The Role of Muslims in the Formation and Development of Sciences (Part 29)
Is the Science of Logarithms an Initiative of Arab and Muslim Scholars?
“Logarithms” are an essential tool for facilitating and simplifying complex arithmetic operations, such as problems involving “powers” and roots of “uncountable” numbers. This area of study is crucial for scholars in engineering, physics, statistics, chemistry, commercial accounting, and other natural sciences.
“Sinan ibn Al-Fath al-Harrani” Al-Hasib, one of the scholars of the third century AH (ninth century AD), was the first to discuss how to perform multiplication and division operations using addition and subtraction. For this reason, he is considered a pioneer in the invention of logarithms. Sinan Al-Hasib became famous for his book titled “Al-Jamh Wa Al-Tafriq,” in which he explained how to perform multiplication and division operations using addition and subtraction.
The scientific concept underlying the research in the science of logarithms is the transformation of multiplication and division into addition and subtraction. The fact is that the Egyptian Ibn Yunus Al-Sadafi (died in 399 AH) utilized the book “Al-Jamh Wa Al-Tafriq” by Sinan Al-Hasib and invented a law in trigonometry bearing his name, which played an important role in the development of trigonometric arithmetic: [ \cos(A+B) + \cos(A-B) = 2 \cos(A) \cos(B). ]
This formula was used by physicists and astronomers when they classified their trigonometry. It is also considered a foundational element in the discovery of the science of logarithms.
“Ibn Hamza Al-Maghribi,” whose dates of birth and death are unknown, was a scholar of the tenth century AH (sixteenth century AD) and of Algerian origin. He was pivotal in formulating the idea of the science of logarithms. He stated the relationship between “arithmetical sequences” and “geometrical sequences,” which was undoubtedly a significant step toward the invention of logarithms, as the main idea in this science is the relationship between the geometric and numerical sequences.
Unfortunately, the Scotsman John Napier (957-1026 AH) came along, developed Ibn Hamza Al-Maghribi’s idea (the relationship between two sequences, one geometric and the other numerical), and then claimed to have discovered the science of logarithms, completely ignoring the contributions of Muslim scholars in this field, including Ibn Yunus Al-Sadafi and Ibn Hamza Al-Maghribi. Napier published logarithmic tables, but in 1024 AH (1614 AD), he collaborated with the Englishman Henry Burgess (1561-1631 AD) to make important changes to Napier’s logarithmic tables. These were the first tables to be published in 1033 AH (1624 AD).
Western scholars often assert that Napier and Burgess were unaware of the achievements of Muslim scholars in the field of logarithms. However, the truth is clear that such claims are unfounded; Western scholars during the European Renaissance were actively translating Arabic scientific works into Latin to exploit them.
In fact, what Hafiz “Touqan” stated in his book “Arab Scientific Heritage in Mathematics and Astronomy” is correct when he says: “The truth I want to state is that I never imagined I would find research by an Arab scientist like Ibn Hamza Al-Maghribi, who himself would be the founder of the first step in establishing logarithms. Some Western researchers claim that Napier was never aware of these investigations and did not borrow anything from them. This may be true, but do Ibn Hamza’s researches in sequences not illustrate how far Arab intellect has advanced in the field of mathematical sciences? Are these studies not smooth paths for establishing the science of logarithms?”
Unfortunately, many Western scientists attempt to ignore the contributions of Muslim scholars, as they have found this opportunity favorable and even receive support from some superficial Arab and Muslim scholars. It is the duty of the Islamic Ummah to reclaim the neglected and lost rights of their ancestors so that today’s youth can take pride in their forebears and their scientific achievements and use them as examples. It is painful that in our schools and universities, it is taught that the science of logarithms was invented by Napier and Burgess, rather than by Muslim scholars.
Why, when a professor discusses logarithms in class, do they not mention that Muslim scholars were pioneers in this field, including Ibn Hamza Al-Maghribi, who is considered the inventor of the science of logarithms? Instead, they only note that Napier and Burgess codified this science and created important mathematical tables to facilitate its use.
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