Taqi al-Din al-Rasid and His Treatise on Algebra Mathematical Evaluation, Translation, and Editio Princeps

Abstract

Taqi al-Din al-Rasid is one of the most important representatives of the Ottoman tradition on mathematical sciences. His research focus being on astronomy, astronomical instruments, mathematics, optics, mechanics, and physics is understood from his surviving works. Taqi al-Din's establishment and management of the Istanbul Observatory, which was the first observatory in the Ottoman Empire, made him an important figure in many ways. However, despite the aforementioned importance, the mathematics he learned, taught, produced and used has been a subject for very few studies. The primary way of determining the quality and the level of a work is to look at the kind of tools used for its creation. Therefore, this article will present the edition princeps, the translation and the evaluation of Taqi al-Din al-Rasid's treatise on algebra, al-Nisab al-mutashakila fi Modified Letter Turned Commailm al-jabr wa-l-muqabala. It will be presented in the context of the idea that revealing a scientific character and the career of scholars who stand out in mathematical sciences can be possible by analyzing their mathematical works. The nature of the science of algebra, which can be applied to any problem encountered on any subject regardless of geometry or arithmetic, makes this idea more meaningful. For the correct examination of classical mathematical works, first the original text is verified and transformed into a format that provides an easy reading, then it is to be translated into the desired language. Finally a mathematical analysis and historical evaluation are needed to explain the main structure and justification of the content of the article.