Rashid al-Din al-Suri ( ar, رشيد الدين الصوري, translit=Rashid ad-din as-Sury, 1177–1241) was a leading physician and botanist in the
Islamic world
The terms Muslim world and Islamic world commonly refer to the Islamic community, which is also known as the Ummah. This consists of all those who adhere to the religious beliefs and laws of Islam or to societies in which Islam is practiced. In ...
in the 13th century. He served the leading figures of the
Ayyubid dynasty
The Ayyubid dynasty ( ar, الأيوبيون '; ) was the founding dynasty of the medieval Sultan of Egypt, Sultanate of Egypt established by Saladin in 1171, following his abolition of the Fatimid Caliphate, Fatimid Caliphate of Egypt. A Sunni ...
.
[Ali, 1996, p.41.]
Biography
Al-Suri was born and brought up in
Tyre, then part of the
Crusader-ruled
Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...
and derives his name ''al-Suri'' from the name of the city in
Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...
"Sur". After completing his preliminary education in Tyre, he moved to
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
, under
Ayyubid
The Ayyubid dynasty ( ar, الأيوبيون '; ) was the founding dynasty of the medieval Sultan of Egypt, Sultanate of Egypt established by Saladin in 1171, following his abolition of the Fatimid Caliphate, Fatimid Caliphate of Egypt. A Sunni ...
control, where he served as a physician at a hospital. He later met and greatly impressed the Ayyubid sultan
al-Adil
Al-Adil I ( ar, العادل, in full al-Malik al-Adil Sayf ad-Din Abu-Bakr Ahmed ibn Najm ad-Din Ayyub, ar, الملك العادل سيف الدين أبو بكر بن أيوب, "Ahmed, son of Najm ad-Din Ayyub, father of Bakr, the Just K ...
in the early 13th century. Al-Adil brought al-Suri to
Cairo
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...
and made him his personal physician. He also served al-Adil's son,
al-Mu'azzam Al-Mu'azzam or al-Muʿaẓẓam ( ar, المعظم, al-Muʿaẓẓam, exalted, label=none) may refer to:
* Al-Mu'azzam Isa, emir of Damascus as ''al-Mu'azzam I'' (1218–1227)
* Al-Mu'azzam Turanshah, emir of Damascus as ''al-Mu'azzam II'' (1249– ...
and grandson,
an-Nasir Dawud
An-Nasir Dawud (1206–1261) was a Kurdish ruler, briefly (1227–1229) Ayyubid sultan of Damascus and later (1229–1248) Emir of Kerak.
An-Nasir Dawud was the son of Al-Mu'azzam, the Ayyubid Sultan of Damascus from 1218 to 1227. On his fathe ...
, the successive governors of
Damascus
)), is an adjective which means "spacious".
, motto =
, image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg
, image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg
, seal_type = Seal
, map_caption =
, ...
.
Besides medicine, al-Suri held an interest for plant life and was a botany researcher. He used to roam about and study herbs and plants in their natural surroundings.
He employed a professional painter to sketch and paint for him the plants in different stages of their growth as specific as possible by the use of various colors and dyes. His book, entitled ''al-Adwiyat al-Mufradah'' ("The Simple Medicines") is not extant.
[Ali, 1996, p.42.]
References
Bibliography
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Al-Suri, Rashidun
1177 births
1241 deaths
13th-century physicians
Physicians from the Ayyubid Sultanate
Botanists of the medieval Islamic world
Medical researchers