ARAG

4 OT HN ECSO, FR FU EI VE I V A R

• astronomer •
Ibn al-Shatir
 F Ea tEi o n

(1304-1375: Damascus, Syria)

• Ala Al-Din Abu'l-Hasan Ali Ibn

b a s4i cT Hi nC fOo Fr m

Ibrahim Ibn al-Shatir

• Islamic astronomer, instrument

maker, and head muwaqqit at the
Umayyad mosque in Damascus

• One of the most distinguished

Muslim astronomers of the 14th
century.
 b uFtFi oE nE s

• responsible for the regulation of the

astronomically defined times of prayer.

• fixed the precise times for the five

c 4o TnHt rCi O

daily prayers, based on the

observations of the movements of the
sun, moon and stars

• adjusted the Muslim calendar, which

was lunar rather than solar.
 • helped improve the astrolabe
• constructed a magnificent sundial in 1371
b uFtFi oE nE s

that remained in use until the 19th century

• made calculated tables

called a zij, which enabled
c 4o TnHt rCi O

one to determine what

time it was
 • His most significant contribution to
astronomy was his planetary theory.
b uFtFi oE nE s

• His calculations improved upon the

ancient Ptolemaic system. He removed
the eccentric deferent and equant of
c 4o TnHt rCi O

the Ptolemaic models, with secondary

epicycles used instead.

• His models presumed a geocentric

cosmos

• "Scientific Revolution before the

Renaissance".
 Ibn al-
Shatir’s
Planetary
Theory
b uFtFi oE nE s
c 4o TnHt rCi O

Ibn al-Shatir's geometrical

model was the first that
was actually superior to the
Ptolemaic model in terms of
its better agreement with
both contemporary theory
and empirical observations.
 WHO DID HE INFLUENCE?

• Many historians think it’s not a

4 iT nH f Cl uOeFn Fc Ee E

coincidence that his models of planetary

theory are mathematically identical to
those prepared by Ibn al-Shatir over a
century before him.
• Identical lunar models
• It is likely that al-Shatir's work was
transmitted to Europe and used by
Copernicus.
• How though?
 Thank You!
r eFnFcEe Es

Bell & Zada. (10 February 2011). A Manuscript of Ibn al-Shatir.

Retrieved from http://albabblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/manuscript-of-ibn-
4 Tr He fCe O

al-shatir.html

King. (n.d.) Ibn al‐Shāṭir: ʿAlāʾ al‐Dīn ʿAlī ibn Ibrāhīm. Retrieved from
https://islamsci.mcgill.ca/RASI/BEA/Ibn_al-Shatir_BEA.htm

Jenkins. (11 February 2015). Ibn al-Shatir, The "Father" of Copernicus'

Theory. Retrieved from
http://jenkinsmuslimscientistsandinventors.blogspot.com/2015/02/ibn -al-
shatir-astronomer-mathematician.html