘far (‘Ali ibn Ja‘far ibn al-Qatta‘) (1041-1121). Anthologist, historian, grammarian and lexicographer of Sicily. He wrote an anthology of Arabo-Sicilian poetry.
'Ali ibn Ja'far ibn al-Qatta' see Ibn al-Qatta‘, ‘Ali ibn Ja‘far
Ibn al-Qattan, Abu‘l-Qasim
Ibn al-Qattan, Abu‘l-Qasim (Abu‘l-Qasim ibn al-Qattan) (1086-1163). Poet, traditionist, and oculist of Baghdad. He is known for his vigorous satires.
Abu'l-Qasim ibn al-Qattan see Ibn al-Qattan, Abu‘l-Qasim
Ibn al-Qattan, Abu‘l-Qasim (Abu‘l-Qasim ibn al-Qattan) (1086-1163). Poet, traditionist, and oculist of Baghdad. He is known for his vigorous satires.
Abu'l-Qasim ibn al-Qattan see Ibn al-Qattan, Abu‘l-Qasim
Ibn al-Qifti
Ibn al-Qifti (Djamal al-Din Abu 'l-Hasan 'Ali ibn Yusuf ibn Ibrahim ibn 'Abd al-Wahid al-Shaybani) (1172-1248). Arab writer from Egypt. While exercising the office of director of finance in Aleppo, he gave shelter to Yaqut al-Rumi, who had fled from the Mongols. Of his many works, two biographies are known to have survived, one of physicians, philosophers and astronomers, the other of scholars.
Djamal al-Din Abu 'l-Hasan 'Ali ibn Yusuf ibn Ibrahim ibn 'Abd al-Wahid al-Shaybani, known as Ibn al-Qifti, was a versatile Arab writer, born in 1172 at Qift in Upper Egypt. He received his early education in Cairo and in 1187 went to Jerusalem, where his father had been appointed as deputy to the qadi al-Fadil, the famous chancellor and adviser of Salah al-Din (Saladin). During the many years which he spent as a student there he was already collecting the material for his later works. He was forced by the disturbances which followed Salah al-Din's death to go in 1201 to Aleppo, where, under the protection and with the encouragement of a friend of his father, he was able again to pursue his scholarly interests for several years, until the Atabeg of Aleppo, al-Malik al-Zahir, placed him in charge of the diwan of the finances, a task which he undertook only reluctantly, but which brought him the honorific title of al-qadi al-Akram. After al-Zahir's death (1216) he resigned, but three years later was appointed by al-Zahir's successor to the same post, which he then held without interruption until 1230. There is no doubt that Ibn al-Qifti used his influential position in order to further the cause of scholarship, for during these years he gave shelter in Aleppo to Yaqut, who had fled from the Mongols, and gave him much help in the compilation of his great geographical dictionary. Dismissed at his own request in 1230, Ibn al-Qifti was able to devote a few years to his own studies until he was appointed vizier by al-Malik al-'Aziz in 1236. He remained in this office until his death in 1248.
Of the 26 works of Ibn al-Qifti of which the titles are known only two survive: (1) The Kitab Ikhbar al-'ulama' bi-akhbar al-hukama', usually referred to simply as Ta'rikh al-hukama', which exists in an epitome by al-Zawzani (written in 1249). It contains 414 biographies of physicians, philosophers and astronomers with many statements from Greek writers which have not survived in the original; and (2) Inbah al-ruwat 'ala anbah al-nuhat, parts i-iii ed. by Muh. Abu 'l-Fadl Ibrahim, Cairo 1369-74, which contains about a thousand biographies of scholars. Of the posthumous Akhbar al-Muhammadin min al-shu'ara' there exist only fragments. The remaining titles are mainly of historical works: a history of Cairo until the reign of Salah al-Din, a history of the Seljuqs, of the Mirdasids, of the Buyids, of Mahmud b. Sabuktakin, of the Maghrib, and of Yemen. A comprehensive Ta'rikh al-qifti in the epitome of Ibn Maktum (d. 749/1348) is evidently identical with the history of Cairo mentioned above. Other titles indicate individual biographies (of Ibn Rashiq, Abu Sa'id al-Sirafi), the history of scholarship (the Shaykhs of al-Kindi), and a supplement to the Ansab of al-Baladhuri.
Djamal al-Din Abu 'l-Hasan 'Ali ibn Yusuf ibn Ibrahim ibn 'Abd al-Wahid al-Shaybani see Ibn al-Qifti
Ibn al-Qifti (Djamal al-Din Abu 'l-Hasan 'Ali ibn Yusuf ibn Ibrahim ibn 'Abd al-Wahid al-Shaybani) (1172-1248). Arab writer from Egypt. While exercising the office of director of finance in Aleppo, he gave shelter to Yaqut al-Rumi, who had fled from the Mongols. Of his many works, two biographies are known to have survived, one of physicians, philosophers and astronomers, the other of scholars.
Djamal al-Din Abu 'l-Hasan 'Ali ibn Yusuf ibn Ibrahim ibn 'Abd al-Wahid al-Shaybani, known as Ibn al-Qifti, was a versatile Arab writer, born in 1172 at Qift in Upper Egypt. He received his early education in Cairo and in 1187 went to Jerusalem, where his father had been appointed as deputy to the qadi al-Fadil, the famous chancellor and adviser of Salah al-Din (Saladin). During the many years which he spent as a student there he was already collecting the material for his later works. He was forced by the disturbances which followed Salah al-Din's death to go in 1201 to Aleppo, where, under the protection and with the encouragement of a friend of his father, he was able again to pursue his scholarly interests for several years, until the Atabeg of Aleppo, al-Malik al-Zahir, placed him in charge of the diwan of the finances, a task which he undertook only reluctantly, but which brought him the honorific title of al-qadi al-Akram. After al-Zahir's death (1216) he resigned, but three years later was appointed by al-Zahir's successor to the same post, which he then held without interruption until 1230. There is no doubt that Ibn al-Qifti used his influential position in order to further the cause of scholarship, for during these years he gave shelter in Aleppo to Yaqut, who had fled from the Mongols, and gave him much help in the compilation of his great geographical dictionary. Dismissed at his own request in 1230, Ibn al-Qifti was able to devote a few years to his own studies until he was appointed vizier by al-Malik al-'Aziz in 1236. He remained in this office until his death in 1248.
Of the 26 works of Ibn al-Qifti of which the titles are known only two survive: (1) The Kitab Ikhbar al-'ulama' bi-akhbar al-hukama', usually referred to simply as Ta'rikh al-hukama', which exists in an epitome by al-Zawzani (written in 1249). It contains 414 biographies of physicians, philosophers and astronomers with many statements from Greek writers which have not survived in the original; and (2) Inbah al-ruwat 'ala anbah al-nuhat, parts i-iii ed. by Muh. Abu 'l-Fadl Ibrahim, Cairo 1369-74, which contains about a thousand biographies of scholars. Of the posthumous Akhbar al-Muhammadin min al-shu'ara' there exist only fragments. The remaining titles are mainly of historical works: a history of Cairo until the reign of Salah al-Din, a history of the Seljuqs, of the Mirdasids, of the Buyids, of Mahmud b. Sabuktakin, of the Maghrib, and of Yemen. A comprehensive Ta'rikh al-qifti in the epitome of Ibn Maktum (d. 749/1348) is evidently identical with the history of Cairo mentioned above. Other titles indicate individual biographies (of Ibn Rashiq, Abu Sa'id al-Sirafi), the history of scholarship (the Shaykhs of al-Kindi), and a supplement to the Ansab of al-Baladhuri.
Djamal al-Din Abu 'l-Hasan 'Ali ibn Yusuf ibn Ibrahim ibn 'Abd al-Wahid al-Shaybani see Ibn al-Qifti
Ibn al-Qitt
Ibn al-Qitt (d. 901). By-name of the Spanish Umayyad prince Ahmad ibn Mu‘awiya. Persuaded by the Andalusian missionary Abu ‘Ali al-Sarraj who had gathered many supporters, Ahmad, who was a devotee of astrology and aspired to the throne, laid siege to Zamora but was killed.
Ahmad ibn Mu'awiya see Ibn al-Qitt
Ibn al-Qitt (d. 901). By-name of the Spanish Umayyad prince Ahmad ibn Mu‘awiya. Persuaded by the Andalusian missionary Abu ‘Ali al-Sarraj who had gathered many supporters, Ahmad, who was a devotee of astrology and aspired to the throne, laid siege to Zamora but was killed.
Ahmad ibn Mu'awiya see Ibn al-Qitt
Ibn al-Quff
Ibn al-Quff (1233-1286{1305?}). Christian physician and surgeon. He was the first known military physician surgeon and composed a manual on surgery. The Arab physician Ibn al-Quff, a student of Ibn al-Nafis, described embryology and perinatology more accurately in his Al-Jami.
Ibn al-Quff (1233-1286{1305?}). Christian physician and surgeon. He was the first known military physician surgeon and composed a manual on surgery. The Arab physician Ibn al-Quff, a student of Ibn al-Nafis, described embryology and perinatology more accurately in his Al-Jami.
Amīn-ad-Daula Abu-'l-Faraǧ ibn Yaʻqūb ibn Isḥāq Ibn al-Quff al-Karaki (Arabic: أمين الدولة أبو الفرج بن يعقوب بن إسحاق بن القف الكركي) was an Arab physician and surgeon and author of the earliest medieval Arabic treatise intended solely for surgeons.
Ibn al-Quff was born in the city of Al Karak (in modern-day Jordan). His father was Muwaffaq al-Dīn Yaʿqūb, a Christian Arab. His father had a good job opportunity and moved his family to Sarkhad in Syria, where Ibn al-Quff was tutored by Ibn Abi Uṣaybiʿah who introduced him to the medical studies. He studied with Ibn Abi Uṣaybiʿah and learned a lot of medical information, read many biographies on earlier doctors, and spent a large amount of time meditating on the material he studied and learned. Ibn al-Quff ended up moving to Damascus where he improved his knowledge and studied metaphysics, philosophy, medicine, natural sciences, and mathematics. It is not completely clear as to who was teaching him all of this material but regardless he learned a large amount of information which would be very beneficial for his career. After he had studied for a while and proved he was a good knowledgeable physician and surgeon, he was given the job of physician-surgeon in the army which was stationed in Jordan. It was while serving in the army that he became well known as a physician and a surgeon. His reputation became widespread in the Muslim empire for being a Christian Arab, for caring for his patients and for conducting his work with honesty. After his time of popularity died down he was sent to Damascus and remained there teaching until his death at the age of fifty-two.
During his time in Jordan being a physician-surgeon, Ibn al-Quff wrote many books and taught. He was more well known as a writer and educator on medical topics than for being a doctor. He wrote at least ten commentaries and books during his lifetime. Seven of these works are known to exist today whether fragments or the entire work. One of his most famous works was a commentary on Ishārāt of Ibn Sina, but there is no evidence of this today. Some of the most well known surviving works of Ibn al-Quff are listed below with a brief description.
- Kitāb al-ʻUmda fi 'l-ǧirāḥa (كتاب العمدة في الجراحة) or Basics in the Art of Surgery: a general medical manual covering anatomy and drugs therapy as well as surgical care, concentrating on wounds and tumors, however, he excluded ophthalmology as he considered it to be a specialty with its own technical literature. The work was published in Hyderabad, India, in 1937. This was by far the largest Arabic text on surgery during the entire medieval period. In this book, Ibn al-Quff explained the connections between arteries and veins which was the earliest description of what would be known as capillaries. He did this work before the invention of a microscope and also explained how valves worked and the direction they opened and closed.
- Al-Shafi al-Tibb (The Comprehensive of the Healing Arts): His first medical encyclopedia, completed early 1272 AD.
- Jāmiʻ al-gharaḍ fī ḥifẓ al-ṣiḥḥah wa-dafʻ al-maraḍ (جامع الغرض في حفظ الصحة ودفع المرض): on preventive medicine and the preservation of health in 60 chapters, completed around 1275.
- Al-usul fi sarh al-fusul: A two-volume commentary on the works of Hippocrates.
- Risala fi manafi al-a da: A treatise on the anatomy of the body's organs.
- Zubad at-Tabib: A book with advice for practicing physicians.
- Sarh al-Kulliyat: A commentary on Avicenna's work Qanun fi t-Tibb.
Ibn al-Qutiyya
Ibn al-Qutiyya (d. November 8, 977, in Cordoba). Grammarian and, in particular, an historian of Muslim Spain. He wrote a history of the conquest of the Iberian peninsula.
Ibn al-Qūṭiyya was an important chronicler of al-Andalus. He wrote the Ta'rij iftitah al-Andalus (History of the Conquest of al-Andalus).
Ibn al-Qutiyya (d. November 8, 977, in Cordoba). Grammarian and, in particular, an historian of Muslim Spain. He wrote a history of the conquest of the Iberian peninsula.
Ibn al-Qūṭiyya was an important chronicler of al-Andalus. He wrote the Ta'rij iftitah al-Andalus (History of the Conquest of al-Andalus).
Ibn al-Raqiq
Ibn al-Raqiq. Man of letters and chronicler of Qayrawan of the tenth century. He was regarded by Ibn Khaldun as the best specialist on the history of Ifriqiya. His History was the basis for the works of many famous Muslim historians.
Ibn al-Raqiq. Man of letters and chronicler of Qayrawan of the tenth century. He was regarded by Ibn Khaldun as the best specialist on the history of Ifriqiya. His History was the basis for the works of many famous Muslim historians.
Ibn al-Rawandi
Ibn al-Rawandi (al-Rewendi) (827-911). Mu‘tazili and heretic of the tenth century. His heterodox doctrine, which includes a biting criticism of prophecy in general and of that of the Prophet in particular, has been refuted by several generations of Muslim theologians.
Ibn al-Rawandi was an early skeptic of Islam and a critic of religion in general. In his early days he was a Mutazilite scholar but after rejecting the Mutazilite doctrine he adhered to Shia Islam for a brief period of time and later became a freethinker who repudiated Islam and revealed religion. Though none of his works survive, his opinions were preserved through his critics, and the surviving books that answered him. The book with the most preserved fragments (through an Ismaili book refuting Al-Rawandi's ideology), is the Kitab al-Zumurrud (The Book of the Emerald).
Rewendi, al- see Ibn al-Rawandi
Ibn al-Rawandi (al-Rewendi) (827-911). Mu‘tazili and heretic of the tenth century. His heterodox doctrine, which includes a biting criticism of prophecy in general and of that of the Prophet in particular, has been refuted by several generations of Muslim theologians.
Ibn al-Rawandi was an early skeptic of Islam and a critic of religion in general. In his early days he was a Mutazilite scholar but after rejecting the Mutazilite doctrine he adhered to Shia Islam for a brief period of time and later became a freethinker who repudiated Islam and revealed religion. Though none of his works survive, his opinions were preserved through his critics, and the surviving books that answered him. The book with the most preserved fragments (through an Ismaili book refuting Al-Rawandi's ideology), is the Kitab al-Zumurrud (The Book of the Emerald).
Rewendi, al- see Ibn al-Rawandi
Ibn al-Sa‘ati
Ibn al-Sa‘ati (d.1230). Physician of Damascus. He wrote a book on clockmaking.
Ibn al-Sa‘ati (d.1230). Physician of Damascus. He wrote a book on clockmaking.
Ibn al-Saffar
Abu al‐Qasim Ahmad ibn Abd Allah ibn Umar al‐Ghafiqī ibn al-Saffar al‐Andalusi (b. Cordoba - d. 1035 at Denia), Ibn al-Saffar (literally: son of the brass worker) was a close colleague and astronomer at the school founded by al-Majriti in Cordoba. His most well known work was a treatise on the astrolabe. The work was still published until the 15th century and influenced the work of Kepler. Ibn Saffar also wrote a commentary on the Zij al-Sindhind, and measured the coordinates to Mecca.
Ibn al-Salah
Ibn al-Salah (Abū `Amr `Uthmān ibn `Abd al-Raḥmān Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn al-Kurdī al-Shahrazūrī (1181- September 18, 1245). Iraqi author of a standard work on the sciences of hadith.
Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ was a Shafi'i hadith specialist and the author of the seminal Introduction to the Science of Hadith. He was originally from Sharazor, was raised in Mosul and then resided in Damascus where he died.
Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ was born in the year 1181 in Sharazor. He first studied fiqh with his father in Sharazor, located in the south-eastern part of what is currently referred to as Iraqi Kurdistan. He then occupied himself in Mosul for an unknown period of time, studying under a number of local religious scholars. He studied in a number of cities, including Baghdad, Hamedan, Naysabur, Merv, Aleppo, Damascus and Harran.
While Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ was most recognized for his contribution to the field of hadith, he was well-grounded in a variety of disciplines.
Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ held several positions throughout his life, primarily in the field of education. He taught at the Salahiyyah School in Jerusalem, and then, following the destruction of its city walls, moved to Damascus and taught at the Rawahiyyah School for some time following its inception. Following the foundation of Dar al-Hadith Ashrafiyyah, he became its shaikh and was the first to teach and give verdicts there. It was here that he dictated his work Introduction to the Science of Hadith to his students. He was then appointed a teacher at the al-Shamiyyah al-Sughara School.
Ibn al-Salah had a number of students, some of whom achieved prominence in their own right; among them:
* Ibn Khallikan
* Ibn Razin
* Kamal Ishaq
* Kamal Salar
* Shams al-Din `Abd al-Rahman Nuh al-Maqdisi
* Shihab al-Din Abu Shamah
Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ avoided association with problematic ideologies in regards to creed. He abstained from interpreting religious texts in a manner inconsistent with their apparent intent, or ta'wil, as he did the entrapments of those immersed in rhetoric.
Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ died on Monday, September 18, 1245, at the age of 66. His funeral prayer was performed at the congregational mosque of Damascus, to a crowd so large it required a second prayer to accommodate. He was buried in the Sufiyyah graveyard, now the location of a hospital, a mosque and other buildings.
Ibn al-Salah had a number of works the most notable are named below:
1. Introduction to the Science of Hadith – perhaps his best known work;
2. Ishkalat 'ala al-Wasit, also called Mushkil al-Wasit
3. Al-Amaali
4. Siyanah Sahih Muslim
5. Numerous fatawa, or religious rulings
6. Fawa`id, or benefits, from his travels
7. Adab al-Mufti wa al-Mustafti—The Etiquette of the One Giving a Verdict and of the One Seeking a Verdict
8. Nukat `Ala al-Muhadhdhab
9. Tabaqat al-Fuqaha al-Shafi`iyyah
Abū `Amr `Uthmān ibn `Abd al-Raḥmān Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn al-Kurdī al-Shahrazūrī see Ibn al-Salah
Shahrazuri, Abū `Amr `Uthmān ibn `Abd al-Raḥmān Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn al-Kurdī al- see Ibn al-Salah
Ibn al-Salah (Abū `Amr `Uthmān ibn `Abd al-Raḥmān Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn al-Kurdī al-Shahrazūrī (1181- September 18, 1245). Iraqi author of a standard work on the sciences of hadith.
Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ was a Shafi'i hadith specialist and the author of the seminal Introduction to the Science of Hadith. He was originally from Sharazor, was raised in Mosul and then resided in Damascus where he died.
Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ was born in the year 1181 in Sharazor. He first studied fiqh with his father in Sharazor, located in the south-eastern part of what is currently referred to as Iraqi Kurdistan. He then occupied himself in Mosul for an unknown period of time, studying under a number of local religious scholars. He studied in a number of cities, including Baghdad, Hamedan, Naysabur, Merv, Aleppo, Damascus and Harran.
While Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ was most recognized for his contribution to the field of hadith, he was well-grounded in a variety of disciplines.
Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ held several positions throughout his life, primarily in the field of education. He taught at the Salahiyyah School in Jerusalem, and then, following the destruction of its city walls, moved to Damascus and taught at the Rawahiyyah School for some time following its inception. Following the foundation of Dar al-Hadith Ashrafiyyah, he became its shaikh and was the first to teach and give verdicts there. It was here that he dictated his work Introduction to the Science of Hadith to his students. He was then appointed a teacher at the al-Shamiyyah al-Sughara School.
Ibn al-Salah had a number of students, some of whom achieved prominence in their own right; among them:
* Ibn Khallikan
* Ibn Razin
* Kamal Ishaq
* Kamal Salar
* Shams al-Din `Abd al-Rahman Nuh al-Maqdisi
* Shihab al-Din Abu Shamah
Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ avoided association with problematic ideologies in regards to creed. He abstained from interpreting religious texts in a manner inconsistent with their apparent intent, or ta'wil, as he did the entrapments of those immersed in rhetoric.
Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ died on Monday, September 18, 1245, at the age of 66. His funeral prayer was performed at the congregational mosque of Damascus, to a crowd so large it required a second prayer to accommodate. He was buried in the Sufiyyah graveyard, now the location of a hospital, a mosque and other buildings.
Ibn al-Salah had a number of works the most notable are named below:
1. Introduction to the Science of Hadith – perhaps his best known work;
2. Ishkalat 'ala al-Wasit, also called Mushkil al-Wasit
3. Al-Amaali
4. Siyanah Sahih Muslim
5. Numerous fatawa, or religious rulings
6. Fawa`id, or benefits, from his travels
7. Adab al-Mufti wa al-Mustafti—The Etiquette of the One Giving a Verdict and of the One Seeking a Verdict
8. Nukat `Ala al-Muhadhdhab
9. Tabaqat al-Fuqaha al-Shafi`iyyah
Abū `Amr `Uthmān ibn `Abd al-Raḥmān Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn al-Kurdī al-Shahrazūrī see Ibn al-Salah
Shahrazuri, Abū `Amr `Uthmān ibn `Abd al-Raḥmān Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn al-Kurdī al- see Ibn al-Salah
Ibn al-Sarraj
Ibn al-Sarraj (875-929). Arab grammarian of Baghdad. He took part in the wide spread movement which led the Arab grammarians to base their work on The Book of Sibawayhi.
The name Ibn al-Sarraj is also the name of a fourteenth century Arab inventor. Around 1325 in Aleppo, Shihab al-Din Ahmad ibn Abi Bakr, more commonly known as Ibn al-Sarraj, devised an astrolabe that would solve all the problems of spherical astronomy for all latitudes with a single plate. He had effectively reinvented the up till then universal astrolabe of the 11th century Toledan astronomer ‘Ali ibn Khalaf al-Shakkaz. In the past, Al-Shakkaz’s innovative astrolabe substituted the multiple latitude plates used in typical astrolabes for one plate (safiha shakkaziya), which bore the entire celestial sphere. He called the markings on his plate the shakkaziya markings, which were also included on the rete that rotated over the plate. Al-Shakkaz’s contemporary, al-Zarqallu, superimposed two shakkaziya grids on a single plate and his rete consisted of semicircle shakkaziya curves that rotated over the plate. Although the work of al-Zarqallu was better known in the Islamic east than al-Shakkaz’s astrolabe, Ibn al-Sarraj hit upon his idea after solving the problem of determining the hour angle from a celestial altitude with a shakkaziya plate. He called his universal astrolabe the sarrajiya. The Benaki Museum in Athens houses one of the most sophisticated universal astrolabes made by al-Sarraj. No treatise written by al-Sarraj explains exactly how this astrolabe works but a treatise by a 15th century Egyptian astronomer who owned the astrolabe does exist. Al-Wafa’i’s treatise describes five different ways that this astrolabe can be used to solve all the standard problems of spherical astronomy for any latitude, aided by the highly ingenious trigonometric grid and alidade on the back of the device.
Shihab al-Din Ahmad ibn Abi Bakr see Ibn al-Sarraj
Ibn al-Sarraj (875-929). Arab grammarian of Baghdad. He took part in the wide spread movement which led the Arab grammarians to base their work on The Book of Sibawayhi.
The name Ibn al-Sarraj is also the name of a fourteenth century Arab inventor. Around 1325 in Aleppo, Shihab al-Din Ahmad ibn Abi Bakr, more commonly known as Ibn al-Sarraj, devised an astrolabe that would solve all the problems of spherical astronomy for all latitudes with a single plate. He had effectively reinvented the up till then universal astrolabe of the 11th century Toledan astronomer ‘Ali ibn Khalaf al-Shakkaz. In the past, Al-Shakkaz’s innovative astrolabe substituted the multiple latitude plates used in typical astrolabes for one plate (safiha shakkaziya), which bore the entire celestial sphere. He called the markings on his plate the shakkaziya markings, which were also included on the rete that rotated over the plate. Al-Shakkaz’s contemporary, al-Zarqallu, superimposed two shakkaziya grids on a single plate and his rete consisted of semicircle shakkaziya curves that rotated over the plate. Although the work of al-Zarqallu was better known in the Islamic east than al-Shakkaz’s astrolabe, Ibn al-Sarraj hit upon his idea after solving the problem of determining the hour angle from a celestial altitude with a shakkaziya plate. He called his universal astrolabe the sarrajiya. The Benaki Museum in Athens houses one of the most sophisticated universal astrolabes made by al-Sarraj. No treatise written by al-Sarraj explains exactly how this astrolabe works but a treatise by a 15th century Egyptian astronomer who owned the astrolabe does exist. Al-Wafa’i’s treatise describes five different ways that this astrolabe can be used to solve all the standard problems of spherical astronomy for any latitude, aided by the highly ingenious trigonometric grid and alidade on the back of the device.
Shihab al-Din Ahmad ibn Abi Bakr see Ibn al-Sarraj
Ibn al-Sayrafi, Abu Bakr
Ibn al-Sayrafi, Abu Bakr (Abu Bakr ibn al-Sayrafi) (1074-1162). Andalusian poet, historian and traditionist from Granada. His fame rests on a history of the Almoravids.
Abu Bakr ibn al-Sayrafi see Ibn al-Sayrafi, Abu Bakr
Ibn al-Sayrafi, Abu Bakr (Abu Bakr ibn al-Sayrafi) (1074-1162). Andalusian poet, historian and traditionist from Granada. His fame rests on a history of the Almoravids.
Abu Bakr ibn al-Sayrafi see Ibn al-Sayrafi, Abu Bakr
Ibn al-Shatir
Ala Al-Din Abu'l-Hasan Ali Ibn Ibrahim Ibn al-Shatir (1304 – 1375) (Arabic: ابن الشاطر) was an Arab Muslim astronomer, mathematician, engineer and inventor who worked as muwaqqit (موقت, religious timekeeper) at the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, Syria.
Ibn al-Shatir conducted extensive observations which led to some of his theoretical contributions, designed and constructed new instruments, and made advanced contributions to Islamic astronomy in the field of planetary theory.
His most important astronomical treatise was the Kitāb Nihāyat al-Suʾāl fī Taṣḥīḥ al-ʾUṣūl (كتاب نهاية السؤال في تصحيح الأصول - The Final Quest Concerning the Rectification of Principles), in which he drastically reformed the Ptolemaic models of the Sun, Moon, and planets. While previous Maragha school models were just as accurate as the Ptolemaic model, Ibn al-Shatir's geometrical model was the first that was actually superior to the Ptolemaic model in terms of its better agreement with both contemporary theory and empirical observations.
Experimentally Ibn al-Shatir employed careful eclipse observations to measure the apparent size of the Sun and Moon and found that they disagreed with Ptolemaic expectations. His work on his experiments and observations (e.g. Ta'liq al-arsad, or Accounting for Observations) has not survived, but there are references to it in his Final Quest Concerning the Rectification of Principles.
Theoretically, Ibn al-Shatir objected to Aristotle's ether, in its eternal uniformity, and argued that if one grants that the heavens must allow for a variation in composition then there's no reason to reject epicycles, while agreeing that equants and eccentrics, which violated Aristotelian principles of uniform circular motion and gravity, were impossible. He then built a model that by adding new epicycles utilizing the Tusi-couple eliminated entirely the epicycle in the solar model, the eccentrics and equants in the planetary models, and the eccentric, epicycles and equant in the lunar model. The resulting model was one in which the Earth was at the exact center of the universe around which all heavenly bodies moved in uniform circular motions, remained as accurate as Ptolemy in predicting the paths of heavenly bodies, and improved on Ptolemy by accurately predicting the apparent size and distance of the Sun and Moon.
By creating the first model of the cosmos in which physical theory, mathematical model, and empirical observation were in agreement, Ibn al-Shatir marked a turning point in astronomy which may be considered a "Scientific Revolution before the Renaissance".
Although his system was firmly geocentric — he had eliminated the Ptolemaic equant and eccentrics — the mathematical details of his system encompassed those in Nicolaus Copernicus' De revolutionibus, which had retained the Ptolemaic eccentric. Copernicus' lunar model was identical to the lunar model of al-Shatir. It is noted that in Copernicus' Commentariolus that his model of Mercury is mistaken, and that since it is Ibn al-Shatir's model, this is further evidence, and perhaps the best evidence, that Copernicus was in fact copying without full understanding from some other source. All this suggests that Ibn al-Shatir's model may have influenced, if indirectly, Copernicus while constructing the latter's heliocentric model. How Copernicus would have come across al-Shatir's work, exactly, remains an open question, but there are some number of possible routes for first or secondhand transmission.
Ibn al-Shatir constructed a magnificent sundial for the minaret of the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus which gave both seasonal and equinoctial hours. The fragments of this sundial in a Damascus museum make this the oldest polar-axis sundial still in existence.
Ibn al-Shatir made a timekeeping device incorporating both a universal sundial and a magnetic compass.
The compendium, a multi-purpose astronomical instrument, was first constructed by Ibn al-Shatir. His compendium featured an alhidade and polar sundial among other things. These compendia later became popular in Renaissance Europe.
Ibn al-Shatir described another astronomical instrument which he called the "universal instrument" in his Rays of light on operations with the universal instrument (al-ʾashiʿʿa al-lāmiʿa fī al-ʿamal bi-l-āla al-jāmiʿa). A commentary on this work entitled Book of Ripe Fruits from Clusters of Universal Instrument (Kitāb al-thimār al-yāni'a ʿan qutāf al-āla al-jāmiʿa) was later written by the Ottoman astronomer and engineer Taqi al-Din, who employed the instrument at the Istanbul observatory of Taqi al-Din from 1577-1580.
In the case of lunar motion, Ibn al-Shatir corrected Ptolemy, whose imagined Moon approached far closer to the Earth than did the actual Moon.
Many believe that astronomy died with the Greeks, and was brought back to life again by Copernicus, the 15th century Polish astronomer who is famous for introducing the Sun-centered (heliocentric) theory of the solar system, which marked the beginning of modern astronomy.
However, many historians now think it is not a coincidence that his models of planetary theory are mathematically identical to those prepared by Ibn al-Shatir over a century before him. It is known that Copernicus relied heavily on the comprehensive astronomical treatise by al-Battani, which included star catalogues and planetary tables.
The mathematical devices discovered by Muslims before Copernicus, referred to in modern terms as linkages of constant length vectors rotating at constant angular velocities, are exactly the same as those used by Copernicus. The only, but important, differences between the two was that the Muslims' Earth was fixed in space, whereas Copernicus had it orbiting around the Sun. Copernicus also used instruments which were particular to astronomy in the East, like the parallactic ruler, which had previously only been used in Samarkand and Maragha Observatories.
In the case of lunar motion, Ibn al-Shatir corrected Ptolemy, whose imagined Moon approached far closer to the Earth than did the actual Moon.
Many believe that astronomy died with the Greeks, and was brought back to life again by Copernicus, the 15th century Polish astronomer who is famous for introducing the Sun-centered (heliocentric) theory of the solar system, which marked the beginning of modern astronomy.
However, many historians now think it is not a coincidence that his models of planetary theory are mathematically identical to those prepared by Ibn al-Shatir over a century before him. It is known that Copernicus relied heavily on the comprehensive astronomical treatise by al-Battani, which included star catalogues and planetary tables.
The mathematical devices discovered by Muslims before Copernicus, referred to in modern terms as linkages of constant length vectors rotating at constant angular velocities, are exactly the same as those used by Copernicus. The only, but important, differences between the two was that the Muslims' Earth was fixed in space, whereas Copernicus had it orbiting around the Sun. Copernicus also used instruments which were particular to astronomy in the East, like the parallactic ruler, which had previously only been used in Samarkand and Maragha Observatories.
Ibn al-Thahabi
Ibn al-Thahabi (Abu Mohammed Abdellah Ibn Mohammed Al-Azdi) (Arabic: ابو محمد عبدالله بن محمد الأزدي) (ca. ? - 1033, in Valencia, Al-Andalus [Islamic Spain]), known also as Ibn Al-Thahabi, was an Arab physician, famous for writing the first known alphabetical encyclopedia of medicine.
Ibn al-Thahabi (Abu Mohammed Abdellah Ibn Mohammed Al-Azdi) (Arabic: ابو محمد عبدالله بن محمد الأزدي) (ca. ? - 1033, in Valencia, Al-Andalus [Islamic Spain]), known also as Ibn Al-Thahabi, was an Arab physician, famous for writing the first known alphabetical encyclopedia of medicine.
He was born in Suhar, Oman. He moved then into Basra, then to Persia where he studied under Al-Biruni and Ibn Sina. Later he migrated to Jerusalem and finally settled in Valencia, in Al-Andalus (Islamic Spain).
He is famous for his book Kitab al-Ma'a (The Book of Water), which is a 900 page medical encyclopedia that lists the names of diseases, its medicine and a physiological process or a treatment. It is the first known alphabetical classification of medical terms. In this encyclopedia, Ibn Al-Thahabi not only lists the names but adds numerous original ideas about the function of the human organs. It also contains a course for the treatment psychological symptoms. The main thesis of his medication is that cure must start from controlled food and exercise and if it persists then use specific individual medicines. If it still persists, then use medical compounds. If the disease continued, surgery was performed.
Ibn al-Thumna
Ibn al-Thumna (r.1052-1062). Lord of Syracuse in Italy. He gave support to the Normans when they invaded the island.
Ibn al-Thumna (r.1052-1062). Lord of Syracuse in Italy. He gave support to the Normans when they invaded the island.
Ibn al-Tiqtaqa
Ibn al-Tiqtaqa. Iraqi historian from the fourteenth century. He is known for an enjoyable history of the caliphs down to al-Musta‘sim and of their viziers.
‘Ibn al-Tiqtaqā’, or the son of a chatterbox, was an onomatopoeic nickname for the Iraqi historian Jalāl-ad-Dīn Abu Ja’far Muhammad born Tāji’d-Dīn Abi’l-Hasan ’Ali, the spokesman of the Shi'a community in the Shi’ī holy cities—Hillah, Najaf, and Karbala; in an Iraq that was to remain the stronghold of Shi'ism, until the forcible conversion of Iran by Shah Ismail I Safavi.
Around 1302 AD he wrote a popular compendium of Islamic history called al-Fakhri.
Jalal-ad-Din Abu Ja'far Muhammad see Ibn al-Tiqtaqa.
Taji'd-Din Abi'l-Hasan 'Ali see Ibn al-Tiqtaqa.
Ibn al-Tiqtaqa. Iraqi historian from the fourteenth century. He is known for an enjoyable history of the caliphs down to al-Musta‘sim and of their viziers.
‘Ibn al-Tiqtaqā’, or the son of a chatterbox, was an onomatopoeic nickname for the Iraqi historian Jalāl-ad-Dīn Abu Ja’far Muhammad born Tāji’d-Dīn Abi’l-Hasan ’Ali, the spokesman of the Shi'a community in the Shi’ī holy cities—Hillah, Najaf, and Karbala; in an Iraq that was to remain the stronghold of Shi'ism, until the forcible conversion of Iran by Shah Ismail I Safavi.
Around 1302 AD he wrote a popular compendium of Islamic history called al-Fakhri.
Jalal-ad-Din Abu Ja'far Muhammad see Ibn al-Tiqtaqa.
Taji'd-Din Abi'l-Hasan 'Ali see Ibn al-Tiqtaqa.
Ibn al-Wafid
Ibn al-Wafid (Ali Ibn al-Husain Ibn al-Wafid) (997-c.1074), known in Latin Europe as Abenguefit, was a pharmacologist and physician from Toledo. He was the vizier of Al-Mamun of Toledo. His main work is Kitāb al-adwiya al-mufrada (The Book of Simple Drugs) (كتاب الأدوية المفردة, translated into Latin as De medicamentis simplicibus).
Ibn al-Wafid was mainly a pharmacist in Toledo, and he used the techniques and methods available in alchemy to extract at least 520 different kinds of medicines from various plants and herbs.
Ibn al-Wafid's student Ali Ibn al-Lukuh was the author of ʿUmdat al-Ṭabīb fī Maʿrifat al-Nabāt li kulli Labīb, a famous botanical dictionary.
Kitāb al-adwiya al-mufrada (The Book of Simple Drugs) ran to five hundred pages, taking twenty-five years to compile. The Latin translation, De medicamentis simplicibus is only a fragment of all his work.
As well as investigatin the action of drugs, sleep and bathing, Ibn al-Wafid also wrote on farming, because agriculture, plant cultivation, botany, chemistry and medicine were closely linked.
Ibn al-Wannan
Ibn al-Wannan (d. 1773). Poet from Fez. His fame is based on a poem which is a resume of the traditional culture of the Arabs. It is known as al-Shamaqmaqiyya and is used as a textbook to be learned by heart.
The al-Shamaqmaqiyya is a survey of traditional Arabic culture in which Ibn al-Wannan describes the customs of the early Arabs.
Ibn al-Wannan (d. 1773). Poet from Fez. His fame is based on a poem which is a resume of the traditional culture of the Arabs. It is known as al-Shamaqmaqiyya and is used as a textbook to be learned by heart.
The al-Shamaqmaqiyya is a survey of traditional Arabic culture in which Ibn al-Wannan describes the customs of the early Arabs.
Ibn al-Zaqqaq
Ibn al-Zaqqaq (c. 1100-1133). One of the great poets of Muslim Spain. His diwan acquired great fame.
Ibn al-Zaqqaq (c. 1100-1133). One of the great poets of Muslim Spain. His diwan acquired great fame.
Ibn al-Zayyat
Ibn al-Zayyat (d. 1230). Man of letters and jurist from Morocco. He is known and esteemed as a hagiographer of the saintly personages of the country, among them the great Moroccan saint Abu‘l-‘Abbas al-Sabti.
Abu Yaqub Yusuf Ibn Yahya ibn al-Zayyat al-Tadili (born in Beni Mellal) was a Sufi mystic, influential jurist and hagiographer from Morocco. He is the biographer of many Sufi saints. His best known publication is the al-Tashawwuf ila rijal at-tasawwuf (Looking upon the men of Sufism). It was written circa 1220. Al-Tadili also wrote the hagiography of Abu al-Abbas as-Sabti entitled Akhbar Abi'l-Abbas as-Sabti. Like his al-Tashawwuf, it contains many autobiographical passages of Abu al-Abbas himself.
Abu Yaqub Yusuf Ibn Yahya ibn al-Zayyat al-Tadili see Ibn al-Zayyat
Tadili, Abu Yaqub Yusuf Ibn Yahya ibn al-Zayyat al- see Ibn al-Zayyat
Ibn al-Zayyat (d. 1230). Man of letters and jurist from Morocco. He is known and esteemed as a hagiographer of the saintly personages of the country, among them the great Moroccan saint Abu‘l-‘Abbas al-Sabti.
Abu Yaqub Yusuf Ibn Yahya ibn al-Zayyat al-Tadili (born in Beni Mellal) was a Sufi mystic, influential jurist and hagiographer from Morocco. He is the biographer of many Sufi saints. His best known publication is the al-Tashawwuf ila rijal at-tasawwuf (Looking upon the men of Sufism). It was written circa 1220. Al-Tadili also wrote the hagiography of Abu al-Abbas as-Sabti entitled Akhbar Abi'l-Abbas as-Sabti. Like his al-Tashawwuf, it contains many autobiographical passages of Abu al-Abbas himself.
Abu Yaqub Yusuf Ibn Yahya ibn al-Zayyat al-Tadili see Ibn al-Zayyat
Tadili, Abu Yaqub Yusuf Ibn Yahya ibn al-Zayyat al- see Ibn al-Zayyat
Ibn al-Zubayr, Abu Ja‘far
Ibn al-Zubayr, Abu Ja‘far (Abu Ja‘far ibn al-Zubayr) (1230-1308). Transmitter of traditions; a “reader” of the Qur‘an; a man of letters; and an historian of Jaen, of south central Spain.
Abu Ja'far ibn al-Zubayr see Ibn al-Zubayr, Abu Ja‘far
Ibn al-Zubayr, Abu Ja‘far (Abu Ja‘far ibn al-Zubayr) (1230-1308). Transmitter of traditions; a “reader” of the Qur‘an; a man of letters; and an historian of Jaen, of south central Spain.
Abu Ja'far ibn al-Zubayr see Ibn al-Zubayr, Abu Ja‘far
Ibn ‘Amir
Ibn ‘Amir (d. 736). “Reader” of the Qur‘an. His “reading” is counted among the seven canonical ones.
Ibn ‘Amir (d. 736). “Reader” of the Qur‘an. His “reading” is counted among the seven canonical ones.
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