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Caliphs were giving the translation movement, transmissions, authoring and intellectual achievements a very high level of respect and support that represented key factors to getting hold of the Hellenistic, Indian, and Persian knowledge and wisdom. After the invasion of Baghdad by the Mongols in (656 AH-1258 AD) they wrecked the library's private and public closets of books, manuscripts, maps, observatories...etc. They burned majority of the collections whilst others were thrown into the Tigris river, some say that the Mongols have built their barns using books instead of clay.
Astronomical observatories
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Further, it was also linked to astronomical observations and other major experimental endeavors. The older core of the city, a rectangle about 2 miles (3 km) long and 1 mile (1.6 km) wide, is located on the east bank. Its length extends between two former city gates, Al-Muʿaẓẓam Gate, now Al-Muʿaẓẓam Square, in the north and Al-Sharqī Gate, now Taḥrīr Square, in the south. From the Tigris the rectangle runs eastward to the inner bund, or dike, built by the Ottoman governor Nāẓim Pasha in 1910.
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Having built Baghdad in 762, Caliph al-Mansur (ruled 754–775 CE) moved the capital of the Abbasid dynasty there from Damascus, soon making it the richest and largest city in the world. Muslim historian al-Tabari reported that Christian monks once prophesied that a lord named Miklas would one day build a spectacular city around the area of Baghdad. The caliph was delighted upon hearing this ancient prophecy—after all, as legend has it, al-Mansur was called Miklas as a child. In modern times the library became a symbol of the scientific enterprise and imperial glory of the early Islamic period. It is frequently imagined as a centre of scholarship and collaboration for the greatest minds in Baghdad and its environs as well as the heart of a robust translation movement of Persian, Greek, and Syriac literature into the Arabic language. The Muslim libraries have played a major role in translating and transmitting works of Greek, Persian, Indian and Assyrian physicians and philosophers, works that later became the basic textbooks in European schools of Bologna, Naples and Paris.
Tradition of Learning
Recreational centres include two islands in the Tigris that have swimming pools and cafés, the Lunar Amusement Park, and Al-Zawrāʾ Public Park and Zoo. Beginning in the early 1990s, traditional patterns of recreation for city residents were disrupted by war and economic hardship. Although a prosperous class of government and party officials and wealthy merchants continued to frequent private clubs, most residents spent their free time either at home or visiting close friends or relatives. At its height, Baghdad was estimated to have over one and half million people living in the city.[19] It may have been the largest city in the world during that time.
History of Baghdad
Translations of this era were superior to earlier ones, since the new Abbasid scientific tradition required better and better translations, and the emphasis was many times put in incorporating new ideas to the ancient works being translated. By the second half of the ninth century al-Ma’mun’s Bayt al-Hikma was the greatest repository of books in the world and had become one of the greatest hubs of intellectual activity in the Middle Ages, attracting the most brilliant Arab and Persian minds. The House of Wisdom eventually acquired a reputation as a center of learning, although universities as we know them did not yet exist at this time — knowledge was transmitted directly from teacher to student, without any institutional surrounding.
Mohammad Musa might have been the first person in history to point to the universality of the laws of physics. In the 10th century, Ibn al-Haytham (Alhazen) performed several physical experiments, mainly in optics, achievements still celebrated today. The House of Wisdom included a society of scientists and academics, a translation department and a library that preserved the knowledge acquired by the Abbasids over the centuries. They also researched and studied alchemy, which was later used to create the structure of modern chemistry. Furthermore, linked to it were also astronomical observatories and other major experimental endeavors. Institutionalized by Al-Ma’mun, the academy encouraged the transcription of Greek philosophical and scientific efforts.
Often, al-Ma’mun would assign handpicked renowned scholars to perform specific translations of works. An example of such was the selection of the famous scholar Abu Yousuf Ya'qoub Al-Kindi, who had an impressive level of qualifications which included being a physician, philosopher, mathematician, geometer, logician, and astronomer, to be the one in charge of translating of the works of Aristotle. For about 500 years the city boasted the cream of intellectuals and culture, a reputation gained during the reigns of some of its most famous Caliphs (Al-Rashid, Al-Ma’mun, Al-Mu’tadhid and Al-Muktafi). From the 7th century onwards, men and women of different faiths and cultures built on knowledge from ancient civilisations making breakthroughs that have left their mark on our world.
Greek Mythology
It was the model for other libraries and similar institutions throughout the soils of Islamic civilization. A combination of heavy redevelopment during the second half of the 20th century, two decades of warfare and neglect has not been kind to Baghdad's architectural and cultural heritage. Generally, the eastern side contains the older districts while the western side is newer. The historic old quarter contains a myriad of alleys and small streets with buildings dating back to the Ottoman era or even older. The old quarter is also home to the heart and soul of Iraqi literacy and intellectual community, Mutanabbi Street. The street is lined with bookstores and outdoor book stalls as well as cafés to discuss matters of the day.
From 1851 to 1852 and from 1861 to 1867, Baghdad was governed, under the Ottoman Empire by Mehmed Namık Pasha.[76] The Nuttall Encyclopedia reports the 1907 population of Baghdad as 185,000. The basic framework of the city consists of two large semicircles about 19 km (12 mi) in diameter. The inner city connecting them was designed as a circle about 2 km (1.2 mi) in diameter, leading it to be known as the "Round City". These baths increased public hygiene and served as a way for the religious to perform ablutions as prescribed by Islam. Moreover, entry fees were usually so low that almost everyone could afford them.[39] In the center of the city lay the mosque, as well as headquarters for guards. The circular design of the city was a direct reflection of the traditional Persian Sasanian urban design.
The concept of a library catalog dates back to this period; books in these libraries were organized under specific genres and categories. Caliph al-Mamun was also himself adept in the branches of knowledge taught at the House of Wisdom, including medicine, philosophy and astrology, and often visited the scholars there to discuss their research. The stars and planets were perceived to influence events on earth and astrology was thus carried out with the greatest attention to detail. The heyday of Baghdad was 1,200 years ago when it was the thriving capital of the Muslim world. It was home to the House of Wisdom, an academy of knowledge that attracted brains from far and wide. Bayt al-Hikmah, like Baghdad itself, was greatly enriched under the reign of Hārūn al-Rashīd (786–809).
But it is well established and uncontroversial that the much earlier academy in Alexandria was likewise more than just a library, for it not only brought together under one roof much of the world's accumulated knowledge, but acted as a magnet for many of the world's greatest thinkers and scholars. The patronage of the Egyptian Ptolemaic dynasty, which provided travel, lodging and stipends to those men, is not so different from the government research grants that university academics worldwide receive today to carry out their research. And the reign of Ma'mūn was notable for more than just the scholarly writings of these individual geniuses. Not satisfied with setting up his seat of learning, Ma'mūn ordered the building of the first astronomical observatory in Baghdad around the second decade of the ninth century. This was the only way his astronomers could check the accuracy of the various, often conflicting, Greek, Persian and Indian astronomical texts at their disposal, most notably Ptolemy's Almagest.
For example, he commissioned the mapping of the world, the confirmation of data from the Almagest and the deduction of the real size of the Earth (see section on the main activities of the House). He also promoted Egyptology and participated himself in excavations of the pyramids of Giza. Al-Ma’mun built the first astronomical observatories in Baghdad, and he was also the first ruler to fund and monitor the progress of major research projects involving a team of scholars and scientists. His greatest legacy to science is that he was the first ruler to fund “big science”. The first city in our tour of a “History of Christian-Muslim Relations” is Baghdad.
Brought from China, paper became a new and cheaper material for writing, which was previously done on parchment from the skin of animals, a much more time consuming and expensive process. A wide range of languages including Arabic, Farsi, Aramaic, Hebrew, Syriac, Greek and Latin were spoken and read at the House of Wisdom. He took Greek words, such as "philosophia" that became "falsafa" in Arabic, and found translation solutions via what contemporary translators would call equivalents.
Precipitation is sparse (6 inches [150 mm] annually) and occurs mainly between December and April. In spring and early summer the prevailing northwesterly winds (shamāl) bring sandstorms that frequently bathe the city in a dusty mist. Baghdad was heavily damaged by aerial bombardment during the Persian Gulf War (1990–91) and again by air and ground operations during the Iraq War (2003–11). During the interwar period the city’s services and infrastructure deteriorated badly because of inattention and fiscal constraints resulting from economic sanctions imposed on Iraq by the United Nations (UN).
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