Rudānī: Abū
ʿAbdallāh Muḥammad ibn Sulaymān (Muḥammad)
al‐Fāsī ibn
Ṭāhir al‐Rudānī al‐Sūsī
al‐Mālikī [al‐Maghribī]
Salim Ayduz
Born Tārūdānt,
(Morocco), circa 1627
Died Damascus, (Syria),
1683
Rudānī,
also known as al‐Maghribī, was a 17th‐century scholar
who lived in the Ottoman territories and was known for his work on astronomical
instruments. In addition to astronomy, he was a poet and also wrote on mathematics,
hadith (traditions of the Prophet), Qurʾān interpretation,
and grammar. There is no information about Rudānī's elementary
education or about his family background. He received his education in the
madrasas (schools) of Morocco and Algeria. Then he traveled to the
east, visiting Egypt, Damascus, and Istanbul and receiving education from
eminent scholars along the way. Eventually, Rudānī moved to the
Ḥijāz
in Arabia, where he became one of the most respected scholars in the area,
and was appointed governor. But due to a conflict, he was exiled to Damascus.
In the
field of astronomy, Rudānī wrote works on instruments, timekeeping,
and the qibla (direction to Mecca). He sought practical solutions
and ways to simplify the calculations. With these purposes in mind, Rudānī
invented a sphere, called al‐jayb al‐jāmiʿa,
which was a spherical device in which another sphere (painted blue) with
a different axis was attached to it. This second sphere was divided into
two parts in which the zodiacal signs with their sections and regions were
drawn. The purpose of this device was to facilitate timekeeping with the
use of this one instrument. The device, easily constructed, was a universal
instrument (i. e., it could be used for different longitudes and
latitudes). Unfortunately, there is no existing sample of this device, but
Rudānī wrote a book describing it, in Arabic, entitled al‐Nāfiʿa fī ʿamal
al‐jāmiʿa. It was written in Medina
in 1662 and contains 45 parts and a conclusion. Rudānī's best‐known
work in the field of astronomy is Bahja al‐ṭullāb fī al‐ʿamal
bi‐ʾl‐asṭurlāb, a book written in Arabic
on how to make and use an astrolabe. There are 13 extant copies of this
particular work. Interestingly, Rudānī also wrote three other
works on the same subject. Other astronomical works by Rudānī
include one on prayer times and another on the calendar in rhyme.
Selected References
Al‐ʿAyyāshī,
Abū Sālim ʿAbdallāh
ibn Muḥammad (1899). Riḥlat al‐Shaykh al‐Imām Abi Sālim al‐ʿAyyāshī.
Vol. 2, p. 30. Fez.
Al‐Kattānī,
ʿAbd
al‐Ḥayy
ibn ʿAbd
al‐Kabīr (1982). Fihris al‐fahāris. Beirut, p.
317.
Al‐Muḥibbī, Muḥammad
(1966). Khulāṣat al‐athar fī aʿyān
al‐qarn al‐ḥādī ʿashar. Vol.
4, pp. 204–208. Beirut.
Al‐ Ziriklī,
Khayr al‐Dīn (1980). al‐Aʿlām.
Vol. 6, pp. 151–152. Beirut.
Brockelmann, Carl. Geschichte der arabischen Litteratur.
2nd ed. Vol. 2 (1949): 610–611; Suppl. 2 (1938): 691. Leiden: E. J. Brill.
Daḥlān,
Aḥmad ibn Zaynī
(1887). Khulāṣat al‐kalām fī bayān umarāʾ
al‐balad al‐ḥarām. Egypt, pp. 102–104.
Ibn
Sūdah, ʿAbd
al‐Salām ibn ʿAbd
al‐Qādir (1950). Dalil muʾarrikh al‐Maghrib.
Tetouan, p. 340.
İhsanoğlu, Ekmeleddin, et al. (1997). Osmanlı
Astronomi Literatürü Tarihi (OALT) (History of astronomy literature
during the Ottoman period). Vol. 1, pp. 317–321. Istanbul: IRCICA.
İzgi, Cevat (1997). Osmanlı Medreselerinde İlim.
Vol. 1, pp. 118–119. Istanbul.
Kaḥḥālah,
ʿUmar
Riḍā (1985). Muʿjam al‐muʾallifīn. Vol.
11, p. 221. Beirut.
Suter, Heinrich (1981). Die Mathematiker und Astronomen der
Araber und ihre Werke. Amsterdam: APA‐Oriental Press, p. 203 (no.
527).