Heritage of Arabic Geometry: Al–Samarqandī’s Work in Fundamental Geometric Theorems

Authors : Wesam TALAB

Pages : 68-89

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Publication Date : 2023-05-25

Article Type : Review Paper

Abstract :The manuscripts of Arabic scientific heritage are full of invaluable knowledge which was lost or neglected even by Arabic speaking scholars. Moreover, the authors of the available manuscripts were not studied enough by Arab scholars even though their work had established the basics of different modern sciences, beside the fact that methods and terminologies used in Arabic manuscripts are still used today. In this paper we shed light on the work of one of the founders of the science of geometry in the Arab heritage, Shams al‐Samarqandī , namely Ashkāl al-Tā’sīs, which is translated into English as Fundamental Theorems, that is considered as one of the early writing, in which different basic geometric propositions and their properties are explained. By studying and analysing the information he presented, we try to show the importance of his work, demonstrating some salient examples that present the paramount quality of al–Samarqandī’s work for the Arab heritage of geometry. Discussing his methodology and comparing it with the scientific facts established nowadays in geometry, the results show, that he was a pioneer scholar and mathematician of the scientific heritage written in Arabic whose work should be studied more carefully and thoroughly to understand his influence on the science of geometry with a manuscript of less than thirty pages, forming the current used terms nowadays in Arabic geometry. Finally, the conclusions and results suggest some recommendations to preserve and Present the rich scientific heritage written in Arabic.
Keywords : Geometry, Arabic mathematical heritage, geometrical theorems or propositions, alSamarqandī