Astrolabe Glossary and Notes

Al-Bīrūnī

Al-Bīrūnī (البيروني) (b. 4 September 973; d. after 1050): Al-Bīrūnī was born and grew up in the Khwarazm region, south of the Aral Sea. He wrote more than 100 treatises on most technical and scientific subjects, including astronomy, astrology, medicine, geography magic, mathematics, meteorology and gems. He also wrote literature, histories, and books on religion and philosophy. Al-Bīrūnī wrote a valuable work on construction and use of the astrolabe as well as a book on shadows that contains descriptions of numerous sun dials. His The Book of Instruction in the Elements of the Art of Astrology was an important text and compendium on astrological practices. See E.S. Kennedy’s entry in the Dictionary of Scientific Biography, ed. Charles Coulston Gillispie, vol. 2 (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1970), 147-58.
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