The Abbasid House of Wisdom: Between Myth and Reality

The Abbasid House of Wisdom: Between Myth and Reality
ISBN-10
1000736288
ISBN-13
9781000736281
Category
History
Pages
95
Language
English
Published
2022-08-01
Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Author
Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu

Description

This volume examines the library of the Abbasid caliphs, known as "The House of Wisdom" ("Bayt al-Hikma"), exploring how this important institution has been misconceived by scholars’. This book places the palace library within the framework of the multifaceted cultural and scientific activities in the era of the caliphs, Harun al-Rashid and al-Ma’mun, generally regarded as the Golden Age of Islamic civilization. The author studies the first references to the House of Wisdom in European sources and shows how misconceptions arose because of incorrect translations of Arabic manuscripts and also because of how scholars overlooked the historical context of the library in ways that reflected their own cultural and national ambitions. The Abbasid House of Wisdom is perfect for scholars, students, and the wider public interested in the scientific and cultural activities of the Islamic Golden Age.

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