Muslim Scientists and their Achievements

1. Muslim Scientists

2. AL-KHAWARIZMI(780-847)
Great muslim mathematician, astronomer, historian, geographer and musician.
First person who used zero
Composed oldest works on algebra and astronomical tables
Systematized the Greek and Hindu mathematical knowledge
Introduced the method of counting based on numerals and decimal systems for
the first time
Wrote famous book named Hisab-al-jabar wal Muqabla in which he gave analytical
solutions of quadratic and linear equations .This book was used as principal mathematical
textbook, until the 16th century by European universities.
Composed his own astronomical tables known as Zijj (ZJ), which became a
model for astronomical pursuits in East and West.
Kitab-surat-al-ard was a geography book in which he gave an idea about the
shape of the earth

3. Jabir Ibn Hayyan(721-815)
Father of modern chemistry
Prepared large number of important chemicals like
NITRIC ACID,
HYDROCHLORIC ACID,
SULPHURIC ACID,
WHITE LEAD etc.
Introduced new chemical techniques and processes like
Calcination,
Reduction,
Sublimation,
Distillation,
Melting,
Crystallization etc.
Gave a sound theory on Geological formation of metals.
Prepared basic lead, arsenic, antimony and carbonate from their sulphides.
He also dealt with refinement of metals, preparation of steel,

4. Ibn Al Haitham
 Born at Basrah in A.D. (975-1039)
 Mathematician, physicst and optician
Major contributions
 He is more known for his optical works which were translated in Latin
 Explained the refraction of light rays through transparent objects
 Discovered magnifying lenses
 Function of retina as the seat of vision
 First scientist who elaborated two laws of Reflection of light
 Pinhole camera was contructed by him
 He was the first person who declared that Light is a form of energy.
 Identified Gravity as a force
 His fame lies in his book Kitab-al-manazir which is on optics.

5. IBN-E-SINA(980-1037)
He was born in 980 C.E. at Afshana, near Bukhara.
He was the most famous muslim physician, philosopher, encyclopedist, mathematician
and astronomer of his time.
His major contribution to medical science was his famous book
Al-Qanoon, known as the “Canon” in the West.
The Qanun fi al-Tibb is an immense encyclopedia of Medicine extending over a million
words. In addition the book described 760 drugs.
His contribution includes recognition of the contagious nature of phthisis and
tuberculosis; distribution of diseases by water and soil and interaction between
psychology and health.
He made rich contributions to Anatomy, Gynecology and child health.
In Physics his contribution comprised the study of different forms of energy, heat, light
and mechanical and such concepts as force, vacuum and infinity, specific gravity and use
of air thermo-meter.

6. Al BIRUNI (973-1048)
Major Contributions
 Explained the problems of advanced trigonometry
 Gave theory that light travels faster than sound
 Described and explained fully the concept of longitude and latitude
 He gave idea that earth is not stationary but rotate on its axis
 He learned Sanskarit language in order to investigate Indian knowledge
 He accurately determined the weight of 18 stones in physics
Books
 Tahqiq Al Hind (about history and social conditions of India in 11th century)
 Kitab Al Jawahar (book of gems and stones of different types)
 Qanun Al Masudi

7. AL-RAZI (RHAZES)(864-930 C.E.)
“FATHER OF PAEDIATRICS”
AL-HAWI is a most monumental work of him.
It is the most comprehensive encyclopedia of medicine in 20 volumes.
He was first to used animal for surgical operations .
He was first to used Opium as anesthetic during surgery .
First to classify substances into vegetables, animals and minerals.
He correctly described the physiology of the heart and the function of its valves.
Treatise on the venous system,accurately describing the function of the veins and
their valves,
He became the first to draw clear comparison between smallpox and chicken-
pox.
Kitab al-Mansoori dealt exhaustively with Greco-Arab medicine. He compounded
medicines and designed several instruments used in chemical investigations.
Kitab al-Asrar deals with the preparation of chemical materials and their utilization.
He paved way for organic and inorganic Chemistry. He was the first to produce sulphuric
acid and prepared alcohol by fermenting sweet products.

8. Ibn Al Naafis (12th century CE)
Reputed physician and a renowned expert on shafi'i school of jurisprudence
Discover pulmonary blood circulation, which was rediscovered three centuries
later
First to describe the constitution of lungs, bronchi, and the coronary arteries
Elaborated the function of the coronary arteries as feeding the cardiac
muscle

9. Ibn Al-Baitar (12th century)
Great Spanish muslim Botanist and Pharmacist .
He Classified and gave names of plants kingdom over which modern
botany is based
Gathered herbs and new plants from spain to Syria and extracted
medicines from them.
Laid foundation of herbal medicines. His work was considered as
authority in plants.
Kitab AL-Jami Fi Adwiya Al Mughani
( 20 chapters dealing with diseases of head, ear, cosmetics and fever)
Kitab AL-Jami Fi Adwiya Al Mufzada
(encyclopedia in Botany in which 1400 medical drugs are described)

10. NASEER AL-DIN AL-TUSI
(1201-1274 A.D.)
He was born in Tus (Khurasan) in 1201 A.D.
He was one of the greatest muslim scientists, philosophers, mathematicians,
astronomers, theologians and physicians of the time and was a prolific writer.
He wrote several treatises on different sciences and subjects including
Geometry, Algebra, Arithmetic, Trigonometry, Medicine, Metaphysics,
Logic, Ethics and Theology.
In addition he wrote poetry in Persian.
In Mathematics, his major contribution would seem to be in trigonometry,
which was compiled by him as a new subject in its own right for the first time.
Also he developed the subject of spherical trigonometry, including six
fundamental formulas for the solution of spherical right-angled
triangles.
As the chief scientist of the observatory established under his supervision at
Maragha, he made significant contributions to Astronomy. The observatory was
equipped with the best possible instruments. He himself invented an
instrument “turquet” that contained two planes.
His book Akhlaq e Nasr became the most important work on ethics. And
Tajrid al-Aqaid was well known contribution on Islamic scholastic Philosophy.

11. Al Idrisi
(1099-1166, Ceuta –Spain)
He collected plants and data not reported earlier and added this to the
subject of botany, with special reference to medicinal plants. Thus, a large
number of new drugs plants together with their evaluation became available to the
medical practitioners.
He has given the names of the drugs in six languages:
Syriac, Greek, Persian, Hindi, Latin and Berber.
His book: ‘Nuzhat al-Mushtaq fi Ikhtiraq al-Afaq,’ is a geographical
encyclopedia (The Delight of Him Who Desires to Journey Through the Climates)
In 1166 Al-Idrisi, built a large global map He meticulously recorded on it the
seven continents with trade routes, lakes and rivers, major cities, and plains and
mountains.
Al-Idrisi’s books were translated into Latin and became the standard books on
geography for three centuries, both in the east and west.

12. Sind ibn Ali-Musa
Died after 864
He was a renowned Sindhi Muslim astronomer, translator,
mathematician and engineer.
Sind ibn Alī traveled to Baghdad and received the best educationʿ
available.
He had translated and modified the Zij al-Sindhind first astronomical
table ever introduced in the Muslim World.
He calculated the Diameter of the Earth and other astronomical bodies.
The Decimal point notation to the Arabic numerals was introduced by
Sind ibn Ali.

13. Al-KindiAl-Kindi (801-873)(801-873)
Contributed in the fields of music, meteorology, and optics.Contributed in the fields of music, meteorology, and optics.
Most important work was on reflection of light
Discussed music from scientific point of view.Discussed music from scientific point of view.
Worked onWorked on geometrical optics
Explained theExplained the laws related to gravitational fall of the bodies ,
The Sphere is the Largest of Bodily FormsThe Sphere is the Largest of Bodily Forms
That the Surface of the Sea is Spherical; Calculating the Azimuth on a SphereThat the Surface of the Sea is Spherical; Calculating the Azimuth on a Sphere
Projection of Rays;Projection of Rays; An Explanation of the Cause of the Retrogression of the
Stars;
The Reason Why Rain Rarely Falls in Certain Places; Areas of Vaulted ChambersThe Reason Why Rain Rarely Falls in Certain Places; Areas of Vaulted Chambers
Determination of the Hours on a Hemisphere by Means of Geometry
The Reason Why the Highest Part of the Sky is Cold, While Near the Earth is WarmThe Reason Why the Highest Part of the Sky is Cold, While Near the Earth is Warm
The Reasons for Cloud Formations; Calculation and Making an Instrument
to Determine the Distances of Heavenly Bodies,

14. Abdul Qasim Al- Zahrawi
Born in A.D. 936 in SPAIN
Major contributions
Was a great Spanish Muslim Surgeon and Dentist.
Invented many surgical appliances, never known before like
Instrument for internal examina-tion of the ear, urethra, and
Instrument for applying or removing foreign bodies from the throat.
He performed surgery of eye, ear and throat.
He could very successfully set an artificial tooth in place of diseased.
He performed cauterization, removal of stone from the bladder and dissection of
animals.
He wrote famous Medical Ecyclopaedia called Al-Tasrif, which is composed of thirty
volumes covering different aspects of medical science.

15. ALI IBN RABBAN AL-TABARIALI IBN RABBAN AL-TABARI Born in 838 .Born in 838 .
He wroteHe wrote Firdous al-HikmatFirdous al-Hikmat first ever Medical encyclopaedia.first ever Medical encyclopaedia.
Spread over seven parts, which incorporates all the branches of medical science.Spread over seven parts, which incorporates all the branches of medical science.
It throws light on principles formed the basis of medical science.It throws light on principles formed the basis of medical science.
Elucidation of the organs of the human body. Rules for keeping good health.Elucidation of the organs of the human body. Rules for keeping good health.
Description of diet to be taken in conditions of health and disease.Description of diet to be taken in conditions of health and disease.
All diseases right from head to toe.All diseases right from head to toe.
General causes relating to eruption of diseases.General causes relating to eruption of diseases.
Diseases of the head and the brain,eye, nose, ear, mouth and the teeth.Diseases of the head and the brain,eye, nose, ear, mouth and the teeth.
Diseases of the regions of the chest, throat and the lungs.Diseases of the regions of the chest, throat and the lungs.
Diseases of the abdomen,the liver,gallbladder and spleen.Diseases of the abdomen,the liver,gallbladder and spleen.
Different kinds of fever. Examination of pulse and urine.Different kinds of fever. Examination of pulse and urine.
Description of flavour, taste and colour. Drugs and poison.Description of flavour, taste and colour. Drugs and poison.

16. Al-Jurjani 1088 C.E
Abu Ruh Muhammad Ibn Mansur Bin Abdullah Al-Jurjani,
an excellent surgeon from Persia who flourished around 1088 C.E.,
He wrote a book, entitled Nûr-ul-'Uyûn (The Light of the Eyes).
The book, consists of ten chapters.
In the seventh chapter he describes some 30-eye operations including 3 types
of cataract operation.
He also deals with anatomy and physiology of the eye and eye diseases.
One chapter is devoted to eye diseases which can be seen such as
cataract, trachoma, scleral and corneal diseases and problems of the eyelids.
Another chapter deals with diseases that lie hidden, third nerve paralysis, blood
disorders, toxicity.
The book mentions curable and incurable diseases and gives methods of treatment.
A large section is about surgery of the eye.

17. Al-Jazari: The Mechanical Genius (1136-1206)
Al-Jazari described fifty mechanical devices in six different categories, including water
clocks, hand washing device (wudhu' machine) and machines for raising water, etc.
Al-Jazari developed the earliest water supply system to be driven
by gears and hydropower . He also invented automatic gates driven by hydropower.
Al-Jazari constructed a variety of water clocks and candle clocks.
He also invented monumental water-powered astronomical clocks which
displayed moving models of the Sun, Moon, and stars.
Al-Jazari invented a method for controlling the speed of rotation of a wheel
using an escapement mechanism. He described the first suction pipes,
suction pump, double-action pump, and made early uses of valves and
a crankshaft-connecting rod mechanism

18. Banu Musa brothers
BANU MUSA, the name applied to three brothers, Abbasid astronomers whose
father was Musa b. Saker.
They Discovered Gravity
They also measured the length of a year to be 365 days and 6 hours.
They Calculated circumference of Earth
The Banū Mūsā brothers write the Book of Ingenious Devices, in which they describe
their following inventions:
valve, float valve,
feedback controller,
float chamber,
automatic control,
Automatic flute player,
Programmable machine,
Trick drinking vessels,
gas mask, grab, clamshell grab,
fail-safe system, hurricane lamp,
self-feeding oil lamp, self-trimming oil lamp,
mechanical musical instrument, and Hydropowered organ.

19. Al-Zarqali (Arzachel)
(1029–1087)
Al-Zarqali was a Spanish Muslim a leading mathematician and astronomer .
He constructed a Flat astrolabe (Safihah) that could be used at any latitude.
He built a Water Clock capable of determining the hours of the day and night.
Al-Zarqali carried out a series of astronomical observations at Toledo and compiled
them in his famous Toledan Tables.
Al-Zarqali corrected Ptolemy's estimate of the length of the Mediterranean Sea from
62 degrees to approximately correct value of 42 degrees.
He proved the motion of the Aphelion relative to the stars. He measured its rate
of motion as 12.04 seconds per year, close to the modern calculation of 11.8 seconds.
Invented an instrument (anequatorium) for computing the position of the planets.
Copernicus in his famous book 'De Revolutionibus Orbium Clestium'
expresses his indebtedness to Al-Zarqali.

20. Hasan al-Rammah(13th
Century)
Born in Syria, al-Rammah was the first Muslim chemist to successfully create
and engineer modern explosives.
Hasan al-Rammah described 107 gunpowder recipes.
He improved upon the gunpowder that was invented in China.
He was the first Muslim to invent Explosive Rockets.
The Torpedo is also invented by Hasan al-Rammah, who shows illustrations of
a torpedo running on water with a rocket system filled with explosive materials
and having three firing points.

21. Abbas Ibn Firnas
(810–887 A.D.)
He was born in Ronda, southern Spain, in 810.
He was the first man to make a controlled flight in human history.
In 852 Ibn Firnas demonstrated an early parachute.
He constructed a pair of wings, made out of feathers in a wooden frame, and
attempted to fly—anticipating Leonardo da Vinci by some 600 years.
Ibn Firnas invented a water clock called Al-Maqata
He manufactured glass from sand to make silica and quartz glass.
He developed a way of cutting rock crystal to create drinking glasses.
He created fine lenses to magnify and correct eyesight.
He was an astronomer who built a Mechanized Planetarium
with revolving planets stars, clouds, thunder and lightning produced by hidden
mechanisms in the room.

22. UMMAR AL-KHAYYAM
Born in Nishapur in A.D. (1044-1123)
He was mathematician, astronomer and philosopher
He was the first person who proved BINOMIAL THEORUM
He Classified algebraic equations
He Introduced the Jalali calendar
Recognized 13 different forms of cubic equations and
arranged them in their order of complexity

23. Al-Ma'munAl-Ma'mun Abbāsid caliph(813–833)Abbāsid caliph(813–833)
Al-Mamun is renowned for his patronage of learning, commissioning translations ofAl-Mamun is renowned for his patronage of learning, commissioning translations of
classical Greek texts.classical Greek texts.
He founded the famous 'Bayt al-Hikmah' (House of Wisdom}He founded the famous 'Bayt al-Hikmah' (House of Wisdom} in Baghdad andin Baghdad and
personally presided over discussions on logical,theological,and legal matters.personally presided over discussions on logical,theological,and legal matters.
TheThe Bayt al-HikmaBayt al-Hikma became an important center of translation for Greek and otherbecame an important center of translation for Greek and other
ancient texts into Arabic. He employed a large number of translators and patronizedancient texts into Arabic. He employed a large number of translators and patronized
many scholars. It was under his patronage that the worksmany scholars. It was under his patronage that the works
of Plato, Aristotle,Hippocrates, and others were first translated into Arabic.of Plato, Aristotle,Hippocrates, and others were first translated into Arabic.
Al-Ma'mun was interested in every aspect of science, philosophy and especiallyAl-Ma'mun was interested in every aspect of science, philosophy and especially
in astronomy. He himself conducted, on the plains of Mesopotamia, two astronomicalin astronomy. He himself conducted, on the plains of Mesopotamia, two astronomical
operations intended to determine the value of a terrestrial degree.operations intended to determine the value of a terrestrial degree.
The first one to attempt to measure the dimensions of the EarthThe first one to attempt to measure the dimensions of the Earth..
He assigned two teams of astronomers and geographers and asked them to go to twoHe assigned two teams of astronomers and geographers and asked them to go to two
different locations east and west and then to measure one degree of the longitude linesdifferent locations east and west and then to measure one degree of the longitude lines
(360 in number).(360 in number).

24. Ibn ZuhrIbn Zuhr (1091–1161):(1091–1161):
Regarded as the father of pathology.Regarded as the father of pathology.
As a physician, he made several discoveries and breakthroughs.
He described correctly, for the first time, scabies, the itch mite and may thus be
regarded as the first parasitologist.
Likewise, he prescribed tracheotomy and direct feeding through the gullet and
rectum in the cases where normal feeding was not possible.
He also gave clinical descriptions of mediastinal tumours, intestinal phthisis,
inflammation of the middle ear, pericarditis, etc.
His contribution was chiefly contained in the monumental works written by him;
Kitab al-Taisir fi al-Mudawat wa al-Tadbir
(Book of Simplification concerning Therapeutics and Diet).
The book gives in detail pathological conditions, followed by therapy.
His Kitab al-Iqtisad fi Islah al-Anfus wa al-Ajsad
(Book of the Middle Course concerning the Reformation of Souls and the Bodies)
gives a summary of diseases, therapeutics and hygiene, discourse on psychology.

25. AL-FARABI (870-950 C.E.)
Farabi contributed considerably to Science, Philosophy, Logic, Sociology, Psychology,
Medicine, Mathematics and Music. He was also an encyclopedist. Author of large
number of books on several subjects. He came to be known as the “Second Teacher”
Aristotle being the first.
One of the important contributions of the Farabi was to make the study of logic easier by
dividing it into two categories viz., Takhayyul (idea) and Sabut (proof).
In Sociology he wrote Ara Ahl al-Madina al-Fadila “The Model City” a significant
early contribution to sociology snd political science.
He also wrote a book on Music, captioned Kitab al-Musiqa.
He was a great expert in the art and science of music and invented several musical
instruments, besides contributing to the knowledge of musical notes.
It has been reported that he could play his instrument so well as to make people laugh or
weep at will.

26. Al-Farghani
Al-Farghani, born in Farghana, Transoxiana (present-day Fergana, Uzbekistan), also
known as Alfraganus in the West and died in Egypt.
He was Muslim astronomer and one of the famous astronomers in 9th century who
involved in the measurement of the diameter of the Earth together with a team of
scientists under the patronage of Al-Mamun and his successors in Baghdad.
He determined the diameter of the earth to be 6,500 miles, and found the
greatest distances and also the diameters of the planets.
His most important work, written between 833 and 857, he wrote
"Elements of Astronomy"
( Kitab fi al-Harakat al-Samawiya wa Jawami Ilm al-Nujum)
the book on celestial motion and thorough science of the stars), written about 833,
a thorough, readable, nonmathematical summary of Ptolemaic astronomy.
This was the book, which circulated in several Latin editions, was widely studied in
Europe from the 12th to the 17th century and exerted great influence upon European
astronomy before Regiomontanus.

27. AL-BATANI (858-929 A.D.)
Batani was a famous astronomer, mathematician and astrologer.
He determined the solar year as being 365 days, 5 hours, 46 minutes
and 24 second, which is very close to the latest estimates.
He was an excellent observer of lunar and solar eclipses.
He also prepared the Islamic lunar calander.
He determined the length of the seasons and the true and mean orbit
of the sun.
He proved the variation of the apparent angular diameter of the sun
and the possibility of annular eclipses.
His treatise on Astronomy was extremely influential in Europe till
Renaissance, with translations available in several languages.

28. Al-Majusi 980 AD.
He wrote Kitāb Kāmil “The Complete Art of Medicine” .
Neuroscience and Psychology were discussed in The Complete Art of
Medicine.
He described the neuroanatomy, neurobiology and neurophysiology of
the brain. He first discussed various mental disorders, including
sleeping sickness,
memory loss,
hypochondriasis, coma,
hot and cold meningitis,
vertigo epilepsy,
love sickness, and hemiplegia.
He placed more emphasis on preserving health through diet and natural healing
than he did on medication or drugs, which he considered a last resort.

29. Al Jahiz Born 776 AD
He described the Theory of evolution about 1000 years before Darwin.
In his book “Kitab al-Hayawan” describing the characteristics of animals,
he remarked::
"Animals engage in a struggle for existence; for resources, to avoid being eaten
and to breed. Environmental factors influence organisms to develop new
characteristics to ensure survival, thus transforming into new species. Animals
that survive to breed can pass on their successful characteristics to offspring.

30. Ibn Majid(1430-1500)
He invented the Marine Compass in the field of geography
He wrote several books on marine science and the movements of ships,
which helped people of the Persian Gulf to reach the coasts of India, East Africa and
other destinations
Ibn Majid’s most important work was:
Kitab al-Fawa’id fi Usul ‘llmal-Bahr wa’l Qawa’id
(Book of Useful Information on the Principles and Rules of Navigation)
Another important book named al-Urdjuza covering the same subject
Ibn Majid’s Hawiyat, a poem of some 1,082 verses, is a genuine treasury of
navigational theory
In 1498, Vasco Da Gama, while sailing up the east coast of Africa met
Ibn Majid. He helped Vasco Da Gama to reach Indian Coast.
Ibn Majid’s rich contribution benefited the sciences of geography and oceanography.

31. Abd al-Rahman al-Sufi
(903 - 986 A.D.)
He first described over 1,000 different uses of an astrolabe, in areas as diverse as
astronomy, astrology, horoscopes, navigation, surveying, timekeeping, Qibla, Salah
prayer, etc.
He wrote the Book of Fixed Stars,
a star catalogue thoroughly illustrated with observations and descriptions of the
stars, their positions, their apparent magnitudes and their colour.
He identified the Large Magellanic Cloud, which is visible from Yemen, it was not
seen by Europeans until Magellan’s voyage in the 16th century.
He made earliest recorded observation of the Andromeda Galaxy in 964 AD;
describing it as a “small cloud” 600 years before Simon Marius.
He also catalogued the Omicron Velorum star cluster as a “nebulous star”,
and an additional “nebulous object” in Vulpecula, a cluster now variously known
as Al Sufi’s Cluster, the “Coathanger asterism”, Brocchi’s Cluster or Collinder 399.

32. Ziryab ("Blackbird") (789-857)
Chief Entertainer of the Court of Cordoba in 822 AD.
He revolutionised medieval music, lifestyle, fashion, hairstyles, furniture and even
tableware. He transformed the way people ate, socialised, and relaxed.
He opened a Beauty parlour or “cosmetology school” for women near Alcázar, Al-
Andalus.
He also taught "the shaping of eyebrows”.
He started first time use of chemical depilatories for removing body hair.
He introduced new perfumes and cosmetics.
Ziryab invented an early Toothpaste, which he popularized throughout Islamic Spain.
He also invented under-arm Deodorants.
He introduced new short hairstyles leaving the neck, ears and eyebrows free," as well
as Shaving for men.

33. Al-Dinawari (896 AD)
Al-Dinawari, the founder of Arabic botany.
He wrote the Book of Plants, which describes at least 637 plants.
He discusses plant evolution from its birth to its death.
He described the phases of plant growth and production of flowers and fruit.
He also deals with the Earth sciences in the context of agriculture.
He considers the Earth, stone and sands, and describes different types of ground,
indicating which types are more convenient for plants and the qualities and
properties of good ground.
He also deals with the applications of Islamic astronomy and meteorology to
agriculture.
He described the astronomical and meteorological character of the sky, the planets
and constellations, the sun and moon. He discussed the lunar phases indicating
seasons and rain.

34. Ibn Al-Awwam
Hispano-Muslim agriculturist who flourished at Seville during 12th
century.
He wrote a treatise on agriculture,Kitab al-filaha, which is the most important
Muslim work as well as the most important mediaeval one on the subject.
The treatise divides into two main parts, the first dealing with soils, fertilizers, water,
gardens, trees, fruits and their preservation, etc,
whilst the second deals with ploughing, the choice of seeds, the seasons and their
tasks, grain farming, leguminous plants, small allotments, aromatic plants and
industrial plants, harvesting, farming engineering, livestock breeding, poultry.
Ibn Al-Awwam's treatise covers 585 plants, and
explains the cultivation of more than fifty different fruit trees,
various methods of grafting, on sympathies and antipathies between plants, etc.
Ibn Al-Awwam also studies gardening, water variety, irrigation, animal husbandry
and bee keeping, the symptoms of many diseases of trees and methods of cure.

35. Ibn Ba ālṣṣ 11th
Century
Mu ammad ibn Ba āl al-Andalūsī, born in the mid-11th century at Toledo,ḥ ṣṣ
He was a leading Andalusian Agronomist .
Ibn Ba āl’s workṣṣ – Kitāb al-qa d wa’l-bayānṣ – comprises sixteen chapters.
He has explained in his book:
Water of different kinds, their various natures, constitutions and effects on plants.
Defined 10 different types of lands and soils, their natures and properties.
planting trees species of trees, including fruit-trees.
Different systems of propagation, especially layering
How to prune trees and improve their health
How to graft various trees onto others and how to know if they are compatible.
Certain types of graft, their secrets and marvels.
Cultivation of spices used to flavour dishes
Root vegetables,various methods of cultivating vegetables.
Cultivation of aromatic plants such as sweet basil
Wonderful and useful knowledge about waters, wells, the preservation of fruits and
other beneficial things indispensable to the farmer
Brief instructions on the conservation of fruit.

36. Al- ighnarīṬ
Al- ighnarī, was born in Granada during the second half of the 11th century.Ṭ
He was an accomplished agronomist who wrote a remarkable agricultural treatise
entitled Kitāb zuhrat al-bustān wa-nuzhat al-adhhān,
‘Book of the glory of the garden and recreation of the minds’. In this he Discussed:
Grafting and all there is to know about it: selection of shoots for grafting; types of
graft; a description of the tools used in grafting; the sympathy of some trees to others
in relation to grafting; detailed instructions on performing the different kinds of
graft: the saw graft (našar), notch graft (šiqq), tube graft (qanūṭ), shield graft (tarqī‘),
and finally, the bored graft (barrīna). grafting trees or shrubs onto other species,
such as the rose on almond, peach on willow, vines and other soft fruit onto apples.
The distillation of rose-water, with a description of the entire process, from the
construction of stills and pipes (qawādīs) to choosing the best varieties of roses and
the most appropriate type of fuelwood, the temperature of the water necessary for
distillation, and the storage of the rose-water in suitable containers.
preparing other kinds of flower-waters - from the lily, orange, violet, basil and clove.
Hydrology: the different kinds of water; methods for assessing its proximity.

37. Abu'l Khair (12th century)
Another botanist is Abu'l Khair.
He is the author of a book on farming: Kitab al-Filaha.
the main contents of Abū ’l-Khayr’s treatise thus:
(i) General considerations on planting (gharāsa):
favourable months; influence of the moon;
the time needed for plants to grow and to yield fruit;
age of trees; damage (weather, animals, fire, water);
special treatment of olive-trees, vines, fig-trees, palm-trees;
(ii) Cultivation of trees, bushes, grains, seeds;
layering, pruning, grafting; fruit and vegetable conserves; growing of vegetables;
aromatic plants, flowers; flax and cotton; banana and sugar-cane;
(iii) Animals: of the back-yard, especially pigeons; bees and wild animals.
(iv) Tajārib al-‘ām, i.e. meteorological or astrological prognostications.”
Abu'l Khair proposes four procedures to collect rain water, and other artificially
obtained waters. Abu'l Khair also informs on the process of sugar making .

38. Ibn SahlIbn Sahl(940-1000 AD)(940-1000 AD)
He was an Arabian mathematician, physicist and optics engineer .He was an Arabian mathematician, physicist and optics engineer .
He wrote a treatise On Burning Mirrors and LensesHe wrote a treatise On Burning Mirrors and Lenses
He determined how curved mirrors and lenses bend and focus light.He determined how curved mirrors and lenses bend and focus light.
He is credited with first discovering the law of refraction, usually calledHe is credited with first discovering the law of refraction, usually called
Snell's law.Snell's law.
He used the law of refraction to work out the shapes of lenses that focusHe used the law of refraction to work out the shapes of lenses that focus
light with no geometric aberrations, known as anaclastic lenses.light with no geometric aberrations, known as anaclastic lenses.

39. Al Mosuli
(flourished around 1010 CE)
Ammar Ibn Ali Al-Mosuli from Mosul in Iraq, He wrote a book entitled
Kitâb al-Muntakhab fî 'ilâj al-'ayn
(Book of Choices in the Treatment of Eye Diseases)
a landmark text on ophthalmology in medieval Islam.
His book deals with anatomy, pathology and describes six case histories
for cataract operation and a case of optic neuritis.
Ammar discussed some 48-eye diseases.
Ammar was the inventor of the cataract operation by suction,
using a fine hollow needle inserted through the limbus
(where the cornea joins the conjunctiva).
He invented a hollow metallic syringe hypodermic needle, which he applied
and successfully extracted the cataracts through suction.

40. Ibn Al-Mahasin
(13th Century)
Kalifah Ibn Al-Mahasin of Allepo (Syria), who flourished around 1260 CE,
He wrote a book of 564 pages in which he describes and gives drawings of
various surgical instruments including 36 instruments for eye surgery.
He also discusses the visual pathways between the eye and the brain.
He also writes about twelve kinds of cataract operations.
He also made Drawing of the cross section of the Brain and the Eyes in his
book Al-Kafi Fi Al-Kuhl
(The Book of Sufficient Knowledge in Ophthalmology)

41. Ibn Rushd (Averroes )
He was born in Cordova, Spain in (1128 C.E.).
He was known in the West for being the grand commentator on the
philosophy of Aristotle, whose influence penetrated the minds of even the most
conservative of Christian Ecclesiastes in the Middle Ages, including men like St.
Thomas Aquinas .
According to Philip Hitti, Ibn Rushd influenced Western thought from the
twelfth to the sixteenth centuries.
His commentaries were used as standard texts in preference to the
treatises of Aristotle in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. His books
were included in the syllabi of Paris and other Western universities till the advent of
modern experimental sciences . Ibn Rusd was studied in the University of Mexico until
1831. He compared spiritual laws to medicine in their effect on human beings
physically on one hand, and morally and spiritually on the other. He pointed out that
spiritual health is termed 'Taqwa' (righteousness and God-fearing) in the Qur'an.

42. Al Ghazali
Al-Ghazali's works on the relationship between philosophy and religion contributed
to an ongoing discussion in the Islamic world on how to reconcile the two fields.
Al-Ghazali staunchly defended religion against attack by philosophers,
and in doing so helped bridge the gap between the two streams of
thought.
Al-Ghazali also sought to reign in what he believed were excessive views within
Sufism, to bring it more in line with orthodox Islam. He continued to stress the
importance of Sufism as the genuine path to absolute truth, but he sought to
redefine its extreme image as disobedient to the basic teachings of Islam
Al-Ghazali laid out several arguments as to why philosophy was sometimes heretical
to Islam.He particularly objected to arguments made by Greek-influenced
philosophers questioning the immortality of the soul, the resurrection of the body,
reward and punishment after death, God's knowledge of all things, and the eternity
of the world.He wrote Tuhafut al-Falasifa (The Incoherence of the Philosophers).

43. Ibn Khaldun
He is the founder of modern sociology and philosophy of history.
Born in Tunis, Ibn Khaldun spent most of his life in North Africa and Spain.
He led a very political life, working for a number of royal courts in North Africa,
where he was also able to observe the political and social dynamics of court life.
Ibn Khaldun's most famous book is the Muqaddimah
In the Muqaddimah , Ibn Khaldun set out his philosophy of history.
He concluded that civilisations rise and fall, in a cycle, as a result of psychological,
economic, environmental, social, as well as political factors.
His attention to more than just the political conditions of a civilisation was
revolutionary, as he sought to also examine social, religious, and economic factors
in explaining world history. He also pioneered the emphasis on relating events to
each other through cause and effect, and drawing parallels between past and
present, when writing history. He subjected his study of history to objective,
scientific analysis, and lamented the clearly biased histories written before him.

44. Ibn Battuta
Abu Abdullah Muhammad Ibn Battuta
He was born at Tangier, Morocco, in 1304 C.E.
He left Tangier on Thursday, 14th June, 1325 C.E.
His travels lasted for about thirty years.
His main reason to travel was to go on a Hajj, or a Pilgrimage to Mecca, as all good
Muslims want to do. But his traveling went on for about 29 years and he covered
about 75,000 miles visiting the equivalent of 44 modern countries which were then
mostly under the governments of Muslim leaders of the World of Islam, or
"Dar al-Islam“.
He made rule for himself : Never to travel any road a second time.
Near the end of Ibn Battuta's own life, the Sultan of Morocco insisted that Ibn
Battuta dictate the story of his travels to a scholar and today we can read
translations of that story called "Rihla - My Travels".
Much of it is fascinating, it is a valuable and interesting record of places which add
to our understanding of the Middle Ages.

45. Abu al-Wafa' al-Buzjani 940-998 CE
mathematician and astronomer who worked in Baghdad.
Notable ideas
Tangent function
Law of sines
Trigonometric identities
He made important innovations in spherical trigonometry, and his work
on arithmetics for businessmen contains the first instance of using
negative numbers in a medieval Islamic text.
He is also credited with compiling the tables of sines and tangents at 15' intervals.
He also introduced the sec and cosec functions, as well studied the
interrelations between the six trigonometric lines associated with an arc.
His Almagest was widely read by medieval Arabic astronomers in the centuries
after his death.

46. Taqi al-Din
He was born in 1521 in Damascus, Syria, and was educated in Cairo, Egypt.
He became the official astronomer for Ottoman Sultan Selim II.
He was a scientist, astronomer, astrologer, engineer, inventor, clockmaker, watchmaker,
physicist, mathematician, botanist, zoologist, pharmacist, physician, Islamic judge,
philosopher, theologian and Madrasah teacher.
He was the author of more than 90 books on a wide variety of subjects, One of his books
described the workings of a rudimentary steam engine and steam turbine in
1551, predating the more famous discovery of steam power by Giovanni
Branca in 1629.
His inventions include a variety of accurate clocks including the
first mechanical alarm clock,
the first spring-powered astronomical clock,
the first watch measured in minutes, and
the first clocks measured in minutes and seconds.
Taqi al-Din was the first mathematician to extract the precise value of Sin 1°.
He also invented some astronomical instruments as well as one of the
first spring-powered pocket watches.

47. Al Masudi(895-957 CE)
The historian and geographer.
He wrote his first historical compendium
Muruj-al-Zahab wa al-Ma-adin al-Jawahir
(Meadows of Gold and Mines of Precious Stones).
In this collection, he describes in fascinating detail the habitation, geography and
ecology of the lands he had visited.
Al Masudi was an accomplished geologist and mineralogist. He studied earthquakes
and in one his treatises he analyzed the earthquake of 855 CE.
He also propounded a theory of evolution from minerals to plants to animals to
man. In this work he presages Charles Darwin by nine hundred years.
Al Masudi composed a map of the then known world which represented a significant
advance upon earlier maps.
Al-Masudi recorded America across the ocean in his famous map and refers to it as
“the unknown land” 600 years before Columbus.

48. Al-Muqaddasi:
He wrote the famous
Ahsan at-taqasim fi ma'rifat al-aqalim
(The Best Divisions for Knowledge of the Regions).
Ahsan a-Taqasim is the outcome of the journeys undertaken by him over two
decades, and which took him in turn through all the countries of Islam.
In Ahsan al-taqasim, Al-Muqaddasi gives an overall view of the lands he
visited,population, its ethnic diversity, social groups, commerce, natural and
mineral resources, archaeological monuments, currencies, markets and weights,
and the political situation.
It provides excellent information regarding many subjects such as water
management, fiscal issues and finance, weights and measures, and city and urban
developments,the region's topography, climate, hydrology, vegetation,
development, architecture, language, religion and culture.
Technically, the most important distinction of Ahsan at-taqasim is that it was the
first Arabic work of geography ever to provide maps in natural colors, which is the
usual practice today.

49. Al Khazini (12th century )
Abu Al Fath Al Khazini an astronomer and an engineer.
He wrote Meezan Al-Hikmah, which was a marvel in the fields of mechanics,
physics and hydrostatics.He discusses and explains the gravity of air, capillarity, use
of aerometer to measure densities and temperature of liquids, theory of the lever.
He preceded Newton by several centuries. He made great efforts in his work
on specific weights and gravity and demonstrated experimentally how all parts of
the body direct their descent towards the centre of the earth due to gravity;
He explained the resistance which bodies immersed in liquids generally encounter.
He preceded Torshilly in referring to air as matter with mass, and stating that air
has mass and capillary action similar to liquids. He arrived at a formula that
determines the abstract weight of masses composed of two different materials.
He also explained that the Archimedes’ principle applies to gases in addition to
liquids; such revelations paved the way for the invention of the barometer, air-
vacuums, and pumps. He also wrote on theories of light, and calculated the
deflection of light upon its passage through air.

50. Al-Marwazi Died after 869 AD
Habash al-Hasib al-Marwazi flourished in Baghdad
He was a great astronomer, geographer, and mathematician.
Habash gave us the first instance of a determination of time by an altitude
(in this case, of the sun); a method generally adopted by Muslim astronomers.
He conducted various observations at the Al-Shammisiyyah observatory.
He estimated a number of geographic and astronomical values.
He compiled his results in The Book of Bodies and Distances,
some of his results included the following:
Earth's circumference: 20,160 miles (32,444 km)
Earth's diameter: 6414.54 miles (10323.201 km)
Earth radius: 3207.275 miles (5161.609 km)
Moon's diameter: 1886.8 miles (3036.5 km)
Sun's diameter: 35,280;1,30 miles (56,777.6966 km)
In 830, he seems to have introduced the notion of "shadow," umbra (versa).
He described first time Trigonometric ratios: SIN, COS, TAN & COT.

51. Thabit ibn Qurra
Leading mathematician, astronomer, and translator of the Islamic Golden Age.
In astronomy, he is one of the first reformers of the Ptolemaic system.
According to Copernicus Thabit determined the length of the side real year as
365 days, 6 hours, 9 minutes and 12 seconds (an error of 2 seconds).
In mathematics, He discovered an equation for determining amicable numbers.
He also wrote on the theory of numbers, and extended their use to describe the
ratios between geometrical quantities, It changed the way of mathematics.
He calculated the solution to a chessboard problem involving an exponential series.
He also described a Pythagoras theorem.
In physics, He proposed a theory of motion in which both the upward and
downward motions are caused by weight, and that the order of the universe is a
result of two competing attractions (jadhb): one of these being "between
the sublunar and celestial elements", and the other being "between all parts of each
element separately".

52. Al-Kashi
Al-Kashi invented the Plate of Conjunctions, an analog computer instrument
used to determine the time of day at which planetary conjunctions will occur, and for
performing linear interpolation.
He wrote the book Sullam al-Sama deals with distances and sizes of heavenly
bodies such as the Earth, the Moon, the Sun and the Stars.
He invented a mechanical planetary computer which could predict of the true
positions in longitude of the Sun and Moon,and the planets .
He computed and observed the solar eclipses of 809, 810 and 811 AH.
In French, the law of cosines is named Théorème d'Al-Kashi
(Theorem of Al-Kashi), as al-Kashi was the first to provide an explicit statement of
the law of cosines in a form suitable for triangulation..
Al-Kashi wrote Treatise on the Circumference giving a remarkably accurate
approximation to pi in both sexagesimal and decimal forms,
computing pi to 8 sexagesimal places and 16 decimal places.
He completed The Key to Arithmetic containing work of great depth on decimal

53. Barakat Al-Baghdaadi
(1100 – 1165 )
He discovered that a force applied continuously produces acceleration, “the fundamental
law of classical mechanics” and an early foreshadowing of Newton’s 2nd law of motion.
He described acceleration as the rate of change of velocity 500 years before Newton.
Al-Baghdaadi's theory of motion distinguished between velocity and acceleration and
showed that force is proportional to acceleration rather than velocity.
Al-Baghdaadi also suggested that motion is relative, writing that
"there is motion only if the relative positions of the bodies in question change.
" He also stated that "each type of body has a characteristic velocity that reaches its
maximum when its motion encounters no resistance.
Al-Baghdaadi criticized Aristotle's concept of time as "the measure of motion" and
instead redefines time as "the measure of being", thus distinguishing between space and
time, and reclassifying time as a metaphysical concept rather than a physical one.
Al-Baghdadi drew the conclusion that time is an entity whose conception
(ma'qul al-zaman) is a priori and almost as general as that of being, encompassing the
sensible and the non-sensible, that which moves and that which is at rest.

54. Al-Karaji
Abu Bekr ibn Muhammad ibn al-Husayn Al-Karaji or al-Karkhi.
Believed to be the “first person to completely free algebra from geometrical
operations and to replace them with the arithmetical type of operations which are
at the core of algebra today.
He was first to define the monomials x, x2, x3, … and 1 / x, 1 / x2, 1 / x3, … and to
give rules for products of any two of these.
He started a school of algebra which flourished for several hundreds of years”.
He Discovered the Binomial theorem for integer exponents.
This “was a major factor in the development of numerical analysis based on the
decimal system.”

55. Ibn al-Shatir
Ibn al-Shatir was an astronomer from Damascus who worked as timekeeper in the
Umayyad Mosque, and constructed a magnificent sundial for its minaret in 1371/72.
His most important astronomical treatise was the
Kitab nihayat al-sul fi tashih al-usul
(The Final Quest Concerning the Rectification of Principles), in which he drastically
reformed the Ptolemaic models of the Sun, Moon, and planets, by his introducing his
own non-Ptolemaic models. Ibn al-Shatir's geometrical model was the first that was
actually superior to the Ptolemaic model in terms of its better agreement
with empirical observations.
Ibn al-Shatir invented the first astrolabic clock in the early 14th century.
E. S. Kennedy discovered that Ibn al-Shatir's models were mathematically equivalent
to those Copernicus elaborated some 150 years later. This suggests that Ibn al-Shatir's
models may have influenced Copernicus.

56. Abu Zayd al-Balkhi
Abu Zayd Ahmed ibn Sahl Balkhi was a Muslim psychologist and scientist. He was a
pioneer of psychotherapy, psychophysiology and psychosomatic medicine.
He wrote the medical and psychological work,
Masalih al-Abdan wa al-Anfus (Sustenance for Body and Soul).
He was the first to successfully discuss diseases related to both the body and the soul.
He used the term al-Tibb al-Ruhani to describe spiritual and psychological health, and
the term Tibb al-Qalb to describe mental medicine.
Al-Balkhi was the first to differentiate between neurosis and psychosis, and the first to
classify neurotic disorders and pioneer cognitive therapy in order to treat disorders.
Al-Balkhi also introduced the concept of reciprocal inhibition (al-ilaj bi al-did),
which was re-introduced over a thousand years later by Joseph Wolpe in 1969.
He wrote that Imbalance of the body can result in fever, headaches and other physical
illnesses, while Imbalance of the soul can result in anger, anxiety, sadness and other
mental symptoms.

57. Tipu (Sultan of Mysore)
(1783-1799)
Tipu Sultan pioneered and perfected the use of rockets for military purposes,
very effectively using it in wars against the invading British colonial armies. Tipu
Sultan had 27 brigades called Kushoons; each brigade had a company of rocket men
called Jourks.
At the Battle of Seringapattam in 1792, Indian soldiers launched a huge barrage of
rockets against British troops. These Rockets were influential in British rocket
development and were soon put into use in the Napoleonic Wars.
Two of his rockets, captured by the British at Srirangapatna, are displayed in the
Woolwich Royal Artillery Museum in London.
They were the first rockets to have a rocket motor casing made of steel with multiple
nozzles. The rocket, 50 mm in diameter and 250 mm long, had a range performance
of 900 meters to 1.5 km.

58. Ibrahim Efendi
The Ottoman dockyard architect Ibrahim Efendi invented
(a submarine called the Tahtelbahir)
The Ottoman writer Seyyid Vehbi, in his Surname-i-Humayun, compared this
submarine to an alligator. He recorded that during the circumcision ceremony for
Sultan Ahmed III's sons,
"the alligator-like submarine slowly emerged on the water and moved slowly to the
sultan, and after staying on the sea for half an hour, submerged in the sea again to the
great surprise of the public; then emerged one hour later, with five people walking
outside the mouth of this alligator-like submarine, with trays of rice and zerde (a dish
of sweetened rice) on their heads."
He explained the technical information concerning the submarine
"submerging in the sea and the crew being able to breath through pipes
while under the sea"

59. Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan
Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan is a national hero and father of Pakistan’s nuclear bomb.
He is a famous Pakistani nuclear scientist and a metallurgical engineer.
He is the founder of gas-centrifuge enrichment technology for Pakistan’s nuclear
deterrent program.
He re-organized the Pakistani’s national space agency, SUPARCO.
He has played an important role in Pakistan’s space program,
patricularly the Pakistan’s first Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) project.
He is the founder of several engineering universities in Pakistan.
Dr. A. Q. Khan Department of Metallurgical Engineering and Material Sciences.
Dr. A. Q. Khan Institute of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering at Karachi
He has published more than 188 scientific research papers in international journals.
Under his supervision, the process of Uranium enrichment was effectively
accomplished and the successful test firing of Intermediate Range Ballistic Missiles,
Ghauri 1, in April 1998 and Ghauri II in April 1999.

60. Kerim Kerimov
Lieutenant-General Kerim Kerimov was an Azerbaijani-Soviet/Russian aerospace
engineer and a renowned rocket scientist, born in the year 1917 in a Muslim family .
one of the founders of the Soviet space industry, and
for many years a central figure in the Soviet space program.
He was one of the lead architects behind the string of Soviet successes
the launch of the first satellite, the Sputnik 1 in 1957,
the first human spaceflight,
(Yuri Gagarin's 108-minute trip around the globe aboard the Vostok 1 in 1961)
the first fully automated space docking, of Cosmos 186 and Cosmos 188 in 1967,
the first space stations, the Salyut and Mir series from 1971 to 1991