The Islamic Golden Age

Although Islam is practiced by many people in all areas of the world, the Middle East, especially Saudi Arabia is most well known for the religion. This is in part due to the fact that Saudi Arabia was the birthplace of Islam and that a high percentage of Muslims make up the population today. In the years between the founding of Islam and the present there have been many notable achievements by Muslim individuals, especially those in the Middle East. Shortly after Prophet Muhammad’s death began what is called the Islamic Golden Age. During the period known as the Islamic Golden Age which lasted from eighth century C.E. to thirteenth century C.E. there were a number of scientific and cultural advancements made by Muslim individuals (Falagas, Zarkadoulia, & Samonis 2006, pg 1581). These advancements were able to occur due to a combination of secular and religious factors. The motivation for

Growth and development was seen in bacteriology, medicine, anesthesia, surgery, ophthalmology, and psychotherapy to name a few fields (Syed, 2002, pg 3). There are several Muslim individuals famous for their strides in the medical world including Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Zakariyya ar-Razi and Az-Zahrawi (Falagas, Zarkadoulia,& Samonis 2006, pg 1583). Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Zakariyya ar-Razi is perhaps most famous for his medical encyclopedia, Al-Hawi, which had 30 volumes (2006, pg 1583). However, he also investigated psychosomatic reactions, described the recurrent nerve, differentiated measles from smallpox and much more (2006, pg 1583). Az-Zahrawi is often called the “father of surgery” due to his extensive work in that field (2006, pg 1583). He not only performed tracheotomies and lithotomy, but he also studied the sex-linked inheritance of hemophilia and the development of cancers (2006, pg