Abūʾl-Wafāʾ

Abūʾl-Wafāʾ

▪ Persian mathematician
also spelled  Abul Wefa , in full  Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad ibn Yaḥyā ibn Ismāʿīl ibn al-ʿAbbās Abūʾl-Wafāʾ al-Būzjānī 
born 940, Buzjan, Iran
died 998, Baghdad, Iraq

      a distinguished Muslim astronomer and mathematician, who made important contributions to the development of trigonometry.

      Abūʾl-Wafāʾ worked in a private observatory in Baghdad, where he made observations to determine, among other astronomical parameters, the obliquity of the ecliptic, the length of the seasons, and the latitude of the city. He also worked with astronomers in Khwārezm (now in Uzbekistan) to determine the difference in longitude between the two localities by means of the simultaneous observation of a lunar eclipse. He did not, as is sometimes claimed, discover the inequality in the Moon's motion later called variation, but in his work on astronomy he utilized all six trigonometric functions and calculated tables for them. He discovered a new method for calculating the sine of 1/2° correct to the equivalent of eight decimal places, and he anticipated modern usage by suggesting the circle of unit radius for defining trigonometric functions. He simplified ancient methods of spherical trigonometry and proved the law of sines for general spherical triangles.

      He translated and wrote commentaries, since lost, on the works of the Greek mathematicians Euclid and Diophantus of Alexandria and the Arabic mathematician al-Khwārizmī (Khwārizmī, al-). Abūʾl-Wafāʾ also wrote two (extant) works aimed at the practical user, Kitāb fī mā yaḥtaj ilayhi al-kuttāb waʾl-ʿummāl min ʿilm al-ḥisāb (“Book on What Is Necessary from the Science of Arithmetic for Scribes and Businessmen”) and Kitāb fī mā yaḥtaj ilayhi al-ṣāniʿ min al-aʿmāl al-handasiyya (“Book on What Is Necessary from Geometric Constructions for the Artisan”).

      In honor of his astronomical work, a crater on the Moon was named for him.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Abu'l-Wafa — Abu l Wafa, vollständiger Name Abu l Wafa Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Yahya ibn Isma il ibn al Abbas al Buzdschani / ‏أبو الوفا محمد بن محمد بن يحيى بن إسماعيل بن العباس البوزجاني‎ / Abū l Wafā Muḥammad bin Muḥammad bin Yaḥyā bin Ismāʿīl bin al… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Abu'l Wafa — Abu l Wafa, vollständiger Name Abu l Wafa Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Yahya ibn Isma il ibn al Abbas al Buzdschani / ‏أبو الوفا محمد بن محمد بن يحيى بن إسماعيل بن العباس البوزجاني‎ / Abū l Wafā Muḥammad bin Muḥammad bin Yaḥyā bin Ismāʿīl bin al… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Abu l-Wafa — Abu l Wafa, vollständiger Name Abu l Wafa Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Yahya ibn Isma il ibn al Abbas al Buzdschani / ‏أبو الوفا محمد بن محمد بن يحيى بن إسماعيل بن العباس البوزجاني‎ / Abū l Wafā Muḥammad bin Muḥamm …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Abu'l-Wafa — Abú al Wafá Buzjani (940 998) fue un matemático y astrónomo persa. Retrato imaginario de Buzyani. Su nombre completo era Abū al Wafāʾ Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad ibn Yaḥyā ibn Ismāʿīl ibn al ʿAbbās al Būzjānī. Nació el 10 de junio del 940 en Buzhgan… …   Wikipedia Español

  • Abu l-Wafa — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Wafa. Abu l Wafa Abu l Wafa ou Abu l Wāfā’ ou Muhammad Aboûl Wafâ, (en persan  …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Abu l-Wafa al-Busdjani — Abu l Wafa Abu l Wafa, vollständiger Name Abu l Wafa Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Yahya ibn Isma il ibn al Abbas al Buzdschani / ‏أبو الوفا محمد بن محمد بن يحيى بن إسماعيل بن العباس البوزجاني‎ / Abū l Wafā Muḥammad bin Muḥammad bin Yaḥyā bin Ismāʿīl …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Abū al-Wafā' Būzjānī — Abul Wáfa redirects here. For the lunar crater, see Abul Wáfa (crater). Abu al Wafa al Buzjani Full name Abu al Wafa al Buzjani Born June 10, 940(940 06 10) Buzhgan …   Wikipedia

  • Abū al-Wafā' al-Būzjānī — Abul Wafa al Buzjani (Arabic: ابوالوفا البوزجانی) , extended name: transl|ar|ALA|Abū al Wafāʾ Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad ibn Yaḥyā ibn Ismāʿīl ibn al ʿAbbās al Būzjānī (Arabic: ابوالوفا محمد بن محمد بن یحیی بن اسماعیل بن العباس البوزجانی) (born 10… …   Wikipedia

  • Abu l-Wafa al-Busdjani — Ạbu l Wafa al Busdjani   [ dʒ ], persischer Mathematiker und Astronom, * Busdschan (Khorasan) 940, ✝ Bagdad 998; reformierte die sphärische Trigonometrie durch Einführung des Sinussatzes und der »Tangentenregel«, berechnete eine Sinustafel… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Wafa — Abu l Wafa Abu l Wafa, vollständiger Name Abu l Wafa Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Yahya ibn Isma il ibn al Abbas al Buzdschani / ‏أبو الوفا محمد بن محمد بن يحيى بن إسماعيل بن العباس البوزجاني‎ / Abū l Wafā Muḥammad bin Muḥammad bin Yaḥyā bin Ismāʿīl …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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