Ibn Hawqal: Difference between revisions
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[[Image:Ibn Howqal World map.jpg|thumb|right|10th century map of the World by Ibn Hawqal.]] |
[[Image:Ibn Howqal World map.jpg|thumb|right|10th century map of the World by Ibn Hawqal.]] |
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[[File:Ibn Hawqal’s map 1 wiki.jpg|thumb|right|10th century map of the Caspian sea by Ibn Hawqal]] |
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'''Muḥammad Abū’l-Qāsim Ibn Ḥawqal''' ({{lang-ar|محمد أبو القاسم بن حوقل}}, born in [[Nisibis]];<ref>[[Svat Soucek|Soucek, Svat]], ''A History of Inner Asia'' ([[Cambridge University Press]]:2000), page 73.</ref> travelled 943-969 CE) was a 10th century [[Muslim]] writer, geographer, and chronicler. His famous work, written in 977, is called ''Ṣūrat al-’Arḍ'' (صورة الارض; "The face of the Earth"). |
'''Muḥammad Abū’l-Qāsim Ibn Ḥawqal''' ({{lang-ar|محمد أبو القاسم بن حوقل}}, born in [[Nisibis]];<ref>[[Svat Soucek|Soucek, Svat]], ''A History of Inner Asia'' ([[Cambridge University Press]]:2000), page 73.</ref> travelled 943-969 CE) was a 10th century [[Muslim]] writer, geographer, and chronicler. His famous work, written in 977, is called ''Ṣūrat al-’Arḍ'' (صورة الارض; "The face of the Earth"). |
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Revision as of 13:00, 16 February 2012
Ibn Hawqal | |
|---|---|
| Born | |
| Academic background | |
| Influences | Al-Balkhi |
| Academic work | |
| Era | Islamic Golden Age |
| School or tradition | Balkhi school |
| Main interests | Islamic geography |
| Notable works | Ṣūrat al-’Arḍ |
Muḥammad Abū’l-Qāsim Ibn Ḥawqal (Arabic: محمد أبو القاسم بن حوقل, born in Nisibis;[1] travelled 943-969 CE) was a 10th century Muslim writer, geographer, and chronicler. His famous work, written in 977, is called Ṣūrat al-’Arḍ (صورة الارض; "The face of the Earth").
What little is known of his life is extrapolated from his book, which was a revision and extension of the Masālik ul-Mamālik of Istakhri (951). That itself was a revised edition of the Ṣuwar al-aqālīm of Ahmed ibn Sahl al-Balkhi, who wrote about 921.
Ibn Hawqal was clearly more than an editor; he was a traveler who spent much of his time writing about the areas and things he had seen. He spent the last 30 years of his life traveling to remote parts of Asia and Africa. One of his travels brought him 20° south of the equator along the East African coast. One of the things he noticed was that there were large numbers of people living in areas that the Greeks, working from logic rather than experience, said must be uninhabitable (due to the belief that the earth was flat) [citation needed].
His descriptions were accurate and very helpful to travelers. Ṣūrat al-’Arḍ included a detailed description of Muslim-held Spain, Italy and particularly Sicily. Ibn Hawqal recorded that the area of Fraxinet (La Garde-Freinet) was richly cultivated by its Muslim inhabitants, and they have been credited with a number of agricultural and fishing innovations for the region.
He also mentions the "Lands of the Romans," the term used by the Muslim world to describe the Byzantine Empire. In it, among other things, he describes his first-hand observation that 360 languages are spoken in the Caucasus, with Azeri and Persian languages being used as Lingua Franca across the Caucasus, he also gives a description of Kiev, and is said to have mentioned the route of the Volga Bulgars and the Khazars, perhaps by Sviatoslav I of Kiev Encyclopedia of Ukraine. He also mentions and published a cartographic map of Sindh, he mentions the geography and culture of Sindh and the Indus River.
lbn Hauqal's work was published by M. J. de Goeie (Leiden, 1873). An anonymous epitome of the book was written in 1233.
See also
References
- ^ Soucek, Svat, A History of Inner Asia (Cambridge University Press:2000), page 73.
- James, Preston Everett. All Possible Worlds: A History of Geography. New York: Wiley, 1981.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
External links
- Vernet, J. (2008) [1970-80]. "Ibn Ḥawqal Abū'l-Qāsim Muḥammad". Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography. Encyclopedia.com.
- Calvo, Emilia (1997). "Ibn Hawqal". In Selin, Helaine (ed.). Encyclopaedia of the history of science, technology, and medicine in non-western cultures. Kluer Academic Publishing. ISBN 0792340663.