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In the Western World, a Muslim and Arab became synonymous thus confusion has risen amongst some non-specialized sources. This is starting to change, but at one point in the history of Western scholarship, the term Muslim and Arab were used interchangeably, although more 80% of Muslims today are not of Arab origin. Some of these scholars like Al-Khwarizmi, Rhazes wrote their works in Arabic only while others like Biruni and Avicenna wrote in both Persian and Arabic. I would note that there is a difference between scientific writing and say cultural writing: poetry. Poetry and language/culture are tied together and thus regardless of a background, a poet belong to the language/culture where his masterpiece was created. This is the case with say Pushkin, an important Russian poet and writer. But a scientific language is different than a cultural language. For example Latin was used by both Newton and Leibnitz, but they are not called Latin scholars. Of course the situation in the Muslim world at times might be more confusing and then the title Muslim scholar suffices. On the other hand, many times, it was not so.

This page is written for the purpose of clarifying the background of Muhammad Ibn Musa Al-Khwarizmi (about 780-850 A.D.). There is a special field of Mathematics called History of Mathematics. Within that field, there are a few Professors who specialize in the period of Islamic Mathematics. These professors have an excellent background on both the culture/history of the given time period as well as the Mathematics involved (which is now fairly thought in the High School level although the CRT (Chinese Remainder Theorem)(and many others) despite their antiquity are mainly college level materials).

Modern Opinion and Ibn Khaldun

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Professor Oaks

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An important article on Khwarizmi was recently written by Professor. Oaks. I have went through the modern sources recently, and amongst these modern sources, this well researched source by a Professor of Mathematical History specializing in the history of Mathematics in the Islamic era is noteworthy: [[3]] He also has an extensive website on the history of Islamic Mathematics [4]. Although the term Islamic Mathematics is not a term I like (just like I do not like Chinese or Indian or Western Mathematics, since Mathematics is valid irregardless of such appelatation).


Professor J. Oaks writes:

(http://facstaff.uindy.edu/~oaks/MHMC.htm, Access Date March 2, 2008)

I also wrote to Professor Oaks that in Wikipedia at that time there was a debate on the issue. He wrote back:

The above E-mail was received on 21 June , 2006 and was forwarded to Admin Khoikhoi who I met at around time and who was involved in mediating the article. The actual E-mail is still available for anyone interested.

Professor Berggren, an important response from an important person

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Professor Berggren [5][6] is a very well known mathematician and a scholar of mathematical history specializing in the history of Mathematics in the Islamic era. He also has a very interesting article: (LEN BERGGREN, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC V5A 1S6 Creating Mathematics Textbooks in the Thirteenth Century: The Case of Nasir al-Din al-Tusi and Aristarchos of Samos)[7].


On March 12, 2006, I wrote an E-mail to Professor Berggren:

He wrote back on March 21, 2006:

The e-mail was forwarded to user Admin Khoikhoi in Wikipedia on Dec 3, 2006 and is still available for anyone interested. I am honored to be called a Professor (but I am not one, at least not yet and did not call myself one :) ), but in reality I am just another Doctor of Philosophy. Anyhow, the above response shows that the honorable Professor, after delving more into his research , became aware of the fact that Al-Khwarizmi like many others mathematicians who contributed to the Islamic Golden age were of Iranian background.

Professor Frye

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Source: The Golden age of Persia by Richard N. Frye, Professor of Iranian, Harvard university Weidenfeld and Nicolson, London 1975 Professor Richard (Emeritus) was a Professor of Iranian and Middle Eastern studies at Harvard University.


pages 161-162:

Ibn Khaldun

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From the same book by Professor Frye:


Regional background

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The region of Chorasmia before its Turkification was an Iranian speaking region with a long developed civilization. A comprehensive article on Chorasmia can be found in here[1]. Both Encyclopedia Iranica and Encyclopedia of Islam entry on Chorasmia are very well done. Another important article is about the Al-e-Afrigh dynasty. They were native Iranian Chorasmian rulers of the area[2] until the Ghaznavid period. See here for the actual article: [8]

I have also noted some facts about the Iranian Chorasmian language and culture in [9].

In Athar al-Baqqiyah (Chronology of Nations), the Persian-Chorasmian writer Biruni in his chronology of the ancient nations states states[3]:

Biruni was a native of the region living approximately 200 years after Khwarizmi. Which shows that the inhabitants of Khwarizm were still speaking the Old Iranian Chorasmian language. He has recorded some of the names, months and festivals in the Old Iranian Chorasmian language. There are also some other manuscripts in the Old Chorasmian language.

I also quote the late eminent linguist Professor David Mackenzie on the old Iranian Chorasmian Language:

.


The historian Tabari (a generation after Khwarizmi)

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The earliest evidence at hand about Al-Khwarizmi is from Tabari (born around 839 A.D.) who lived one generation after Al-Khawarizmi. Tabari mentions his name in passage(accessed from www.al-waraq.com):

وذكر أنه لما اعتلّ علته التي مات فيها وسقى بطنه أمر بإحضار المنجمّين، فأحضروا؛ وكان ممن حضر الحسن بن سهل، أخو الفضل بن سهل، والفضل بن إسحاق الهاشميّ وإسماعيل بن نوبخت ومحمد بن موسى الخوارزميّ المجوسيّ القطربّليّ وسند صاحب محمد بن الهيثم وعامة من ينظر في النجوم، فنظروا في علّته ونجمه ومولده، فقالوا: يعيش دهراً طويلاً، وقدّ روا له خمسين سنة مستقبلة؛ فلم يلبث إلا عشرة أيام حتى مات

The full name given by Tabari is: Muhammad ibn Musa Al-Khawarazmi Al-Majoosi Al-Qutrubbuli (Qutrub was a district near Baghdad). The significance of this passage is the title Al-Majoosi (Zoroastrian) given here to him by Tabari. This would be a clear indicator of his Iranian background. In the preface of his Algebra (if effectively written by himself) shows him a pious Muslim. If we take the preface, then Tabari’s designation could mean also that his ancestors, and perhaps Khwarizmi in his youth, had been Zoroastrian. It would also connect it with Biruni statements about the Zoroastrians of Chorasmia, specially during the time of Qotayba b. Moslem in 93/712 A.D..(See his Athar).

Note Tabari is the oldest source on al-Khwarizmi we probably posses and given that they lived in the same time, it would probably be the most accurate.


Ibn Nadeem

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Ibn-Nadeem ( 930-990 A.D) an important biographer of Muslim scholars in his Al-Fihrist mentions:

الخوارزمي واسمه محمد بن موسى وأصله من خوارزم وكان منقطعاً إلى خزانة الحكمة للمأمون وهو من أصحاب علوم الهيئة وكان الناس قبل الرصد وبعده يعولون على زيجيه الأول والثاني ويعرفان بالسند هند وله من الكتب كتاب الزلزيج نسختين أولى وثانية كتاب الرخامة كتاب العمل بالاسطرلابات كتاب عمل الإسطرلاب كتاب التاريخ سند .

The important passage here translates to "His Asl( origin, root, background) is from Khawarazm(Chorasmia))".

This again shows the Iranian background of Khwrizmi who was from Chorasmia and of course his name is a testament to that.

Khwarizmi and his use of the Persian calendar

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A well known fact is Abu al-Qasim Muslamah ibn Ahmand known as al-Majriti worked on the table of Khwarizmi and changed its dates from the Persian to the Solar calendar[4][5].

This shows that Al-Khawarzmi used Persian dates and calendar in his astronomical tables. The general Iranian calendars (Iran proper, Zoroastrian, Chorasmian and Sogdian) had a specific name for each day of the month and a specific name for each month. So over all, a unique combination (with ordering) of around 12*30 names shows up in these calendars. The reason for the conversion to Hijri calendar might be because of its wider usage and its simplicity (only 12 names of the month and the number of day is required).

Conclusion

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Al-Khawarazmi was of an Iranian background and his origin lies in the advanced civilization of Chorasmia. We should also mention that Baghdad was a very cosmopolitan city (note its name is actually Persian) and many Iranian scientists as well Arabs were working together to create the great Islamic cultural renaissances which occurred during the Abbassids under Nawbakht, Barmakids, Harun ar-Rashid and other notable figures. Al-Khawarazmi is from Khawarazm (Chorasmia) (Ibn Nadeem and as his name indicates), Biruni another native Chorasmian mentions that the people of Khawarazm are a branch Persians, there is sufficient evidence on the Iranian dialect spoken in the Zoroastrian Chorasmia (Iranica article) and a title Al-Majoosi (Zoroastrian) by Tabari (indicating his ancestry). Also we have the fact that he used Persian dates in his table instead of Arabic and Hijrah dates and was at ease with this. His astronomical table was used by the Muslim world and up to the revision of his table by Al-Majiriti, it was based on a Persian calendar. The role of Zoroastrian and Indian astrology and astronomy in the Islamic era is well known. Al-Khwarizmi was one of the first to bring Zoroastrian/Indian astrology/astronomy into the Islamic world.


Notes

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  1. ^ http://www.iranica.com/newsite/articles/v5f5/v5f5a015.html Encyclopedia Iranica, "The Chorasmian Language", D.N.Mackenzie]
  2. ^ "Al-e-Afrigh" in the Encylopedia Iranica by C. E. Bosworth
  3. ^ Abu Rahyan Biruni, "Athar al-Baqqiya 'an al-Qurun al-Xaliyyah"(Vestiges of the past : the chronology of ancient nations), Tehran, Miras-e-Maktub, 2001
  4. ^ Heydari-Malayeri, M. 2007, The Persian-Toledan Astronomical Connection and the European Renaissance, Academia Europaea 19th Annual Conference in cooperation with: Sociedad Estatal de Conmemoraciones Culturales, Ministerio de Cultura (Spain) "The Dialogue of Three Cultures and our European Heritage" (Toledo Crucible of the Culture and the Dawn of the Renaissance) 2 - 5 September 2007 Toledo, Spain. Chair, Organizing Committee: Prof. Manuel G. Velarde. Available here: [1]
  5. ^ Sharif, M. M., A History of Muslim Philosophy [Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 1963] see Google books [2] (in google books type in Persian Khwarizmi Majriti lunar astronomical tables)