Al-Nayrizi
Encyclopedia
Abū’l-‘Abbās al-Faḍl ibn Ḥātim al-Nairīzī was a 9th-10th century Persian
mathematician
and astronomer
from Nayriz, Fars, Iran
.
He flourished under al-Mu'tadid
, Caliph
from 892 to 902, and compiled astronomical tables, writing a book for al-Mu'tadid on atmospheric phenomena.
Nayrizi wrote commentaries on Ptolemy
and Euclid
. The latter were translated by Gerard of Cremona
. Nairizi used the so-called umbra (versa), the equivalent to the tangent, as a genuine trigonometric line (but he was anticipated in this by al-Marwazi
).
He wrote a treatise on the spherical astrolabe, which is very elaborate and seems to be the best Persian work on the subject. It is divided into four books:
He gave a proof of the Pythagorean theorem
using the Pythagorean tiling
.
Ibn al-Nadim
mentions Nayrizi as a distinguished astronomer with Eight works by him listed in his book al-Fihrist.
Persian people
The Persian people are part of the Iranian peoples who speak the modern Persian language and closely akin Iranian dialects and languages. The origin of the ethnic Iranian/Persian peoples are traced to the Ancient Iranian peoples, who were part of the ancient Indo-Iranians and themselves part of...
mathematician
Mathematician
A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
and astronomer
Astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
from Nayriz, Fars, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
.
He flourished under al-Mu'tadid
Al-Mu'tadid
Al-Mu'tadid was the Abbasid Caliph in Baghdad from 892 to 902. As the son and heir of the powerful vizier and virtual regent Al-Muwaffaq , Mu'tadid was already in possession of supreme power even before he was appointed Caliph, and continued as Caliph to ably administer the Government...
, Caliph
Caliph
The Caliph is the head of state in a Caliphate, and the title for the ruler of the Islamic Ummah, an Islamic community ruled by the Shari'ah. It is a transcribed version of the Arabic word which means "successor" or "representative"...
from 892 to 902, and compiled astronomical tables, writing a book for al-Mu'tadid on atmospheric phenomena.
Nayrizi wrote commentaries on Ptolemy
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy , was a Roman citizen of Egypt who wrote in Greek. He was a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer, and poet of a single epigram in the Greek Anthology. He lived in Egypt under Roman rule, and is believed to have been born in the town of Ptolemais Hermiou in the...
and Euclid
Euclid
Euclid , fl. 300 BC, also known as Euclid of Alexandria, was a Greek mathematician, often referred to as the "Father of Geometry". He was active in Alexandria during the reign of Ptolemy I...
. The latter were translated by Gerard of Cremona
Gerard of Cremona
Gerard of Cremona was an Italian translator of Arabic scientific works found in the abandoned Arab libraries of Toledo, Spain....
. Nairizi used the so-called umbra (versa), the equivalent to the tangent, as a genuine trigonometric line (but he was anticipated in this by al-Marwazi
Al-Marwazi
Ahmad ibn 'Abdallah Habash Hasib Marwazi was an astronomer, geographer, and mathematician from Merv in Khorasan.He flourished in Baghdad, and died a centenarian after 869...
).
He wrote a treatise on the spherical astrolabe, which is very elaborate and seems to be the best Persian work on the subject. It is divided into four books:
- Historical and critical introduction.
- Description of the spherical astrolabe; its superiority over plane astrolabeAstrolabeAn astrolabe is an elaborate inclinometer, historically used by astronomers, navigators, and astrologers. Its many uses include locating and predicting the positions of the Sun, Moon, planets, and stars, determining local time given local latitude and longitude, surveying, triangulation, and to...
s and all other astronomical instruments. - Applications.
- Applications.
He gave a proof of the Pythagorean theorem
Pythagorean theorem
In mathematics, the Pythagorean theorem or Pythagoras' theorem is a relation in Euclidean geometry among the three sides of a right triangle...
using the Pythagorean tiling
Pythagorean tiling
In geometry, the Pythagorean tiling or two squares tessellation is a tessellation of the plane by squares of two different sizes, in which each square touches four squares of the other size on its four sides. A tiling of this type may be formed by squares of any two different sizes...
.
Ibn al-Nadim
Ibn al-Nadim
Abu'l-Faraj Muhammad bin Is'hāq al-Nadim , whose father was known as al-Warrāq was a Shia Muslim scholar and bibliographer. Some scholars regard him as a Persian, but this is not certain. He is famous as the author of the Kitāb al-Fihrist...
mentions Nayrizi as a distinguished astronomer with Eight works by him listed in his book al-Fihrist.
Primary sources
- The (fragmentary) text of Nairizi's commentary on Euclid I. PDF scans from the edition of Codex Leidensis 399 (Classical Arabic)