Historical sources in the research of the history of science: Decoding one of Rashīd al-dīn Waṭawāṭ's letters from the life of ʿAbd al- Jabbār al-Kharqī.

Document Type : Research Articles

Author

Assistance professor of the History and Muslim civilization, University of Tehran. Tehran. Iran

Abstract
There is a close relationship between historical studies and research on the history of science. A historian of science cannot pursue his research without being familiar with historical events. This note seeks to show an example of this close relationship. ʿAbd al-Jabbār al-Kharaqī (died 1158 AD) is one of the most important authors of the genre of Hayʾat (astronomy (books, in other words, he is the first author of a comprehensive hayʾa work. However, in the current biography books, he is confused with another jurist from Kharaq who died in 1138 AD. Research to solve this ambiguity makes us inevitably refer to the historical sources of the Seljuk era. In the meantime, the evidence found among the Persian letters of Rashīd al-Dīn Waṭawāṭ, the court secretary of Khwarazmshāh Atsiz, addressed to Kharqī and examined in this note, shows that ʿAbd al-Jabbār al-Kharqī was alive in 1155 AD. In this way, his clearance from other crimes is confirmed by more evidence.

Keywords


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  • Receive Date 22 October 2023
  • Revise Date 12 November 2023
  • Accept Date 28 November 2023