How Islam Influenced Science
Monday, June 01, 2009
During the Middle Ages the Islamic World had a very
significant impact upon Europe, which in turn
cleared the way for the Renaissance and the Scientific Revolution. In the
Medieval age, Islam and Muslims influenced Europe
in a number of different ways. One of the most important of these subjects was
Science.
Ever since Islam was born, Muslims had made immense leaps
forward in the area of Science. Cities like Baghdad,
Damascus, Cairo
and Cordoba
were the centers of civilization. These cities were flourishing and Muslim
scientists made tremendous progress in applied as well as theoretical Science
and Technology. In Europe, however, the
situation was much different. Europe was in
the Dark Ages. It had no infrastructure or central government. To the Muslims, Europe was backward, unorganized, carried no strategic
importance and was essentially irrelevant. This considering the time period was
in fact true. Nevertheless the Catholic Church (which at the time was the
strongest institution in Europe) successfully
convinced Christian Europe that the Muslims were infidels. This caused
Europeans to think that Muslims were culturally inferior to Europe and thus Europe was unable to benefit from the new scientific discoveries
being made in the Islamic lands before the 1100’s. By doing this Europe kept
itself in the Dark Ages while from China to Spain Islamic Civilization
prospered. During the Crusades there was limited contact between Muslims and
Christians and not much was transferred. As A. Lewis explains, "The
Crusaders were men of action, not men of learning". The real exchange of
ideas which led to the Scientific revolution and to the renaissance occurred in
Muslim Spain.
Cordoba
was the capital of Muslim Spain. It soon became the center for all light and
learning for the entire Europe. Scholars and
students from various parts of the world and Europe came to Cordoba to study. The contrast in
intellectual activity is demonstrated best by one example: ‘In the ninth century,
the library of the monastery of St. Gall was the largest in Europe.
It boasted 36 volumes. At the same time, that of Cordoba contained over 500,000!’.
The idea of the college was a concept which was borrowed
from Muslims. The first colleges appeared in the Muslim world in the late 600's
and early 700's. In Europe, some of the earliest colleges are those under the University of Paris
and Oxford they
were founded around the thirteenth century. These early European colleges were
also funded by trusts similar to the Islamic ones and legal historians have
traced them back to the Islamic system. The internal organization of these
European colleges was strikingly similar to the Islamic ones, for example the
idea of Graduate (Sahib) and undergraduate (mutafaqqih) is derived directly
from Islamic terms.
In the field of Mathematics the number Zero (0) and the
decimal system was introduced to Europe, which
became the basis for the Scientific revolution. The Arabic numerals were also
transferred to Europe, this made mathematical
tasks much easier, problems that took days to solve could now be solved in
minutes. The works of Al-Khwarizmi (Alghorismus) were translated into Latin.
Alghorismus, from whom the mathematical term algorism was derived, wrote
Sindhind, a compilation of astronomical tables. He, more importantly, laid the
ground work for algebra and found methods to deal with complex mathematical
problems, such as square roots and complex fractions. He conducted numerous
experiments, measured the height of the earth's atmosphere and discovered the
principle of the magnifying lens. Many of his books were translated into
European languages. Trigonometric work by Alkirmani of Toledo was translated
into Latin (from which we get the sine and cosine functions) along with the
Greek knowledge of Geometry by Euclid.
Along with mathematics, masses of other knowledge in the field of physical
science was transferred.
Islamic contributions to Science were now rapidly being
translated and transferred from Spain
to the rest of Europe. Ibnul Hairham’s works
on Optics, (in which he deals with 50 Optical questions put to Muslim Scholars
by the Franks), was translated widely. The Muslims discovered the Principle of
Pendulum, which was used to measure time. Many of the principles of Isaac
Newton were derived from former Islamic scientific contributions. In the field
of Chemistry numerous Islamic works were translated into Latin. One of the
fields of study in this area was alchemy. The Muslims by exploring various
elements, developed a good understanding of the constitution of matter. Jabir
ibn-Hayyan (Geber) was the leading chemist in the Muslim world, some scholars
link the introduction of the ‘scientific method’ back to him. A great number of
terms used in Chemistry such as alchohol, alembic, alkali and elixir are of
Islamic origin.
Medicine was a key science explored by Muslims. Al-Rhazes is
one of the most famous Doctors and writers of Islamic History. Every major city
had an hospital, the hospital at Cairo
had over 8000 beds, with separate wards for fevers, ophthalmic, dysentery and
surgical cases. He discovered the origin of smallpox and showed that one could
only acquire it once in one's life, thus showing the existence of the immune
system and how it worked. Muslim doctors were also aware of the contagious
qualities of diseases. Hundreds of medical works were translated into Latin.
All of this knowledge transferred from the Muslims to the
Europeans was the vital raw material for the Scientific Revolution. Muslims not
only passed on Greek classical works but also introduced new scientific
theories, without which the European Renaissance could not have occurred. Thus
even though many of the Islamic contributions go unacknowledged, they played an
integral role in the European transformation.
by Macksood Aftab
Managing Editor of The Islamic Herald, March 1995.
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