After many emails back and forth, my prof and I have narrowed down a topic for me to do my master's thesis on. It is still within the time period of the Abbasid caliphate, which is awesome! I am also going to be able to use some of my photos from my recent trip.
Ok, so the topic is the "House of Wisdom" (Bayt al-Hikma) founded during the Abbasid caliphate. I am very excited about this topic and am looking forward to reading anything and everything out there on it. What I know right now, the House of Wisdom was established as a library and place of learning. The caliphs would hire scholars from around the world (the world as they knew it to be at the time) to come to Baghdad and work in the House translating Greek and other texts into Arabic. Initially, this would enable to learned to have access to these texts. Eventually, commoners would have access as well.
Of the many subjects researched, taught, and/or archived in the House of Wisdom are Algebra (al-jibra), astronomy, anatomy, geometry, and other sciences. As I learn more, I will post more thoughts on the topic. I will also post a picture if I come across one.
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