People of the Golden Age of Islam Quiz

Answer: Ibn Sina

Ibn Sina, or Avicenna, (980-1037) was a physician and astronomer in addition to being a philosopher. About 240 of his works survive, and there are close to 200 more that have been lost. Though many of his works include the ideas of Aristotle, Ibn Sina was often critical of the philosopher. Just as Aristotle wrote on a variety of topics, so did Ibn Sina.

Answer: Muḥammad ibn Mūsā al-Khwārizmī

In Europe, Muḥammad ibn Mūsā al-Khwārizmī (780-850) was sometimes known as Algorithmi. His book,"The Compendious Book on Calculation by Completion and Balancing", helped to spread knowledge of algebra. His title, Father of Algebra, is based on his treatment of algebra as a distinct branch of mathematics.

The term "algebra" is based on the Arabic word "al-jabr", which means completion or rejoining.

Answer: Ḥasan Ibn al-Haytham

Ḥasan Ibn al-Haytham (965-1040) was a physicist who made large contributions to the field of optics. He was able to describe the relative roles that the brain and the eyes play in vision. Among his accomplishments was describing the internal structure of the eye and using a camera obscura to observe a partial solar eclipse.

Answer: Ibn Khaldun

Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406) has been described as the founder of multiple disciplines, including sociology and economics. His work, "Muqaddimah", described how the social cohesion of a group can lead to great accomplishments. In the area of economics, he described how "value-adding processes", such as labor and skill, can add to the value of a product.

Answer: Al-Zahrawi

Abū al-Qāsim Khalaf ibn al-'Abbās al-Zahrāwī al-Ansari, or Al-Zahrawi (936-1013), has been described as one of the greatest surgeons of the Middle Ages. His discoveries include identifying haemophilia as a hereditary disease and cataract surgeries.

His work, "On Surgery and Instruments", describes various surgical instruments and the specific surgeries where each would be used.

Answer: Muhammad al-Idrisi

Muhammad al-Idrisi, or Abu Abdullah Muhammad al-Idrisi al-Qurtubi al-Hasani as-Sabti, (1100-1165) was a geographer and cartographer. He created the "Tabula Rogeriana", a world map, for King Roger II of Sicily. It was considered the most accurate world map of its time. Al-Idrisi's own travels took him to many parts of Europe and North Africa.

Answer: Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī

Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī (1207-1273) was a theologian and poet. While Persian was his most common language of composition, he also used Arabic, Greek, and Turkish. The six volumes of the "Maṭnawīye Ma'nawī" may be his best known work. One idea often attributed to Rumi is that what someone says should pass through three "gates": truth, necessity, and kindness.

Answer: Omar Khayyam

Omar Khayyam (1048-1131) was an astronomer and mathematician. His work in analytic geometry predates that of Rene Descartes. His works include a study of the parallel axiom. In addition to his work in astronomy and mathematics, he is thought to have been a poet, with the collection of his works commonly described as the "Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam".

Answer: Ibn Mu'adh al-Jayyani

Ibn Mu'adh al-Jayyani (999-1079) was the author of "The book of unknown arcs of a sphere", considered one of the first books about spherical trigonometry. He also composed the law of sines and formulae for right handed triangles. He was also the author of commentaries on Euclid's "Elements".

Answer: Ibn al-Nafis

Ala-al-Din abu al-Hasan Ali ibn Abi-Hazm al-Qarshi al-Dimashqi, or Ibn al-Nafis, (1213-1288) was a physician who made discoveries in the fields of biology and anatomy. He performed pioneering investigation into the pulmonary system. He also wrote an early Arabic commentary on the work "Endemics" by the ancient physician Hippocrates.