The Combinatorial House of Wisdom

A guided classical Arabic reader in the exact and rational sciences. The First Arabic Dictionary, the Rhythms of Arabic Verse, and the Invention of Algebra. The combinatorial approach to scientific knowledge during the Islamic Golden Age began in Iraq in the late eighth century. Al-Khalil b. Ahmad al-Farahidi set out to find all Arabic words and invented a three-step method rooted in the combinatorial nature of the Arabic language itself to compose the first Arabic dictionary. He followed the same path to discover and generate all the different rhythms of Arabic poetry in their seemingly endless variety. His methodology influenced other scientists of the era. In the early ninth century in the House of Wisdom in Baghdad, Muhammad b. Musa al-Khwarizmi adopted this approach in his invention of algebra as an independent science. This book explores the core readings of al-Khalil and al-Khwarizmi and the essence of this unique combinatorial method of discovery. No other scientific writings of the age exerted a greater influence on the development of the sciences of the Arabic language and the scientific foundations of our modern world. The selections in this guided reader are accessible to anyone with a knowledge of Arabic at the late second-year level. No other prerequisites are needed as al-Khwarizmi's algebra is presented without algebraic notation, just as its founder formulated it. Supplementary readings demonstrate the combinatorial method used by other thinkers of that time in the invention of cryptology and the analysis of the rhythms of Arabic music.