Al-Samawal
Encyclopedia
commonly known as Samau'al al-Maghribi was a Muslim mathematician, astronomer
and physician
of Jewish descent
. Though born to a Jewish family, he converted to Islam in 1163 after he had a dream telling him to do so. His father was a Jewish Rabbi
from Morocco
.
He also used the two basic concepts of mathematical induction
, though without stating them explicitly. He used this to extend results for the binomial theorem
up to n=12 and Pascal's triangle
previously given by al-Karaji
.
book in Arabic debating Judaism
known as Ifḥām al-Yahūd (Confutation of the Jews) or in Spanish
Epistola Samuelis Maroccani and later known in English
as The blessed Jew of Morocco.
Islamic astronomy
Islamic astronomy or Arabic astronomy comprises the astronomical developments made in the Islamic world, particularly during the Islamic Golden Age , and mostly written in the Arabic language. These developments mostly took place in the Middle East, Central Asia, Al-Andalus, and North Africa, and...
and physician
Islamic medicine
In the history of medicine, Islamic medicine, Arabic medicine or Arabian medicine refers to medicine developed in the Islamic Golden Age, and written in Arabic, the lingua franca of Islamic civilization....
of Jewish descent
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
. Though born to a Jewish family, he converted to Islam in 1163 after he had a dream telling him to do so. His father was a Jewish Rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
from Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
.
Mathematics
Al-Samaw'al wrote the mathematical treatise al-Bahir fi'l-jabr, meaning "The brilliant in algebra", at the age of nineteen.He also used the two basic concepts of mathematical induction
Mathematical induction
Mathematical induction is a method of mathematical proof typically used to establish that a given statement is true of all natural numbers...
, though without stating them explicitly. He used this to extend results for the binomial theorem
Binomial theorem
In elementary algebra, the binomial theorem describes the algebraic expansion of powers of a binomial. According to the theorem, it is possible to expand the power n into a sum involving terms of the form axbyc, where the exponents b and c are nonnegative integers with , and the coefficient a of...
up to n=12 and Pascal's triangle
Pascal's triangle
In mathematics, Pascal's triangle is a triangular array of the binomial coefficients in a triangle. It is named after the French mathematician, Blaise Pascal...
previously given by al-Karaji
Al-Karaji
' was a 10th century Persian Muslim mathematician and engineer. His three major works are Al-Badi' fi'l-hisab , Al-Fakhri fi'l-jabr wa'l-muqabala , and Al-Kafi fi'l-hisab .Because al-Karaji's original works in Arabic are lost, it is not...
.
Polemics
He also wrote a famous polemicPolemic
A polemic is a variety of arguments or controversies made against one opinion, doctrine, or person. Other variations of argument are debate and discussion...
book in Arabic debating Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
known as Ifḥām al-Yahūd (Confutation of the Jews) or in Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
Epistola Samuelis Maroccani and later known in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
as The blessed Jew of Morocco.