Abu al‐Qasim Ahmad ibn Abd Allah ibn Umar al‐Ghafiqī ibn as-Saffar al‐Andalusi (born in
Cordoba, died in the year 1035 at
Denia), also known as Ibn as-Saffar (, literally: son of the
brass worker), was a Spanish-
Arab
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses their studies on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. They observe astronomical objects such as stars, planets, natural satellite, moons, comets and galaxy, g ...
in
Al-Andalus
Al-Andalus DIN 31635, translit. ; an, al-Andalus; ast, al-Ándalus; eu, al-Andalus; ber, ⴰⵏⴷⴰⵍⵓⵙ, label=Berber languages, Berber, translit=Andalus; ca, al-Àndalus; gl, al-Andalus; oc, Al Andalús; pt, al-Ândalus; es, ...
. He worked at the school founded by his colleague
Al-Majriti
Abu al-Qasim Maslama ibn Ahmad al-Majriti ( ar, أبو القاسم مسلمة بن أحمد المجريطي: c. 950–1007), known or Latin as , was an Arab Muslim astronomer, chemist, mathematician, economist and Scholar in Islamic Spain, ac ...
in
Córdoba. His best-known work was a treatise on the
astrolabe
An astrolabe ( grc, ἀστρολάβος ; ar, ٱلأَسْطُرلاب ; persian, ستارهیاب ) is an ancient astronomical instrument that was a handheld model of the universe. Its various functions also make it an elaborate inclin ...
, a text that was in active use until the 15th century and influenced the work of
Kepler
Johannes Kepler (; ; 27 December 1571 – 15 November 1630) was a German astronomer, mathematician, astrologer, natural philosopher and writer on music. He is a key figure in the 17th-century Scientific Revolution, best known for his laws o ...
. He also wrote a commentary on the
''Zij as-Sindhind'', and measured the coordinates of
Mecca
Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red ...
.
Ibn as-Saffar later influenced the works of
Abu as-Salt.
Paul Kunitzsch argued that a Latin treatise on the astrolabe long attributed to
Mashallah
''Mashallah'' ( ar, مَا شَاءَ ٱللَّٰهُ, '), also written Masha'Allah, Maşallah (Turkey and Azerbaijan), Masya Allah (Malaysia and Indonesia), Maschallah (Germany), and Mašallah ( Bosnia), is an Arabic phrase that is used to expre ...
, and used by
Chaucer
Geoffrey Chaucer (; – 25 October 1400) was an English poet, author, and civil servant best known for '' The Canterbury Tales''. He has been called the "father of English literature", or, alternatively, the "father of English poetry". He w ...
to write ''
A Treatise on the Astrolabe
''A Treatise on the Astrolabe'' is a medieval instruction manual on the astrolabe by Geoffrey Chaucer. It describes both the form and the proper use of the instrument, and stands out as a prose technical work from a writer better known for poet ...
'', is in fact written by Ibn as-Saffar.
The
exoplanet
An exoplanet or extrasolar planet is a planet outside the Solar System. The first possible evidence of an exoplanet was noted in 1917 but was not recognized as such. The first confirmation of detection occurred in 1992. A different planet, init ...
Saffar, also known as
Upsilon Andromedae b
Upsilon Andromedae b (υ Andromedae b, abbreviated Upsilon And b, υ And b), formally named Saffar , is an extrasolar planet approximately 44 light-years away from the Sun in the constellation of Andromeda (constellation), Andromeda. The planet o ...
, is named in his honor.
Saffar Island
Saffar Island ( bg, остров Сафар, ostrov Saffar, ) is the rocky island off the north coast of Elephant Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica extending 290 m in west–east direction and 230 m in south–north direction, wit ...
in
Antarctica
Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest contine ...
is named after Ibn as-Saffar.
Notes
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ibn Al-Saffar
1035 deaths
11th-century Arabs
11th-century Al-Andalus people
Astronomers of Al-Andalus
Scientists who worked on qibla determination
11th-century astronomers
Year of birth unknown