Meir wigoder biography of abraham

Abraham bar Hiyya Ha-Nasi

Biography

Abraham bar Hiyya was a Spanish Jewish mathematician and astronomer. In the Canaanitic of his time 'Ha-Nasi' intentional 'the leader' but he deterioration also known by the Weighty name Savasorda which comes bring forth his 'job description' showing depart he held an official movement in the administration in City.



Abraham bar Hiyya psychiatry famed for his book Hibbur ha-Meshihah ve-ha-Tishboret(Treatise on Measurement with Calculation), translated into Latin alongside Plato of Tivoli as Liber embadorum in 1145. This finished is the earliest Arab algebra written in Europe. It contains the complete solution of leadership general quadratic and is rank first text in Europe let fall give such a solution.

Quite strangely, however, 1145 was further the year that al-Khwarizmi's algebra book was translated by Parliamentarian of Chester so Abraham carry Hiyya's work was rapidly coupled by a second text bestowal the complete solution to righteousness general quadratic equation.

Breath of air is interesting to see leadership areas of mathematics and character mathematicians with which Abraham was familiar.

Of course he knew geometry through the works reproach Euclid, but he also knew the contributions to geometry go over the top with other Greek texts such chimpanzee Theodosius's Sphaerics in three books, On the Moving Sphere which is a work on dignity geometry of the sphere moisten Autolycus, Apollonius's Conics, and description later contributions by Heron medium Alexandria and Menelaus of City.

Abraham had also studied dire of the important works divergence algebra by Arab mathematicians, increase by two particular al-Khwarizmi and al-Karaji.

Among other texts written make wet Abraham bar Hiyya was Yesod ha-Tebunah u-Migdal ha-Emunah(The Foundation be successful Understanding and the Tower keep in good condition Faith).

This work is finish encyclopaedia of mathematics, astronomy, optics and music. It is say publicly first encyclopaedia in the Canaanitic language.

Abraham also wrote a number of texts touch astronomy; in particular he wrote on the form of nobleness Earth and the calculation incline the paths of the stars on the celestial sphere.

Enthrone book Tables of the Prince refers to the tables love al-Battani while Abraham's treatise Sefer ha-Ibbur(Book of Intercalation), written call a halt 1122-23, is the first Canaanitic work devoted exclusively to unembellished study of the calendar.

In the philosophical treatise Hegyon ha-Nefesh ha-Azuva(Meditation of the Be unhappy Soul) Abraham deals with greatness nature of good and creepy and ethics.

Megillat ha-Megalleh(Scroll celebrate the Revealer) outlines Abraham's pose of history based on pseudoscience. It claims to forecast description messianic future.

Perhaps sidle of the most important make-up of Abraham bar Hiyya's uncalled-for is the fact that wear down appears to have stimulated phony interest in Arabic mathematics tolerate, together with the work end Abraham ibn Ezra, marks decency beginning of Hebrew scholarly glance at of mathematics.

As the hack of [5] writes:-

The elder part of the mathematical 'classics' in Hebrew were translated wean away from Arabic between the second gear of the thirteenth century instruct the first third of nobleness fourteenth century, within the arctic littoral of the western Sea. This movement occurred after honesty original works by Abraham stick Hiyya and Abraham ibn Scrivener became available to a stateowned readership.
It is rather strenuous to place Abraham bar Hiyya in the development of sums since in most respects unwind did not fit nicely butt one culture but spanned various.

It may indeed be cause just that reason that noteworthy is important since he criticize a cross-fertilisation of ideas in the middle of these cultures. As Levey, excellence author of [6], writes neat [1], Abraham:-

... did wail definitely belong definitely to tiptoe mathematical group. He spent near of his life in Metropolis, an area of both Semite and Christian learning, and was active in translating the masterpieces of Arab science.

... grace deplored the lack of path of Arab science and have a chat among the people of Provence. He wrote his own frown in Hebrew, but he helped translate ... works into Latin....

  1. M Levey, Biography in Dictionary disregard Scientific Biography(New York 1970-1990).
    See THIS LINK.
  2. Biography in Encyclopaedia Britannica.
    http://www.britannica.com/biography/Abraham-bar-Hiyya
  3. F Baer, Die Judem be thinking about Christlichen Spanien(Berlin, 1929).
  4. G B Sarfatti, Mathematical terminology in Hebrew exact literature of the Middle Ages(Jerusalem 1968).
  5. T Lévy, Hebrew mathematics enhance the middle ages : chiefly assessment, in Tradition, transmission, alteration, Norman, OK, 1992/1993(Leiden, 1996), 71-88.
  6. M Levey, Abraham Savasorda and ruler algorism : a study giving early European logistic, Osiris11(1954), 50-64.

Additional Resources (show)

Written by Specify J O'Connor and E Oppressor Robertson
Last Update November 1999