Muslim Scholars Who Made Breakthroughs in World Science

If we consider public opinion in general, we can still encounter people who regard Islam as a religion distant from science, associating it with backwardness and obstacles to social progress. Such perceptions stem either from a prejudiced attitude toward Islam or from insufficient awareness of its contribution to the development of science and the achievements of Muslim scholars who enriched global scientific thought.

Unfortunately, Muslims themselves have not made sufficient efforts in this regard. At the very least, they have failed to adequately introduce their own outstanding scholars and historical scientific heritage to the international community. At times, even Muslims themselves have remained insufficiently informed about this heritage.

Meanwhile, among the world’s oldest scientific and educational institutions, a special place is occupied by Al-Azhar University, located in Cairo (Egypt); Al-Qarawiyyin University in the city of Fez (Morocco); and the scientific seminary of An-Najaf in the city of Najaf (Iraq). These centers of learning have continued their activities for many centuries and have played a significant role in the intellectual life of the Islamic world.

In some cases, the scientific heritage of Muslim scholars has not received due recognition or adequate attention because of disagreements among various madhhabs. This approach contributed to the spread of negative perceptions of Islam, its identification with backwardness and reactionary tendencies, and the formation of an image of religion as detached from science. Unfortunately, manifestations of this tendency can still be observed today.

For example, the scientific legacy of Imam Jaʿfar al-Sadiq—a scholar of the eighth century, one of the greatest teachers in human history, who made a significant contribution to the development of scientific education worldwide, taught thousands of students, and influenced the formation of numerous eminent scholars—has not been sufficiently widely presented. Since he was one of the Shiʿi Imams, his scholarly activity and educational legacy have sometimes remained in the shadows. At the same time, particular attention has been devoted to Jabir ibn Hayyan, who is regarded as one of the founders of chemistry and an outstanding mentor to chemists, whereas the fact that he studied under Imam Jaʿfar al-Sadiq has not always been emphasized to the extent it deserves.

This is precisely where the injustice lies: despite the need to present Imam Jaʿfar al-Sadiq’s scholarly activity and his role in the development of science both to Muslims and to the international community, this subject sometimes remains overshadowed by confessional and madhhab-based approaches.

We hope that our overview will serve as a modest yet meaningful step toward popularizing the scientific heritage of Islam and contribute to the formation of a more objective, fair, and scientifically grounded approach to history. In this article, we wish to recall ten Muslim scholars of the past whose achievements constituted breakthroughs in world science.

Ibn Hayyan

Jabir ibn Hayyan (721–815) is regarded as the father of modern chemistry. Before Jabir ibn Hayyan, chemistry consisted of several scattered treatises on various crafts, which were intermingled with numerous other crafts of different kinds. However, Ibn Hayyan succeeded in developing chemistry and elevating it from its rudimentary stage to the highest level. This was achieved through extensive scientific work and numerous observations. He also established fundamental principles governing the preparation of chemical substances and their interactions; therefore, Jabir ibn Hayyan is unquestionably regarded as the teacher of all chemists.

Through scientific experiments, he succeeded in identifying many acids. In his laboratory, he continually refined the processes of distillation, melting, crystallization, purification, oxidation, evaporation, and filtration; carried out reactions to obtain sulfuric acid; and began developing classifications of alcohols, metals, and minerals. Ten centuries before John Dalton’s discovery, Jabir developed a conception of chemical bonds as the links connecting elements.

Today, with modern equipment and fully equipped laboratories at our disposal, it becomes clear that more than 1,250 years ago, Jabir was a scientist ahead of his time.

We reiterate that Jabir ibn Hayyan was a student and follower of Imam Jaʿfar al-Sadiq (702–765). According to this tradition, Imam Jaʿfar al-Sadiq taught Jabir knowledge of nature, medicine, philosophy, and chemistry. Jabir regarded Imam Jaʿfar al-Sadiq as his teacher and spiritual mentor. Works attributed to Jabir contain references to the teachings of Jaʿfar al-Sadiq.

Al-Khwarizmi

Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi (780–850) is, without exaggeration, regarded as the founder of algebra. He was the first to use the digit zero. Al-Khwarizmi was the first to present algebra as an independent science concerned with general methods for solving linear and quadratic equations, and he provided a classification of these equations. He developed detailed trigonometric tables containing the functions of sine, cosine, tangent, and cotangent.

Al-Khwarizmi’s works were translated from Arabic into Latin and subsequently into modern European languages. Various mathematics textbooks were developed on the basis of these works. Al-Khwarizmi’s writings played an important role in the emergence of Renaissance science and exerted a fruitful influence on the development of medieval scientific thought in both Eastern and Western countries.

This distinguished Muslim luminary of science is primarily known for his Book of Restoration and Opposition (Al-Kitāb al-Mukhtaṣar fī Ḥisāb al-Jabr wa-l-Muqābala), which played a crucial role in the history of mathematics. The term algebra derives from the word al-jabr in the title of this work.

Al-Razi

Abu Bakr Muhammad al-Razi (865–925) was an outstanding chemist and physician. Al-Razi made a significant breakthrough in medicine and chemistry through his work on the production of ethanol (medical alcohol) and the study of sulfuric acid. He was among the first scholars to introduce scientific experimentation and laboratory methods into medical practice.

His major achievements: He produced medical alcohol (ethanol) through distillation and studied its properties and applications. He was among the first to describe smallpox and measles in detail, distinguish between these diseases, and indicate that a person who recovered from smallpox acquired immunity against reinfection. Al-Razi paid particular attention to individual patient observation and the systematic maintenance of medical records.

Al-Razi left behind an extensive scientific legacy and exerted a considerable influence on the development of medicine and chemistry. He enriched world science through advances in experimental medicine, clinical diagnosis, pharmacology, and chemistry.

Al-Battani

Abu Abdullah Muhammad ibn Jabir al-Battani (858–929) was an outstanding astronomer and mathematician of the medieval East. He is known as the “Ptolemy of the East.” He refined many of Ptolemy’s astronomical calculations and made a significant contribution to the development of astronomy and trigonometry.

His major achievements: Calculation of the length of the solar year. He calculated the solar year to be 365 days, 5 hours, 46 minutes, and 24 seconds. The margin of error was only approximately 2 minutes and 22 seconds. These data later helped Europe reform its calendar and adopt the Gregorian calendar.

Refinement of astronomical knowledge. He established the change in the position of the solar apogee relative to the fixed stars, thereby refining earlier astronomical conceptions.

Study of solar eclipses. He mathematically demonstrated the possibility of annular solar eclipses and improved the methods used to calculate them.

Development of trigonometry. He extensively employed sines instead of Greek geometrical chords and used tangents and cotangents, thereby advancing mathematical methods for astronomical calculations.

Influence on European science. His astronomical tables were translated into Latin and used by European scholars. Nicolaus Copernicus referred repeatedly (23 times) to his observations and calculations in his book On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres.

Al-Battani made an immense contribution to world science by improving astronomical observations, calendar calculations, and mathematical methods for studying celestial bodies.

Al-Zahrawi

Al-Zahrawi—Albucasis (936–1013)—earned a reputation as the greatest surgeon of the Middle Ages. No one in that era surpassed him either in surgical skill or in innovation within the field. Just as Pirogov is regarded as a pioneer of anesthesia, al-Zahrawi was the first to use catgut in abdominal surgery and for subcutaneous sutures. Catgut is a surgical thread that is gradually absorbed by the human body without leaving a trace, owing to its organic composition. It is most commonly made from sheep intestines.

Al-Zahrawi was the first to introduce the supine position for operations on the pelvis, which later became the standard surgical position. He described what is now known as tuberculous bone disease and introduced cataract-removal surgery into Western ophthalmic surgery (a term associated with al-Zahrawi). This Muslim surgeon was, and remains, the only author to have described the entire cataract-removal procedure and illustrated it with drawings. Previously, the techniques of this relatively simple operation had been transmitted exclusively to a select few.

Al-Zahrawi was the author of more than 150 new surgical instruments. He is credited with inventing the syringe, forceps, the surgical hook and needle, and the bone saw. Many of the instruments he designed are still used in modern medicine.

Al-Zahrawi’s encyclopedic work, The Book of the Presentation of Medical Knowledge to Those Unable to Compile It Themselves, widely known as Kitab al-Tasrif, consists of 30 volumes and summarizes the experience of his entire lifetime. This encyclopedic work became a reference book for surgeons in medieval Europe, was copied and published numerous times, and remained one of the principal textbooks of surgery for five centuries.

Al-Haytham

Ibn al-Haytham—Alhazen (965–1039)—was a founder of optics. The scholar continued Euclid’s investigations into the nature of light. Before him, ancient optics knew only the simplest empirical laws of optical phenomena: the law of the rectilinear propagation of light in a homogeneous medium; the law of reflection of light from mirror surfaces; and the phenomenon of light refraction at the boundary between two transparent media.

Following the ancient Roman scholar and physician Galen, al-Haytham investigated the structure of the eye and demonstrated the inadequacy of Plato’s and Euclid’s theories of human vision. Al-Haytham developed the concept of binocular vision (seeing with both eyes). He was the first to explain vision as a process in which rays arriving at the eye from objects form an image within the lens. He was also the first to name the parts of the eye, including the “cornea,” “lens,” and “vitreous body,” among others. Having constructed models of lenses from crystal and glass, he proposed correcting vision with biconvex lenses and suggested their use for reading in old age (eyeglasses).

Ibn al-Haytham introduced the concept of atmospheric pressure into scientific discourse and linked air density to altitude. After him, scholars began investigating the problems of light refraction. However, no major discoveries in optical science were made until the beginning of the seventeenth century.

Al-Haytham’s book Treatise on Optics (Kitab al-Manazir) was regarded as a fundamental work in the countries of the East and Western Europe for 600 years.

Ibn Sina

Ibn Sina—Avicenna (980–1037)—was a polymath and physician. His major achievements: The Canon of Medicine—he created a five-volume medical encyclopedia that was used as a textbook in European universities for centuries. In medical education, his works were translated into Latin and studied at European universities until the seventeenth century. Ibn Sina helped systematize medical knowledge and advanced diagnosis, pharmacology, and disease prevention. He demonstrated the importance of studying the human body as an integrated whole.

His principal legacy lies in his immense contribution to the establishment of medicine as a scientific discipline. Today, Avicenna is regarded as one of the greatest physicians in human history.

Al-Biruni

Abu Rayhan Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Biruni (973–1048) was an outstanding encyclopedic scholar of the medieval East, mathematician, astronomer, geographer, and physicist. He made significant contributions to the development of the natural sciences, particularly astronomy, geodesy, and mathematics. Al-Biruni developed an original method for determining the Earth’s radius and calculated the dimensions of the Earth with remarkable accuracy for his time. He also investigated the possibility of the Earth’s rotation on its axis and its movement around the Sun.

His major achievements: He developed a method for determining the Earth’s radius by measuring the height of a mountain and the angle of the horizon. He investigated the motion of celestial bodies and considered the possibility of the Earth’s rotation on its axis and its revolution around the Sun. He designed precise measuring instruments for determining the density and specific gravity of minerals and metals. He worked on trigonometry, the calculation of geographical coordinates, and the determination of distances between cities.

Al-Biruni left behind an immense scientific legacy and became one of the world’s greatest scholars. He enriched global science through precise measurements, experimental methods, and fundamental discoveries in astronomy, geography, mathematics, and physics.

Al-Jazari

Abu al-Izz Ismail ibn al-Razzaz al-Jazari (1136–1206) was an astronomer, mathematician, mechanical engineer, and inventor, widely regarded as one of the greatest geniuses in the history of engineering and often referred to as the “Leonardo da Vinci of the Arab world.”

Al-Jazari is credited with one of the most significant inventions in the history of mechanics: the crankshaft. Considered second in importance only to the invention of the wheel, it remains one of the fundamental components of modern machinery.

In his treatise The Book of Knowledge of Ingenious Mechanical Devices (Kitab fi ma’rifat al-hiyal al-handasiyya), he described the designs of approximately 50 mechanical devices, including clocks, combination locks, and robots. In effect, his work laid some of the foundations for cybernetics. He constructed four humanoid automata, placed them in a boat, and made them play drums and cymbals. He also designed musical automata, combination locks, double-acting piston pumps with valves, water-raising machines, water clocks, and fountains.

Other technological innovations attributed to al-Jazari include the lamination of wood, the use of scale models (which he made from paper), the precision fitting of moving components using corundum, metal doors, and a hybrid instrument combining a compass with a universal sundial suitable for use at any latitude, among other inventions.

Al-Tusi

Nasir al-Din al-Tusi (1201–1274) was an outstanding mathematician, astronomer, philosopher, and scholar of the medieval East. He made an immense contribution to the development of mathematics and astronomy, particularly trigonometry, and founded the renowned Maragheh Observatory, which became a major scientific center of its time.

His principal achievements: He established trigonometry as an independent mathematical discipline, separating it from astronomy. He organized the construction of one of the largest astronomical observatories of the Middle Ages — the Maragheh Observatory — which brought together scholars from different countries. He compiled accurate astronomical tables describing planetary movements and a catalogue of stars. He developed a mathematical model explaining how rectilinear motion could be produced through the combination of two circular motions. This model later attracted the attention of historians of astronomy and researchers studying the work of Copernicus.

Al-Tusi enriched world science through his contributions to trigonometry, mathematical astronomy, and the development of new geometrical models of celestial motion. He laid important foundations for trigonometry as an independent discipline, advanced mathematical astronomy, and developed models of motion that influenced the subsequent development of astronomy worldwide.

Namig Babakhanov