House of Wisdom

The House of Wisdom ( ; Bait al-Hikma ) was a library and translation institute in Abbassid -era Baghdad , Iraq. It was a key institution in the Translation Movement and considered to have been a major intellectual center of the Islamic Golden Age . The House of Wisdom acted as a society founded by Abbasid caliphs Harun al-Rashid and culminating with his son al-Ma'mun , who reigned from 813–833 CE and is credited with its institution. Mamun is also credited with bringing most of the well known scholars from around the globe to share information ideas and culture in the House of Wisdom Based in Baghdad from the 9th to 13th centuries, many of the most learned Muslim scholars were part of this excellent research and educational institute. The term house of wisdom is a calque of Persian Sassanians ' designation for a library. It was modeled on that of the Sassanians , had the purpose of translating books from Persian to Arabic, and also of preservation of translated books. In the reign of al-Ma'mun, observatories were set up, and The House was an unrivalled center for the study of humanities and for Islamic science , including Islamic mathematics , Islamic astronomy , Islamic medicine , Islamic alchemy and chemistry , zoology and Islamic geography . Drawing on Persian , Indian and Greek texts—including those of Pythagoras , Plato , Aristotle , Hippocrates , Euclid , Plotinus , Galen , Sushruta , Charaka , Aryabhata , Socrates and Brahmagupta —the scholars accumulated a great collection of world knowledge, and built on it through their own discoveries. Baghdad was known as the world's richest city and centre for intellectual development of the time, and had a population of over a million, the largest in its time. The great scholars of the House of Wisdom included Al-Khawarizmi , the " father " of algebra , which takes its name from his book Kitab al-Jabr .

Scholars at an Abbasid library. Maqamat of al-Hariri Illustration by Yahyá al-Wasiti, Baghdad 1237 The House of Wisdom ( ; Bayt al-Hikma ) was a major intellectual center during the Islamic Golden Age . The House of Wisdom was founded by Caliph Harun al-Rashid (reigned 786–809) and culminated under his son al-Ma'mun (reigned 813–833) who is credited with its formal institution. Al-Ma'mun is also credited with bringing many well-known scholars to share information, ideas, and culture in the House of Wisdom. Based in Baghdad from the 9th to 13th centuries, many learned scholars including those of Jewish or Christian background were part of this research and educational institute. Besides translating books into Arabic and preserving them, scholars associated with the House of Wisdom also made many remarkable original contributions to diverse fields. During the reign of al-Ma'mun, astronomical observatories were set up, and the House was an unrivaled center for the study of humanities and for science in medieval Islam , including mathematics , astronomy , medicine , alchemy and chemistry , zoology, and geography and cartography . Drawing on Greek , Indian and Persian texts, the scholars accumulated a great collection of world knowledge, and built on it through their own discoveries. By the middle of the ninth century, the House of Wisdom was the largest repository of books in the world. It was destroyed in the sack of the city following the Mongol Siege of Baghdad (1258) .

Library, translation institute and research center in Baghdad, Iraq This article is about the medieval Abbasid Library. Scholars at an Abbasid library. Maqamat of al-Hariri Illustration by Yahyá al-Wasiti, 1237 The House of Wisdom ( ), also known as the Grand Library of Baghdad , refers to either a major Abbasid public academy and intellectual center in Baghdad or to a large private library belonging to the Abbasid Caliphs during the Islamic Golden Age . The House of Wisdom is the subject of an active dispute over its functions and existence as a formal academy, an issue complicated by a lack of physical evidence following the collapse of the Abbasid Caliphate and a reliance on corroboration of literary sources to construct a narrative. The House of Wisdom was founded either as a library for the collections of the Caliph Harun al-Rashid in the late 8th century (then later turned into a public academy during the reign of Al-Ma'mun ) or was a private collection created by Al-Mansur (reign 754–775) to house rare books and collections of poetry in both Arabic and Persian. The House of Wisdom and its contents were destroyed in the Siege of Baghdad in 1258, leaving very little in the way of archaeological evidence for the House of Wisdom, such that most knowledge about it is derived from the works of contemporary scholars of the era such as Al-Tabari and Ibn al-Nadim . The Graeco-Arabic Translation Movement in Baghdad and Early ʻAbbāsid Society (2nd–4th/8th–10th Centuries) .

8th–13th-century library in Baghdad, modern Iraq This article is about the Abbasid library. The House of Wisdom ( ), also known as the Grand Library of Baghdad , was a major Abbasid public academy and intellectual center in Baghdad and one of the world's largest public libraries during the Islamic Golden Age . The House of Wisdom was founded either as a library for the collections of the Caliph Harun al-Rashid in the late 8th century or was a private collection created by al-Mansur ( r. 754–775) to house rare books and collections of poetry in Arabic. During the reign of the Caliph al-Ma'mun , it was turned into a public academy and a library. The House of Wisdom and its contents were destroyed in the Siege of Baghdad in 1258, leaving relatively limited archaeological evidence, such that most knowledge about it is derived from the works of contemporary scholars of the era such as al-Tabari and Ibn al-Nadim . The Graeco-Arabic Translation Movement in Baghdad and Early ʻAbbāsid Society (2nd–4th/8th–10th Centuries) . "The house of wisdom (Bait Al-Hikmah): A sign of glorious period of Abbasids caliphate and development of science" . International Journal of Engineering and Information Systems .

Abbasid-era library in Baghdad, modern-day Iraq This article is about the Abbasid library in Baghdad, Iraq. The House of Wisdom ( Arabic : بَيْت الْحِكْمَة Bayt al-Ḥikmah ), also known as the Grand Library of Baghdad , was believed to be a major Abbasid -era public academy and intellectual center in Baghdad . In popular reference, it acted as one of the world's largest public libraries during the Islamic Golden Age , and was founded either as a library for the collections of the fifth Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid ( r. 786–809 ) in the late 8th century or as a private collection of the second Abbasid caliph al-Mansur ( r. 754–775 ) to house rare books and collections in the Arabic language. During the reign of the seventh Abbasid caliph al-Ma'mun ( r. 813 – 833 AD ), it was turned into a public academy and a library. It was destroyed in 1258 during the Mongol siege of Baghdad . The primary sources behind the House of Wisdom narrative date between the late eight centuries and thirteenth centuries, and most importantly include the references in Ibn al-Nadim 's (d. 995) al-Fihrist . More recently, the narrative of the Abbasid House of Wisdom acting as a major intellectual center, university, and playing a sizable role during the translation movement has been understood by some historians to be a myth, constructed originally over the course of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries by Orientalists and, through their works, propagated its way into scholarship and nationally-oriented works until more recent re-investigations of the evidence. The Graeco-Arabic Translation Movement in Baghdad and Early ʻAbbāsid Society (2nd–4th/8th–10th Centuries) . "The house of wisdom (Bait Al-Hikmah): A sign of glorious period of Abbasids caliphate and development of science" . International Journal of Engineering and Information Systems . The New Cambridge History of Islam . The Abbasid house of wisdom: between myth and reality . The Abbasid house of wisdom: between myth and reality . The globe: how the Earth became round .