AL ASHARI SCHOOL OF THEOLOGY

 *Omar Khayyam*

*Full Name*: Ghiyath al-Din Abu al-Fath Umar ibn Ibrahim al-Nishapuri al-Khayyami  

*Born*: 18 May 1048, Nishapur, Khorasan  

*Died*: 4 December 1131 (aged 83), Khorasan  

*School*: Persian mathematics, Persian poetry, Persian philosophy  

*Main Interests*: Mathematics, astronomy, philosophy, poetry  

*Early Life and Career*:  

Omar Khayyam was born on 18 May 1048 CE in Iran. Omar Khayyam was one of the foremost mathematicians and astronomers of the medieval period. He was recognized as the author of the most important treatise on algebra before the modern era. This is reflected in his treatise _Demonstration of Problems of Algebra_, which demonstrates a geometric method for solving cubic equations by intersecting a hyperbola with a circle. 

His importance as a philosopher and teacher, and some of his surviving philosophical works, have not received as much attention as his scientific and poetic writings. Omar Khayyam’s full name was Ghiyath al-Din Abu al-Fath Umar ibn Ibrahim al-Nishapuri al-Khayyami. He was born into a family of tent makers.

He spent part of his childhood in the city of Balkh in northern Afghanistan, studying under Sheikh Muhammad Mansuri. Later, he studied under Imam Mowaffaq Nishapuri, who was regarded as one of the greatest teachers of the Khorasan region. 

Khayyam did remarkable work in geometry, especially on the theory of proportions. He was a Persian polymath, mathematician, philosopher, astronomer, physician, and poet. He wrote treatises on mechanics, geography, and music. 

Khayyam’s treatise may be considered the first treatment of the parallel postulate that is not based on the principle of petition but on a more intuitive postulate. Khayyam refuted previous attempts by other Greek and Persian mathematicians to prove the proposition. And he rejected the use of motion in geometry. 

Khayyam was a mathematician who noted the importance of the general binomial theorem. The argument supporting the claim that Khayyam had a general binomial theorem is based on his ability to extract roots.

Khayyam the philosopher can be understood from two different sources. One is through his Rubaiyat and the other comes to light through his works reflecting the intellectual and social conditions of his time. The latter information can be provided by evaluating Khayyam’s works by scholars and philosophers such as Baihaqi, Nizami Aruzi, and Zamakhshari, and the Sufi poet and writer Attar Nishapuri and Najmuddin Razi. 

As a mathematician, Khayyam made fundamental contributions especially to the philosophy of mathematics in the context of Persian mathematics and Persian philosophy, with which most other Persian scientists and philosophers such as Avicenna, Biruni, and Tusi are associated.

Khayyam was part of the panel that introduced several reforms to the Persian calendar on 15 March 1079. Sultan Malik Shah accepted this revised calendar as the official Persian calendar. 

Khayyam’s poetic works have eclipsed his fame as a mathematician. He wrote about a thousand four-line verses, i.e. quatrains. In the English-speaking world, he was introduced through _The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam_, which are free English translations done by Edward FitzGerald (1809–1883). 

Khayyam’s personal beliefs are evident from his poetic works. In his writings, Khayyam rejects strict religious structure and the literal concept of an afterlife.