671

D: "but he died before it was completed."

672

Cf. the translation of this passage by C. A. Nallino, Raccolta di scritti editie inediti, V, 43 f.

673

Le., Ptolemy's Syntaxis Astronomica. For the origin and vocalization of the Arabic term, cf. F. Rosenthal, "Al-Kindi and Ptolemy," in Studi orientalistici in onore di Giorgio Levi Della Vida (Rome, 1956), II, 438 f. Later Muslim scholars seem to have preferred the vocalization Mijisli.

674

Cf. p. 126, above.

675

Cf. p. 130, above.

676

Abmad b. Mubammad (Alfraganus), d. after 247 [861/621. Cf. GAL, I, 221; Suppl., I, 392 f.

677

Qur'an 96.5 (5).

678

Zij, usually connected with Persian zU "threads in the loom" > "lines in tables" > "tables." Cf. C. A. Nallino, op. cit., V, 120. It may, however, be a distortion of bizidhaj, the Middle Persian title of the Anthology of Vettius Valens. Intervocalic dh is known to change to y in Middle Persian (cf. W. Eilers, "Der Name des persischen Neujahrsfestes," in Abhandlungen der Akademie der Wissenschaften and der Literatur, Geistes- and Sozialwissen­schaftliche Masse, 1953, No. 2, p. 4), and bi- may have been lost, in the course of transmission, as preposition, as is known to happen.

Cf. now E. S. Kennedy, "A Survey of Islamic Astronomical Tables," in Transactions of the American Philosophical Society, N.S. XLVI (1956),123-77.

679

I.e., chronology, mathematical and historical.

680

Cf, p. 134, above.

681

Ta'dil and taqwim. The latter word became tacuin in Latin translations from the Arabic.

682

Muhammad b. Jibir, ca. 244 [858] to 317 [9291. Cf. GAL, I, 222; Suppl. I, 397.

683

Ahmad b. Yusuf b. al-Kammad, d. 691 [1195]? Cf. GAL, Suppl., I, 864. He is probably identical with Ibn al-Hammad, an author of zijs mentioned by al-Qifti, Ta'rikh al-bukama', p. 57, I. 15. Hajji Khalifah, Kashf az-zunun, III, 569, seems to confuse him with Ibn Ishaq and gives a wrong date (679 [1280/81]), which has caused considerable confusion to this day. Cf. R. Brunschvig, La Berberie orientale (Publications de l'Institut d'Etudes Orientales d'Alger, Vols. VIII & XI) (Paris 1940-47), 11, 369. The first to call attention to the situation seems to have been H. Suter, Die Mathematiker and Astronomen der Araber and Are Werke (Abhandlungen zur Geschichte der mathematischen Wissenschaften, No. 10) (Leipzig, 1900), p. 196.

684

Bulaq adds: "an astronomer in Tunis at the beginning of the seventh [thirteenth] century." He is Abul-'Abbas 'Ali b. Ishaq, who made astronomical observations in 619 [i2221. Cf. H. P. J. Renaud in Hesperis, XXV (1938), 31; and idem, Les Manuscrits arabes de l'Escurial (Paris, 1941), I13, 7, No. 909.

685

Cf. 1:238, and pp. 121, 123, 136 (n. 684), above.