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Tracing the History of Astrolabe Inventions Across Civilisations

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Islamic Perspectives on Science and Technology

Abstract

This article surveys the history and application of astrolabes from before Islam’s ascendance until the peak of the golden age of Islamic astronomy (falak). It also showcases the perpetuity of astrolabes as a multipurpose astronomical instrument used by a number of civilisations, Islamic and non-Islamic. The qualitative research method used involved document analysis and observations and the review of works on astrolabes by numerous scholars on its use in the field of astronomy. History and falak books were referenced to understand the use of this instrument in Islamic astronomy, which is currently known as astrofiqh. The astrolabe is a multipurpose analogue instrument for astronomical calculation and observation. The astrolabe invention became a symbol of ingenuity of Islamic scholars, and the concept behind it became a foundation for development of the latest digital astronomical instruments. Thus, knowledge of the astrolabe’s development should be recorded to document one of the glories of Islamic civilisation while acting to inspire and enhance related fields such as the development of astrofiqh in Malaysia.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    His real name was Claudius Ptolemaeus. He worked in Alexandria around 127–151 CE and was a highly regarded Greek scientist. Among his famous works was Almagest, which discussed the distance between earth-sun and earth-moon. A catalogue containing more than 1000 stars is attached to his book. See Fix (2008, pp. 50–51).

  2. 2.

    Geoffrey Chaucer was an English philosopher born in 1343 in London. He was admired throughout mediaeval Europe. He was also active as a writer and astronomer. See Rudd (2001, pp. 1–5).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Syariah, Faculty of Islamic Studies, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi, Malaysia

    Mohd Hafiz Safiai & Ibnor Azli Ibrahim

  2. Institute of Islam Hadhari, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi, Malaysia

    Mohd Hafiz Safiai & Ibnor Azli Ibrahim

Authors
  1. Mohd Hafiz Safiai
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  2. Ibnor Azli Ibrahim
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Correspondence to Mohd Hafiz Safiai .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Int'l Inst. of Adv. Islamic Studies, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

    Mohammad Hashim Kamali

  2. Universiti Brunei Darussalam, SOASCIS, Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam

    Osman Bakar

  3. Int'l Inst. of Adv. Islamic Studies, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

    Daud Abdul-Fattah Batchelor

  4. Research Management Institute, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia

    Rugayah Hashim

Appendix 1

Appendix 1

figure a

Source: Museum of the History of Science, Oxford University, Oxford, UK. Accessed from http://www.mhs.ox.ac.uk/collections/

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Safiai, M.H., Ibrahim, I.A. (2016). Tracing the History of Astrolabe Inventions Across Civilisations. In: Kamali, M., Bakar, O., Batchelor, DF., Hashim, R. (eds) Islamic Perspectives on Science and Technology. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-778-9_26

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-778-9_26

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