2.3.2

House of Wisdom

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House of Wisdom

The House of Wisdom was established in the 9th century. It acted as a centre for learning and stored knowledge from different societies.

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Previous wisdom

  • The great library of Alexandria tried to capture all the knowledge of the world in Ancient Greece.
    • While much ancient knowledge has been lost, some books had survived in the Byzantine Empire.
  • The Byzantine Emperor sent Al-Mansur a book on geometry by Euclid, who had written about the mathematical concept in the 3rd century BC.
    • The book was translated and kept in the Baghdad House of Wisdom.
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Purpose of the House of Wisdom

  • The House of Wisdom was the largest library in the early 800s. Different religious and ethnic groups came to study here.
  • The caliphs collected books from the Byzantine Empire, Persia, North Africa, India, and China.
    • They paid scholars from all over the Islamic world to study in the House of Wisdom.
    • The study and translation of ancient knowledge, alongside the creation of new knowledge, was partly driven by the caliphs.
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Diversity in thought

  • The House of Wisdom boasted an immense diversity in its collected materials. Many different cultures and ideas were represented in its walls.
    • This reflects the diversity of the Muslim world.
  • Scholars translated books and made new knowledge about maths, science, geography, and technology.

Jump to other topics

1The Medieval World: 450-1450 AD

1.1Anglo-Saxon England

1.2The Contest for the English Throne

1.3Conquering the Holy Land, 10-96-1396 AD

1.4King John

1.5The Magna Carta & Parliament

1.6The Black Death

2Worldviews

3The Empire of Mali

4The Renaissance & Reformations, 1500-1598 AD

5The British Empire, 1583-1960 AD

6The Peasants' Revolt

7Religion in the Middle Ages

8Slavery, 1619-1833 AD

9The English Civil War, 1642-1660

10The Industrial Revolution, 1750-1840

11US Independence, 1775-1783

12The French Revolution, 1789-1815

13The British Empire, 1857–1930

14Suffrage

15World War 1, 1914-1918

16The Inter-War Years, 1919-1939

17World War 2, 1939-1945

18The Cold War, 1947-1962

19Civil Rights in the USA, 1954-1975

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