Abd al-Rahman al-Sufi’s treatise on the static or fixed stars Cover Image

Traktat o nepokretnim ili fiksiranim zvijezdama od Abdurahmana Sufije
Abd al-Rahman al-Sufi’s treatise on the static or fixed stars

Author(s): Svetlana Strugarević
Subject(s): Philosophy, Theology and Religion, Islam studies, Middle-East Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
Published by: Fondacija “Baština duhovnosti”
Keywords: Abd al-Rahman al-Sufi; astronomy; cancer constellation; fixed stars;

Summary/Abstract: The book by Abd al-Rahman al-Sufi Kitāb suwar al-kawākib at-tābita is his most successful and most famous work. It has achieved an incredible success in the East and in the West. Its biggest contribution lays in the review of stars in tables, measuring the magnitudes, the review of popular classical and Arabic names of stars and constellations, and double illustrations. Apart from the fact that the book has a remarkable scientific significance, the rich and luxuriant illustrations make it valuable on aesthetic and artistic level. The work was written ca. 964 AD, but the original manuscript was unfortunately lost. The vast number of transcripts dating from different periods, and of different quality, style and readability has survived. As far as it is known, the first translations of al-Sufi’s work were made in the 13th century. Nasir al-Din al-Tusi translated “The Book on Constellations” into Persian, and it was translated into Spanish in the same century during the rule of King Alfonso II. It was translated into French in 1874. It was printed in Arabic in 1956. A partial translation in English emerged in 2010, while the remaining part is in the preparation process. There are no other known translations. The most cited translation in the Western literature is the translation into French language.

  • Issue Year: III/2017
  • Issue No: 8
  • Page Range: 112-123
  • Page Count: 12
  • Language: Bosnian