Abu Ma'shar al-Balkhi belongs to the philosophical record as a figure whose arguments outlasted the disputes that prompted them.
The record lists Abu Ma'shar al-Balkhi as Persian astrologer and philosopher (787–886).
Abu Ma'shar al-Balkhi was born at Balkh in 787. His recorded nationality is Iraq.
Thought in this period moved between the Islamic world, the Jewish communities and the Latin West, and the same texts were argued over in three traditions.
The recorded fields of work are mathematics, astrology and astronomy.
Philosophy advances by objection: an argument matters if serious people spend years attacking it.
That the work was done from Iraq matters: philosophical traditions, institutions and the language of publication have never been evenly distributed.
Abu Ma'shar al-Balkhi died in 886, aged 99. The arguments remain in print, which is the form in which philosophy survives.
Achievements
- Fields: mathematics, astrology and astronomy
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