26 BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND 27

office at the Umayyad mosque, were at least as significant as phenomenon that the absorption of the Greek, Persian, and
those conducted at formal observatories. It is thus reasonable Indian scientific legacies into Islamic culture took place in the
to think of the place where a timekeeper did his work as a minor context of a dominant Islamic polity. To put it differently, Mus-
observatory, one that, in contrast to formal observatories, was lims were not in a position of political subordination, which ex-
more stable, financially independent, and fully integrated into plains the ease with which they borrowed from other cultures.
traditional social institutions. More important than this sense of security, however, was the
multiplicity of the scientific legacies that informed Islamic sci-
ence. In a classic and much-quoted work on the history of Ara-
The Consequences of Hybridity
bic astronomy published in 1911, Carlo Nallino downplays the
The practice of science did not occur in a vacuum, as is already Persian and Indian influences and suggests that the scientificity
clear, and while the modes of supporting scientific practice of Arabic science was largely due to its reliance on the Greek
changed over time and varied with discipline, there can be no sciences.64 Without denying the disproportionate weight of the
doubt that, right from the beginning, the sciences were an en- Greek tradition, I would argue that the other two legacies were
during feature of the intellectual landscape of Muslim societies. extremely important in two respects. First, they were important
The beginnings of scientific practice were instrumental in shap- because they explain some of the earliest research in fields such
ing later scientific practice in ways that had lasting effects on as algebra that were concurrent with, and not subsequent to, the
even later developments. In the remainder of this chapter, I will first translations of Greek mathematical works. 65 And second,
give a briefoverview ofsome ofthe salient characteristics ofthis they were important because the availability of multiple scien-
scientific practice. tific traditions to choose from allowed an eclectic and discrimi-
The predominance of the Greek scientific tradition and its nating approach to each of the scientific legacies. The early dy-
vital influence on the development ofthe Arabo-Islamic sciences namics of translation and original composition suggest that the
is a given. But Arabic science was not a mere museum of Greek small nuinber of non-Greek translations had the effect of hy-
scientific knowledge. Arabic scientists did more than simply pre- bridizing knowledge, which in turn had a lasing impact on the
serve the Greek scientific legacy and pass it on to its European attitude toward the dominant Greek sciences.
heirs. In fact, evidence from the earliest extant scientific sources Let me illustrate by again using the example of algebra. The
indicates that the translation movement was concurrent with, first work in history to consider algebraic expressions irrespec-
rather than a prerequisite for, scientific research in the Islamic tive ofwhat they may represent was Kita.b al-]abr wal-Muqa.bala
world. Simultaneous research and translation took place in more by Mul;tammad ibn Musa al-KhwarizmI (fl. 830). This book was
than one field, and in more than one instance, when some of the written in the first quarter of the ninth century and was rightly
scientific texts were being translated, they were also being refor- considered by Arab mathematicians, as well as by early and late
mulated and transformed. historians, as a pivotal achievement in the history of mathemat-
It is worth keeping in mind as we attempt to explain this ics. Al-KhwarizmI himselfwas aware ofthe novelty ofhis work:
 28 BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND 29

he used a title never used before in earlier disciplines, and he also illustrates the transformative etlects of the cross-application
provided a new technical terminology without much parallel in of multiple scientific disciplines and the way old sciences can be
earlier traditions. The perceived objectives of Al-Khwarizml's restructured and new sciences constructed by applying the tools
work were equally original: to provide a theory for the solution of one discipline to another.
of all types of linear and quadratic equations by using radicals The formative effects of working from multiple traditions
and without restricting the solution to any particular problem. are also shown in astronomy. The first astronomical texts that
The subject of AI-Khwarizml's new discipline was equations were translated into Arabic, in the eighth century, were ofIndian
and roots: all geometric and arithmetic problems were reduced, and Persian origin. The earliest extant Arabic astronomical texts
through algebraic operations, to normal equations with standard date to the second half of the eighth century. Two astronomers,
solutions. 66 Mu1).ammad ibn Ibrahim al-Fazari and Ya'qiib ibn Tariq, are
The work of Al~Khwarizmiwas only the first in a long and known to have translated an eighth-century Indian astronomi-
increasingly more sophisticated tradition of algebraic research. cal work known as Zzj aI-Sindhind. Sources indicate that they
Almost immediately after the emergence of this new field, other produced this translation after 770, under the supervision of
mathematicians started developing it and exploring the possi- an Indian astronomer visiting the court of the ~basid caliph
bilities for applying it to other mathematical disciplines. In the Al-Man~iir (r. 754-75). Extant fragments of the works of these
tenth and eleventh centuries, a new research project introduced two astronomers reveal a somewhat eclectic mixing of Indian
by AI-Karaji Oate tenth century) focused on the systematic ap- parameters with elements of Persian origin and some elements
plication of the laws of arithmetic to algebraic expressions. Al- from the Hellenistic pre-Ptolemaic period. These fragments also
ready in the second half of the ninth century, Qusta ibn Liiqa reflect the use of Indian calculation methods and the use of the
(d. 912) had translated the first seven books of the Arithmetica Indian sine function in trigonometry, instead ofthe cumbersome
of Diophantus into Arabic. Significantly, however, the Arabic chords of arc used in Greek astronomy. Late Arabic sources also
translation was given the title The Art ofAlgebra. By using the contain references to the Zzj aI-Shah, a collection of astronomi-
language of the new field of algebra, the translator reoriented cal tables based on Indian parameters, which was compiled in
the Arithmetica ofDiophantus and provided instead an algebraic Sasanid Persia over a period of two centuries. 68
interpretation of the arithmetic. In this instance, the translation The first original work of Arabic astronomy still extant is
from Greek into Arabic was both motivated and conditioned by Al-Khwarizmi's Zzj aI-Sindhind (which is unrelated to the trans-
the earlier original research in Arabic algebra. Thus, the Greek lation of the Indian text with the same name). It contains tables
arithmetic that Al-Karaji applied to algebra had already been for the movements ofthe sun, moon, and five planets with intro-
modified, even as it was being translated, under the influence of ductory remarks on how to use the table,s. Most of the parame-
the work ofAl-Khwarizmi and his successors. 67 Al-Khwarizml's ters used by AI-Khwarizmi are of Indian origin, but some were
work was considerably less sophisticated than later Arabic alge- derived from Ptolemy's Handy Tables, and no attempt was made
bra in diverse traditions, but its influence was monumental. It to harmonize the two sources. This book is significant not only
30 BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND 31

because of its content but also because of its timing: it was writ- was composed by 1\.li ibn Sahl Rabban al-Tabari (fl. mid-ninth
ten at the same time that Ptolemy's Almagest, the most influ- century), a Christian convert to Islam from Marw. AI-Taban's
ential astronomical work of antiquity, was first translated into book Firdaws al-.lfikma (Paradise ofWisdom) was the first com-
Arabic. The introduction of Ptolemaic astronomy into Arabic prehensive work of Arabic medicine to integrate and compare
science thus occurred in the context of two significant trends. the various medical traditions of the time. A section on Indian
First, research in Arabic astronomy was proceeding hand in medicine provides valuable information on its sources and prac-
hand with translation; despite the manifest superiority ofPtole- tices. The author adopted a critical approach to enable a choice
maic astronomy, it did not exclusively set the agenda for future between different practices.
research in Arabic astronomy. The second trend was the selec- Indian medicine was far less crucial than Hellenistic medi-
tive use ofparameters, sources, and methods of calculation from cine in shaping the Arabic medical tradition, although occa-
different scientific traditions. As a result, the Ptolemaic tradition sionally physicians would compare Greek and Indian medicine
was made receptive right from the beginning to the possibility of and opt for the latter; this was the case with Al-Samarqandi in
observational refinement and mathematical restructuring. These the eleventh century, but he was an exception. The main role
revisionist tendencies characterize the first period of Arabic as- of Indian medicine was not to define the contours of the Ara-
tronomy. bic medical tradition but to set the tone for some of its initial
Similar trends can be traced in medicine. The most famous of interests.69 Although the Greek scientific legacy was the domi-
the early translators and physicians are yul::tanna ibn Masawayh nant one, a mere awareness of more than one available tradition
(d. 857), head ofthe 'Abbasid library Bayt al-IjIikma, and IjIunayn encouraged a critical and selective approach that pervaded all
ibn Isl:taq (d. 873), who, along with his students, translated almost fields ofArabic science.
all of the then known Greek medical works into either Syriac
or Arabic. While these translations were being made, original
works were being composed in Arabic. IjIunayn, for example, The Critical Outlook
composed a few medical treatises ofhis own; ofthese, AI-JVIasa'il A critical awareness of the possibility of multiple interpreta-
ft al-Ti!JD lil-Muta <allimzn (Questions on Medicine for Students) tions and approaches to various scientific disciplines character-
and Kita!Jal- 'Ashr Maqalat ft al-'Ayn (Ten Treatises on the Eye) ized the practice of science during the ninth century and beyond
were influential and quite original. They include very few new and resulted in three related trends: a thorough examination of
observations; rather, their creativity lies in their new organiza- the details of various disciplines; an attempt to systematize and
tion and, in the case ofthe second book, in the deliberate attempt generalize these disciplines; and the production of exhaustive
to exhaust all questions related to the eye. A solid command of syntheses of individual disciplines and related ones. The follow-
medical knowledge was needed to produce these works. ing examples from astronomy, medicine, and optics illustrate
The most famous work of the early period ofArabic science these trends.
32 BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND 33

Astronomy. The Almagest was and is rightly considered the the moon, and the circumference of the earth. At the start of the
main authoritative work of antiquity that deals with astronomy. ninth century, earlier astronomers had already taken a critical
In this book, Ptolemy synthesizes the earlier knowledge ofHelle- approach, although it was restricted to the correction of con-
nistic astronomy in light ofhis own new_observations. The main stants and parameters.71
purpose of the book was to establish the geometric models that Right from the beginning, then, Arabic astronomers set out
would accurately account for celestial observations. A large part to rectify and complement Ptolemaic astronomy. Having noted
of the book is dedicated to the methods for constructing vari- several discrepancies between new obserVations and Ptolemaic
ous models and for calculating the parameters of these models. calculations, Arab astronomers reexamined the theoretical basis
Ptolemy also provides tables of planetary motions to be used in of Ptolemy's results. This critical reexamination took several
conjunction with his models. Of all the books of antiquity, the forms. One example of the critical works of the ninth century
Almagest represents the most successful work of mathematical is The Book on the Solar Year, which was wrongly attributed to
astronomy: its geometric representations of the universe pro- Thabit ibn Qurra (d. c. 901) but was produced around his time.
vided the most accurate and best predictive accounts of celestial Ptolemy's precession constant is corrected in the book, and al-
phenomena.7o though Ptolemy's geometrical representations are retained, the
A significant part of the intensive astronomical research author questions his observations and calculations. The book
of the ninth century was dedicated to the dissemination of also presents proof that the apogee of the solar orb - the celes-
Ptolemy's astronomy, not just by translating parts or all of his tial sphere that carries the sun-moves relative to the ecliptic
work but also by composing summaries and commentaries on it. in connection with the precessional movement of the sphere of
Ptolemy was thus made available and accessible to a large audi- the fixed stars, just as the apogees of the other planets and the
ence among the educated classes. In the first half of the ninth moon do. Other astronomers devised enhanced methods of cal-
century,Al-:-FarghanI, for example, wrote his Kitiib fiJawami< culation. New mathematical tools were also introduced to mod-
jIm al-Nujum (A Compendium of the Science of the Stars), a .ernize the computational procedures. In Al-Zzj al-Dimashq'i,
book that was widely circulated in both the Arabic version and written around the middle ofthe ninth century, I:Iabash al-I:Iasib
later Latin translations. It provides a brief and simplified de- introduces sines, cosines, and tangents, trigonometric functions
scriptive overview of Ptolemaic cosmography without mathe- unknown to the Greeks. I:Iabash also worked on a problem not
matical computations. Unlike the Almagest, however, it starts treated in the Greek sources; he examined the visibility of the
with a discussion of calendar computations and conversions be- crescent moon and produced the first detailed discussion of this
tween different eras. Although Al-FarghanI's primary purpose complicated astronomical problem. He not only undertook to
was to introduce Ptolemaic astronomy in a simplified way, he verify the results of the Almagest but also expanded these re-
also corrected Ptolemy. Using the findings of earlier Arab as- sults and applied them to new problems. Although the general
tronomers, he gives revised values for the obliquity of the eclip- astronomical research of this period was conducted within the
tic, the precessional movement of the apogees of the sun and framework of Ptolemaic astronomy, he and others reworked
34 BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND 35

and critically examined the Ptolemaic observations and compu- and introducing new scientific concepts and ideas, and the use of
tational methods and, in a limited way, were even able to explore systematic mathematization transformed the methods ofreason-
problems outside that framework. ing and enabled further creative developments in the branches of
Thabit ibn Qurra was one of the main scientists of the ninth •
SCience.
72

century. A pagan from J::Iarran whose birth language was Syriac Already in the ninth century, then, Arabic astronomy inte-
and whose working language was Arabic, although he was also grated all available knowledge from earlier traditions and was
fluent in Greek, Thabit joined the Banii Miisa circle of scientists positioned to add to it. The achievements of the ninth century
in Baghdad and produced numerous works on several scientific laid the foundation for the high-quality work in the following
disciplines. Ofabout forty treatises on astronomy, only eight are two centuries. In the tenth and eleventh centuries there were
extant. All reflect Thabit's full command of Ptolemaic astron- imp-ortant developments in the science of trigonometry, which
omy and illustrate the level to which this astronomy was thor- had dramatic effects on the accuracy and facility ofastronomical
oughly absorbed by Arab astronomers. A couple of the extant calculations. The earlier examinations of Ptolemaic astronomy
astronomical treatises are of particular interest. In one, Thabit led to systematic projects that, rather than addressing the field
analyzes the motion of a heavenly body on an eccentric orbit, in its totality, focused on specific aspects of astronomy. One of
and the model he uses is Ptolemaic. Yet where Ptolemy describes the main characteristics of this period was the tendency to pro-
a
without giving proof, Thabit provides rigorous and system- vide exhaustive synthesizing works on particular astronomical
atic mathematical proof with the aid of the theorems ofEuclid's topics. The work of Abd al-Ra1]man al-~ufi (who was born in
Elements. In the proof, Thabit introduces the first known mathe- Rayy, worked in Shiraz and I~fahan, and died in 986) illustrates
matical analysis of motion. For the first time in history, as far as this tendency. In his famous book Kitab $uwar al-Kawakib al-
we know, he also refers to the speed of a moving body at a given Thabita, AI-~ufi reworked the star catalogue of the Almagest
point. In another work, Thabit provides general and exhaustive on the basis of a corrected value of one degree every sixty-six
proofs for problems that Ptolemy examines only for special cases years for the precessional movement of the stars and incorpo-
or for boundary conditions. Thabit also devotes a work to lunar rates several other new observations and verifications, produc-
visibility. His solution, which is far more complex than J::Iabash's, ing an accurate representation ofthe constellations and their co-
exhibits the same mathematical rigor everywhere apparent in his ordinates and magnitudes. Another example of the tendency to
work: he proves the general law that applies to the visibility of synthesize is Al-Zzj al-ljakim'i al-Kab'ir, a monumental work in
any heavenly body, then applies this law to the special case of eighty-one chapters of which only about a half are preserved.
the crescent moon. The work of Thabit is significant because it The book, by Ibn Yiinus (Cairo, d. 1009), is a complete treatise
illustrates the high creativity of Arabic astronomy in its earli- on astronomy containing tables on the movement of the heav-
est period, the roots of which lie in the application of diverse enly bodies, their various parameters, and instructions on the use
mathematical disciplines to one another. Cross-application had ofthe tables. Here, too, the objective ofthe work is to provide an
the immediate effect of expanding the frontiers of disciplines exhaustive documentation of previous observations, subsequent
36 BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND 37

verifications or corrections of these, and new observations re- al-Razi (d. 925) is an example. It is a huge, comprehensive work
corded by the author. The synthesizing trend culminated in Abu that, in a current incomplete copy, falls into twenty-three vol-
al-Rayhan Mul).ammad ibn Ahmad al-Blrunl's (973-c. 1048) AI- umes. The book is not organized according to formal theoreti-
Qanun aI-Mas 'udz, a synthesis of the Greek, Indian, and Arabic cal paradigms; rather, it is a compendium and encyclopedia of
astronomical traditions. 73 clinical medicine, including all earlier writings on diseases and
Advances in trigonometry resulting from the full integra- treatments known to Al-Razi, as well as his own clinical obser-
tion of Indian achievements in the field, as well as from new vations. In several places, AI-Razi criticizes Galen, the preemi-
discoveries in the tenth and eleventh centuries, played a cen- nent second-century Greek physician, pointing out that his own
tral role in the development ofArabic astronomy. This tendency clinical observations do not conform with Galen's assertions.
was itself part of the systematic mathematization of disciplines, Another attempt to provide a synthesis of all available medical
which contributed to the expansion of their frontiers. Equipped knowledge was the thirty-volume medical encyclopedia Kitao
with new and more rigorous mathematical tools, Al-Blruni, like al-T~Tifli man 'Ajiia 'an al-Ta'lifby the Cordovan scholar Abu
many ofhis predecessors and contemporaries, provided exhaus- al-Qasim al-Zahrawi (d. lOB). The bulk of this work deals with
tive studies of specialized topics within astronomy. His treatises symptoms and treatment, reflecting once again the increased
cover such topics as shadows; the theory, construction, and use interest among many medical scholars in clinical comprehen-
of astrolabes; and the coordinates of geographical locations. In siveness.
most of these monographs, AI-Blruni starts with a thorough Paralleling these attempts at synthesis were attempts at rig-
critical overview of older theories and mathematical methods orous systematization. For the first time, scholars tried to orga-
for solving the particular problems in question, then proceeds nize the vast body of medical knowledge in all of the branches
either to choose one or to propose his own alternative theory. of medicine into one logical structure. In the tenth century, M
Al-Blrunl's work represents a critical assessment of the state ibn 'Abbas al-Majusi wrote his Kitao al-Kamil jt al-$ina 'a al-
of the science of mathematical astronomy up to his own time; Jibbiyya (The Complete Book of the Medical Art), also known
like other such comprehensive surveys, it in effect exhausted as Kitao al-Malakl (The Royal Book), with the explicit intention
the possibilities of expanding the astronomical disciplines from of applying a theoretical framework that would provide medi-
within. To achieve progress, scientists needed to move in new cine with a structure and an organizational principle. Although
directions, devise new strategies, and explore new programs of Al-Majusi's book served as a popular handbook of medicine, it
research. was soon replaced by what became the single most influential
book on theoretical medicine in the Middle Ages and up to the
Medicine. In the tenth and eleventh centuries, as with as- seventeenth century. This was AI- Qanun jt al- Jioo (The Canon
tronomy, Arabic medicine exhibited tendencies toward empiri- of Medicine) by the celebrated Muslim philosopher and physi-
cal precision, exhaustiveness, and systematization. AI-Ijawz jt cian Ibn Sina (d. 1037). Ibn Sina's magnum opus was written, as
al-Jibo (The Comprehensive Book on Medicine) by Abu Bakr the title indicates, with the intention of producing the definitive
38 BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND 39

canonical work on medicine in terms of both comprehensive- The most important work of Arabic optics is undoubtedly
ness and theoretical rigor. In the book, Ibn Sina provides a co- Kitab al-Mano.;ir by Ibn al-Haytham (d. 1039). The creative ex-
herent and systematic theoretical reflection on inherited medical pansion of optical research in all of its subfields reached a peak
knowledge, starting with anatomy and continuing with physi- under Ibn al-Haytham, who covered in an integrated research
ology, pathology, and therapy. Although he includes many bed- project all .of the traditional themes of optics as well as those
side observations and a few original contributions of a purely invented by his Arabic forerunners. This project effectively
practical nature, Ibn Sina's main achievement is not primarily undermined not only the premise but also the structure of Greek
in the clinical domain. Rather, he produced a unified synthesis optical research. At a basic conceptual level, Ibn al-Haytham re-
of medical knowledge that derived its coherence from the re- jected the Hellenistic theories of vision and introduced a radi-
lentlessly systematic application of logic and theoretical prin- cally different theory. Vision, according to earlier theories, was a
ciples. 74 result of contact between the eye and the object either through
a ray emitted from the eye to the object-as in the extramission
Optics. The Arabs acquired a large body of Hellenistic opti- theories ofEuclid and Ptolemy- or through the transmission of
cal knowledge that covered the physical as well as the geomet- a "form" from the object to the eye, as in the intromission theo-
ric study of vision, the reflection of rays on mirrors (catoptrics), ries of Aristotle and the atomists. Ibn al-Haytham's remarkable
burning mirrors, and such atmospheric phenomena as rainbows. insight was that what is sensed is not the object itself; rather, an
Within two centuries, the field of optics was radically trans- image of the object is formed as a result of the reflection oflight
formed, and Arabic optics acquired the characteristics of a new from the object to the eye. Ibn al-Haytham could thus proceed to
field of study with distinct methodologies and approaches. The study the geometric aspects of the visual cone theories without
first Arabic compositions on optics were in the eighth century. In having to explain at the same time the psychology ofperception.
the ninth came the works ofYu1).anna ibn Masawayh, I:Iunayn ibn He also benefited from advances in the study of the physiology
Is1).aq, Qusta ibn Luqa, and Thabit ibn Qurra. Although ninth- of the eye, thus, in the end, integrating into his theory of vision
century works primarily addressed· physiological optics, they the cumulative results of mathematical, physical, and medical
also treated other subjects, in separate studies: burning mirrors, research. 75
mirror reflections, and geometrical and physical optics. Abu
Is1).aq al-Kindi (d. c. 873) is said to have produced ten treatises
The Invention of New Sciences
on geometrical and physical optics, of which at least four are
extant. Both Qusta ibn Luqa and Al-Kindi adopted a deliberate A distinctive result of the reorganization and cross-application
strategy in their research. To rectify the results in one particular of different sciences to one another was the invention of new
subfield of Hellenistic optics, they drew on other subfields, with sciences. Algebra, as we have seen, was conceived as a new
the intention of combining the geometry and the physiology of science with a distinct subject matter, technical terminology,
vision. methods, and even name. The significance of AI-Khwarizmi's
40 BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND 41

Kitab al-Jabr wal-Muqabala, in addition to its originality, was radicals. Unlike earlier attempts to demonstrate geometrically
in the research it triggered when applied to other branches of equations whose roots are known through algebraic solutions,
mathematics. Starting with Al-Khwarizmi and continuing with the objective of this last research was to find, with the help of
Al-Khayyam (1048-1131) and Al-rusi, several mathematicians geometry, the roots of equations that are not solvable numeri-
were fully aware ofthe utility ofthe cross-fertilization ofmathe- cally. A continuous tradition of partial contributions to this field
matical disciplines and the novelty of this sort of research. They began in the ninth century and culminated in the systematic
concocted unfamiliar titles for their books, coined technical ter- work of Al-Khayyam, who elaborated a geometrical theory for
minology unique to their disciplines, organized their works in first-, second-, and third-degree equations. For all types ofthird-
decidedly novel ways, and invented mathematical algorithms to degree equations, he provides a formal classification according
solve the problems of their disciplines; above all, they came up to the number of terms, then solves the equations by means of
with totally new subjects and mathematical concepts. They did the intersection of two conic sections. 76
not merely restructure Hellenistic mathematical knowledge but Trigonometry was another hybrid mathematical discipline in
created new mathematical disciplines. Such innovations were which Arab scientists enriched and eventually reoriented earlier
made possible by the deliberate and systematic application of scientific knowledge. It was initially developed in conjunction
three mathematical disciplines to each other: algebra, arith- with research in astronomy, but it became a mathematical disci-
metic, and geometry. pline in its own right. Ptolemy's astronomy, it will be recalled,
I have already mentioned Al-Karaj1's systematic applica- was superior in its models, but it rested on elementary geomet-
tion of the laws of arithmetic to algebraic expressions. After Al- rical propositions. Ptolemaic astronomical computations were
Karaji, the central efforts in algebraic research focused on the based on a single function, the chord of a circular arc, and the
arithmetization of algebra, a genre of research that was new in only tool for spherical computation was the Menelaus theorem, a
both content and organization. While the application of arith- cumbersomeformula indicating the relationship between the six
metic to algebra occupied center stage in algebraic research, the segments that result from the intersection of four arcs in a com-
theory of algebraic equations also continued to develop. Thabit plete quadrilateral. Soon after translating Ptolemy and adopt-
ibn Qurra provided systematic geometrical interpretations of ing his models, Arab astronomers augmented his geometry with
algebraic procedures and explained quadratic equations geo- the powerful sine function of Indian trigonometry and, in the
metrically. Other mathematicians attempted to do the reverse ninth century, introduced the tangent function. The emergence
and explain geometrical problems in algebraic terms. Aware of of trigonometry as an independent science, however, required
the difficulty of solving cubic equations by using radicals and two additional developments: first, identifying the spherical tri-
demonstrating such solutions geometrically, AI-Mahani (ninth angle as the object of study as opposed to the calculus of chords
century) introduced the first algebraic formulation of a solid on the spherical quadrilateral; and second, including the angles
problem. Mathematicians then increasingly resorted to conic of triangles in the refocused calculus and not just the sides. The
sections to solve cubic equations that could not be solved with first accounts ofthe ,spherical triangle appeared by the end of the
42 BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND 43

tenth century. Already in the eleventh century, all six relations more than 150 sources and lists more than 2,000 simples in alpha-
of the right-angled triangle appeared in various texts, including, betical order. Ibn al-BaY1ar brings together all the accumulated
among others, Maqalld 'JIm al-Hay'a by Al-Bironi:. In the thir- knowledge ofthe numerous inherited traditions and adds to it his
teenth century, Al-Tusi: wrote the first treatise on trigonometry own knowledge and experiences. He gives the names of simple
without reference to astronomy, thus confirming the creation of medicines in all the written languages known to him, includ-
another independent discipline. ing several local dialects. He also succeeds in finding the Arabic
The science of weights developed in much the same way. names of almost all of the simples listed in the work of Diosco-
The Arabs inherited a number of Hellenistic theoretical studies rides (first century CE). Ibn al-BaY1ar's method of research is as
on geometrical statics, including, among other subjects, the significant as the results of the research. Following the lead of
mathematical study of the laws of equilibrium, the concept of a Dioscorides and several Arab botanists, among them his own
center of gravity, and hydrostatic studies of the equilibrium of teacher, Ibn al-BaY1ar traveled to North Africa, Greece, Anato-
bodies in liquids. They also inherited practical studies of simple lia, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Arabia, and finally Egypt, conducting on-
machines for lifting and moving bodies. As in the other sciences, site research in all these places. He settled in Egypt, where he
one of the main trends in Arabic statics was the systematic use was appointed head pharmacist of the country, but he continued
of inherited as well as new mathematical techniques, especially to conduct field trips to Syria to collect new data and verifY
algebra. This enabled both a generalization of Greek statics and earlier findings. Like many other contributions in this field, Ibn
the invention of new fields within the discipline. In particular, al-BaY1ar's AI-]ami' illustrates at once the tendency to synthe-
the use ofa dynamic approach to the study ofstatics - itselfa re- size and the tendency to rely on observation for the expansion of
sult of the systematic application of new mathematical skills- scientific knowledge.79
led to the emergence of the science of weights, which provided Ibn al-BaY1ar's descriptions are extremely accurate, but the
the new theoretical foundation for the science of mechanics. 77 primary purpose ofhis book was medical. Another work, by Abu
The application of this dynamic approach to hydrostatics, as re- al-~bas al-Ishbi:li: (d. 1239) entitled AI-Ri~la al-Mashriqiyya
flected in Al-Khazinl's study of the motions of bodies in fluids, (The Eastern Journey), has a purely botanical focus. The book
led to the emergence of the new field of hydrodynamics. 78 is lost, but Ibn al-BaY1ar quotes it in full in more than one hun-
Equally important developments came in the field of phar- dred entries. Unlike works that contain botanical information
macology. In the twelfth century, several encyclopedic works on but whose authors were ultimately interested in the medical use
pharmacology were compiled by such scientists as Abu Ja'far of plants, Al-Ishbi:li:'s book expressed his purely botanical inter-
al-Ghafiqi: and Abu al-:Abbas al-Nabatl. The culminating work ests. Although he was a famous physician, Al-Ishbl1i: provides
was the great synthesis by Ibn al-BaY1ar (d. 1248), Al-]ami' li- meticulous descriptions of plants as plants, not as medicines.
Mufradat al-Adwiya wal-Aghdhiya (The Dictionary of Simple His work illustrates the familiar process, seen in the subfields of
Medicines and Foods). The most complete treatise of applied mathematics, through which new disciplines emerged as a result
botany produced in the Middle Ages, it draws information from of the expansion and systematization of older ones.
44 BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND 45

The Epistemological Rehabilitation of sort. Right from the beginning, utilitarian considerations pro-
Practical Knowledge vided incentives for the pursuit of science. Practical needs in-
cluded land surveying, inheritance algebra, irrigation technolo-
The invention of numerous new scientific disciplines did not
gies, calendar computations, and timekeeping, in addition to
result solely from the cross-fertilization of different theoretical
medicine and related sciences. Some of the earliest scientists and
sciences but owed much as well to the attitude toward practical
patrons of science-such as the Banil Milsa brothers (ninth cen-
skills and knowledge that derived from them. The Greek atti-
tury), leading members of the social and political elite affiliated
tude toward crafts and practical knowledge is best expressed in
with the 'Abbasids-wete involved in public projects in which
a reference in Plutarch's Lives to Archimedes, whose machines
practical scientific knowledge could be deployed, and also com-
helped destroy Marcellus's fleet when it was attempting to cap-
missioned a large number of translations and composed works
ture Syracuse. Plutarch says: "These machines he had designed
in such fields as mathematics. In a telling indication that no dis-
and contrived, not as matters of any importance, but as mere
tinction was made between practical and theoretical knowledge,
amusements in geometry; in compliance with King Hiero's
the earliest extant book on automatic machines was composed
desire and request, some little time before, that he should reduce
by the Banil Milsa.81
to practice some part ofhis admirable speculation in science, and
The list of practical disciplines officially recognized as sci-
by accommodating the theoretic truth to sensation and ordinary
ences is long, and it provides further evidence for a distinct
use, bring it more within the appreciation of the people in gen-
Islamic attitude toward practical knowledge. These disciplines
era1." In the same reference, Plutarch talks about "plato's indig-
had separate, often completely new titles; scientists did not shy
nation" over practical crafts and his invectives against them as
away from composing numerous books on these subjects; they
"the mere corruption and annihilation of the one good of ge-
often defended the epistemological value of their knowledge;
ometry, which was thus shamefully turning its back upon the
and the classifications of science genre that proliferated in Mus-
unembodied objects of pure intelligence to recur to sensation,
lim societies almost invariably listed these practical disciplines as
and to ask help (not to be obtained without base supervisions
full-fledged sciences. Below are a few examples.
ahd depravation) from matter; so it was that mechanics came to
The science of mechanical devices ( 'ilm al-1:Liyal) drew on a
be separated from geometry, and, repudiated and neglected by
rich Greek tradition, including the work of Archimedes. What is
philosophers, took its place as a military art." 80
noteworthy in the Arabic tradition is the unapologetic promo-
With the exception of some staunch Hellenists, people in
tion ofthe use oftechnical lore to the level ofscience and then its
Muslim societies took an attitude toward practical crafts and
development into what, for all practical purposes, was mechani-
knowledge that was fundamentally different from the Greeks'.
cal engineering. Early descriptions of mechanical devises were
In a culture that ascribes the highest value to the legal religious
strictly schematic: diagrams were used to illustrate the theory
sciences, which are quintessentially practical, there was little
underlying a device, not to provide information on its construc-
room for a negative attitude toward practical sciences of any
tion or dimensions. The first book that can be considered a me-
46 BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND 47

chanical engineering handbook was Kitab ft A1a 'rifiu al-ljiyal eral treatises, written on quantity-surveying methods, provided
al-Handasiyya by AI-Jazan (c. 1200).82 In addition to providing detailed instructions for the management of the construction of
schematic illustrations of how machines work, the book gives large-scale irrigation systems.
detailed instructions on the dimensions of their various parts, the The agricultural sciences were pursued with great success
materials to be used and their treatment (for example, lamina- in AI-Andalus (now Spain). In the numerous works written on
tion to prevent wrapping), casting techniques, and information agronomy, scientists emphasize relying on practical knowledge
on finishing, calibration, and priming procedures. In short, the in deriving the principles (mabiidi') of this science. Those who
book provides all the information needed to manufacture par- rely solely on the pure philosophical tradition are pejoratively
ticular machines - not only to understand the way they work. referred to as imitators (muqallidiin) because they do not ground
Some elaborate and detailed guidelines for the application their assertions on knowledge derived from practice (tajrlb). In
of technological know-how are preserved in the field of irriga:.. many instances where the flaws ofthe philosophical agricultural
tion engineering. Numerous irrigation methods were inherited tradition are pointed out, authors insist that to have sound foun-
from the ancient agrarian-based Near Eastern societies. The dations, the science of agriculture ought to combine theoretical
Muslims in tum supported intensive agricultural development knowledge with knowledge that derives from manual work, on
projects. Arabic chronicles provide considerable information on the one hand, and with experimentation that provides defini-
the scale and significance of projects initiated by the Umayyads, tive proof (burhiin), on the other hand. In one source, the ideal
the ~basids, and others. These projects were crucial for devel- specialists in the science of agriculture are called philosopher-
oping the economies of Muslim societies and providing for the peasants (hulcamii' al-fallii!J.rn).83
needs of newly established cities or expanded older ones. Many In the mathematical sciences and astronomy, several prac-
irrigation projects were massive in scale: they often involved the tical disciplines were established and became permanent fea-
building of dams to control and regulate the flow of rivers, the tures of the scientific landscape. Practical astronomical prob-
use ofwater-raising machines to transfer water for irrigation and lems occupied numerous astronomers who were responsible for
water supply, and the building of extensive networks of canals significant advances in both theoretical and practical branches
and qanats to divert water to places where it was needed. Highly of the field. Some of these problems had to do with the prac-
advanced technical and administrative skills were needed to tical needs of society, such as finding the location of one place
construct and manage large-scale irrigation and water supply with respect to another, which requires determining longitudes
projects. One Arabic chronicler reports that a tenth-century and latitudes as well as invoking other aspects of mathematical
supervisor of the irrigation system of the city of Marv and its geography. Other, specifically Islamic problems were related to
environs was in charge of the more than ten thousand workers worship: determining the times of prayer, the times of sunrise
who built, maintained, and controlled the system. Specialized and sunset (related to times offasting), the direction ofthe qibla,
technical skills-for surveying and excavating canals, for ex- and the visibility of the crescent moon (to verify the beginnings
ample - were also developed in connection with irrigation. Sev- of the lunar months). Calendar computations were also needed
48 BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND 49

to determine the correspondence between the astronomical year as sciences, thereby establishing a stable unity of theory and
and the rounded calendrical year. Everything from simple ap- practice.85 One effect of this promotion of practical knowledge
proximative techniques to complex mathematical ones was used was the increasing professionalization of science as a whole,
to solve these problems. Complex theoretical analysis often went which accompanied the incr-easing emphasis on the alliance of
far beyond the initial scope of the examined problems. Many science with practical disciplines. In my view, one of the most
of the Islamic astronomical problems were treated in the new important outcomes of this shift was the dramatic expansion of
science of timekeeping ('ilm al-miqat), whose status as a full- the consumer base of scientific knowledge. The tacit knowledge
fledged science was never questioned. 84 needed to understand the sciences was now shared by signifi-
As we might have expected, medicine was another area cantly larger sectors of the intellectual elite of Muslim societies.
where the practical and the theoretical intersected. An important The sciences were now dealing with problems that punctuated
focus in Arabic medicine was on expanding empirical medical every aspect of the daily lives of Muslims.
knowledge-especially clinical or case medicine-and practi- We have already seen in the example of the qibla how dis-
cal procedures for .treatment, as opposed to making theoretical cussion was conducted at various levels, thereby allowing large
reflections on illness and health. One of the greatest representa- groups of people to take part. The seemingly random use of old
tives of this trend is Abu Bakr al-Razi. In his prolific writings, as well as new mathematical methods in the solution of astro-
Al-Razi generated theoretical criticism of inherited medical nomical problems also illustrates this trend. The same author
knowledge. More important than his criticism, however, was his may have used an archaic method in one place and an advanced
focus on method and practice. Throughout his works, AI-Razi method in another. Al-Birlini, for example, used both the old,
stresses observational diagnosis and therapy more than he does cumbersome Menelaus theorem and the new, elegant sine rule
the theoretical diagnosis ofillnesses and their cures. He typically in several solutions of the problem of the direction of the qibla.
surveys all of the available medical knowledge, then provides Simultaneous use of different mathematical procedures can be
a critical review on the basis of his own practice. His experi- attributed neither to the slow dissemination of scientific knowl-
ence as a clinician was undoubtedly wide and rich, acquired in edge nor to the limited circulation of this knowledge. There is
the course of a long career as the head of hospitals in Rayy and ample evidence of a high degree of mobility and efficient and
Baghdad. Some of AI-Razi's most original writings also derive speedy communication among scientists working in various re-
from this lifelong work. His Kitab ft al-Jada;z wal-lj~ba is the gions of the Muslim world. Al-Bironi himself did not travel to
first thorough account of the diagnosis of and treatment meth- Baghdad, but he apparently corresponded with colleagues there
ods for smallpox and measles and the differences between their and was fully aware of scientific developments there and else-
symptoms. What characterizes the book is its focus on clinical where. Contrary to what the use of different methods may at first
and not theoretical issues. suggest, it was likely a result of the increasing diffusion of sci-
These and many other examples illustrate the tendency to entific knowledge among the educated elites. Within the broad
correlate theoretical and practical knowledge and to treat crafts ranks of these elites, "full-time" scientists were expected to keep
50 BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND BEGINNINGS AND BEYOND 51

up with the latest research in their fields, while scholars with a in the ninth century and continued unabated for many centuries
partial interest in science would be familiar only with older theo- thereafter. 89 Other examples can be found in the tradition of re-
ries and methods. The use of a variety of mathematical methods forming Ptolemaic astronomy that started in the eleventh cen-
thus indicates the degree to which scientific culture had filtered tury and continued until at least the sixteenth and spanned most
into society and the extent to which it had become available to of the Islamic world. A definite and continuous research agenda
average members of the educated class.86 guided the research of all the major theoretical astronomers,
who read and commented on each other's work and in some
cases even assembled to conduct joint research. 90
Communities of Scientific Knowledge
Similarly, research on the disciplines of Arabic mathemat-
Demonstrably, the culture of science struck deep roots in clas- ics has revealed that for each instance of a seemingly isolated
sical Muslim societies. Various developments contributed to the scientific breakthrough, there were in fact precedents and suc-
transformation of science from a peripheral, elitist activity (as cessors and an associated community of interested scholars and
it had been in earlier societies) to an institutionalized activity intellectuals. More than any other scholar, Roshdi Rashed has
with an unprecedented scale of social support and participa- systematically explored the various mathematical sciences and
tion. One aspect of the centrality of scientific culture was the established the continuities in each and every one of the disci-
existence of actual communities of scientists, who, as we have plines. He illustrates, for instance, how AI-Khayyam's monu-
seen, had a sense of collective, professional identity. But more mental contribution to the theory of algebraic equations was not
important than this collective sense of identity were the shared isolated, as is often asserted in general surveys of the history of
codes of practice, canons of study, and research agendas and mathematics. Rashed shows how AI-Khayyam's work built on
projects, both empirical and theoretical, within the fields of the earlier tradition of algebraic research and constituted only
specialization. the beginning of a long and continuous tradition that was fur-
I underscore this point because so much earlier work on the ther transformed, half a century later, by Sharaf aI-Din al-Tiisi
history of Islamic science accepts that most of the original dis- (twelfth century). In its analytic approach, the work of AI-Tiisi
coveries and contributions were isolated occurrences or happy on equations marked yet another beginning in the discipline
guesses that had no impact on their Islamic environment and of algebraic geometry: the study of curves by means of equa-
were appreciated only in Latin Europe. In the past few decades, tions.91
this thesis has been largely undermined by the foundational re- Communities of scholars that include not only first-class
search ofpublished historians ofIslamic science, but it continues mathematicians but also commentators of lesser reputation, as
to inform the discussions ofgeneral historians of science.87 Now, well as scholars working in other fields, contributed to the cre-
research provides compelling evidence for the continuity and ation and diffusion of a multitude of mathematical traditions.
coherence ofthe Arabic scientific traditions. 88 I have already re- For every celebrated scientist known to have conducted rigor-
ferred to the collaborative observational activities that started ous research in any field of science, many more practitioners