d, Ibn Khaldun, and Gerbert of Aurillac. The later went on to become Pope Sylvester II.
Did you know?
According to UNESCO and some other organizations, the educational institution that al-Fihri founded around 800 is the oldest ancient university in the world that is still operating. To put into perspective, the Sankore Mosque in Timbuktu, Mali, was established in 989.
‘Ali ibn al-‘Abbas al-Majusi (Haly Abbas)
Known in the West as Haly Abbas, Ali-Ibn-e-Abbas-Al-Majusi was a 10th-century Iranian physician, surgeon, and psychologist. A scholar of high repute, Haly Abbas is credited with laying some of the important building blocks of Islamic medicine. His works were seen in similar light as the one produced by the likes of al-Tabari, Razi (Abu Bakr al-Razi), and Avicenna. The latter took a great deal of inspiration from Haly Abbas, especially when it came to diagnosing and treating jaundice and other liver disease.
Haly Abbas is credited with writing “Kamilu Sina’at” or “al-Kitab al-Maliki ” (The Royal Book), a 20-treatise book which was widely circulated and used in many European universities until the 18th century. One important feature of the book is the section which provides description of the techniques used in handling cysts, tumors and aneurism, among others.
Al-Ma-jusi was a key figure in the promotion and discussion of neuroscience, psychology, internal medicine, and basic medical sciences. His primary focus was usually on theories of medicine and the practice of medicine.
Other interesting Facts about ‘Ali ibn al-‘Abbas al-Majusi
- ‘Ali ibn al-‘Abbas al-Majusi is generally considered one of the most eminent scholars of the Buyid dynasty, a Shia Iranian dynasty of Daylamite origin which ruled parts of southern and central Iran and Iraq from the mid 10th century to the mid 11th century. Other notable scholars of the dynasty include Ibn al-Haytham (aka Alhazen) and Abu Ali al-Farisi.
- The physician was born to a wealthy Persian Family and later became Emir ‘Adud al-Daula Fana Khusraw’s personal physician from 949 CE to 983 CE. Prior to that he had received extensive trained under Shaikh Abu Maher Musa ibn Sayyār.
- There are some medicine historians that claim that Abbas’s book,“Kitāb Kāmil aṣ-Ṣināʿa aṭ-Ṭibbiyya” (The Complete Art of Medicine), which he completed around 980, contain a more practical perspective than Avicenna’s “The Canon of Medicine”.
- “The complete Book of Medicine” was divided into more than 18 parts and covered topics from medical ethics to mental disorders.
- The physician is believed to be one of the early practitioners to delve into psychophysiology and psychosomatic medicine.
- The Iranian physician and researcher died from natural causes in 994 AD
Ibn al-Haytham (Alhazen)
Another prominent figure whose works made waves during and after the Islamic Golden Age was Ḥasan Ibn al-Haytham. Popularly known by his Latin name Alhazen, al-Haytham was widely referred to as the “Father of Optics”. He also produced some influential works in astronomy and mathematics.
The polymath Al-Haytham was born in c. 965 to a Persian family. Influenced by prominent names such as Aristotle, Euclid, Ptolemy, and Galen, Alhazen put religion aside and delved deep into the sciences. He later made a name for himself as a renowned mathematician.
His major contributions was in regard to visual representation and perception. He is credited with his groundbreaking works on the camera obscure, popularly known as the pinhole.
Based on his studies, he concluded that only a perpendicular hit of a projectile on a surface would be strong enough to cause it to penetrate, whereas oblique impacts would be deflected by the surface.
The Persian polymath also conducted extensive research in psychophysics and experimental psychology.
Other Interesting Facts about Ibn Al-Haytham
- Ibn Al-Haytham delved into other disciplines such as physics to investigate properties of luminance from rainbows and eclipses. This later provided the foundation for his theories on catoptrics.
- He also formulated the Lambert quadrilateral (also known as Ibn 