Algebra
Many
Westerners, Germans in particular, are proud of their feats of technology and
engineering. But where would engineers be without algebra?
The
mathematical system became known in Europe in the twelfth century, when British
Arabist Robert of Chester translated the writings of Arab scholar Al-Khwarizmi.
Al-Khwarizmi, for whom algorithms are named, is known as the developer of
modern algebra.
2. The toothbrush
Islam was
the one of the first world religions to place particular emphasis on bodily
hygiene. The Qur’an includes instructions for ritual washing. It is no wonder,
therefore, that dental hygiene also grew in popularity as Islam did.
Admittedly, the ancient Egyptians are thought to have chewed on twigs from the
“toothbrush tree.”
However, the
twigs, also known as “miswak”, only became known to a wider public when the
Prophet Mohammed regularly used them to brush his teeth. While there is no
mention of miswak twigs in the Qur’an, they are mentioned many times in
writings by Muslim scholars.
3. Marching bands
Military
marching bands date back to the Ottoman Mehterhane. These were bands which
played during the entire battle and only ceased their music-making when the
army retreated or the battle was over.
During the
wars with the Ottoman Empire, the bands are thought to have made a considerable
impression on European soldiers – after which they adapted the principle for
their own use.
4. The guitar
The guitar,
as we know it today, has its origins in the Arabic oud – a lute with a bent
neck. During the Middle Ages, it found its way to Muslim Spain, where it was
referred to as “qitara” in the Arabic of Andalusia.
It is said
that a music teacher brought one to the court of the Umayyad ruler Abdel Rahman
II in the ninth century. The modern guitar developed as a result of many
influences, but the Arabic lute was an important predecessor.
5. Magnifying glass/glasses
Not only did
the Arab world revolutionize mathematics – it also revolutionized optics. The
scholar Alhazen (Abu al-Hasan) from Basra was the first person to describe how
the eye works.
He carried
out experiments with reflective materials and proved that the eye does not
sense the environment with “sight rays,” as scientists had believed up until
then. He also discovered that curved glass surfaces can be used for
magnification.
His glass
“reading stones” were the first magnifying glasses. It was from these that
glasses were later developed. Furthermore, Alhazen wrote important scholarly
texts on astronomy and meteorology.
6. Coffee
Coffee is
the best known of the Muslim world’s exports. While it originated in Ethiopia,
it soon found its way over the Red Sea to the Arabian peninsula, where it grew
in popularity.
It is
thought that an Ottoman merchant brought the bean-based beverage to London in
the 17th century. Venice gained its first coffee house in 1645, while Germany
got to know the drink following the retreat of the Turks from Austria in 1683.
Legend has it that the Sultan’s soldiers left sackloads of coffee behind.
7. Hospitals
The first
modern hospital with nurses and a training center was in Cairo. In the Ahmed
Ibn Tulun hospital (named for the founder of the Tulunid dynasty), which was
established in the year 872, all patients received free health care – a Muslim
tradition which was institutionalized with the advent of the hospital.
Slightly
more basic hospitals had existed prior to this in Baghdad. But it was the Cairo
model which would later serve as the template for hospitals all around the
globe.
8. Surgical Innovations
The
Andalusian-born doctor Albucasis (Abu al-Kasim) was one of the most significant
medical figures of the Middle Ages. In the more than 30 volumes he wrote, the
tenth-century Arab scholar described how important a positive patient-doctor
relationship is, and argued for the same standard of medical care for all,
regardless of social class.
He also
invented methods for surgically treating diseases of the urethra, the ear and
the esophagus, and was the first person to describe an ectopic pregnancy. So
great was his influence that he was still being quoted by leading European
physicians in the 16th century. His ideas shaped modern surgery.
This piece originally appeared and translated into English on The Huffington Post
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