The most celebrated digest of the Hanefite code is the Hidaya, translated into English by Hamilton (Calcutta, 1791); another, the Multaka al-Abkar, translated into French, is contained in D'Ohsson's Empire Ottoman (Paris, 1787-1820). The collections of decisions are also weighty authorities. One of them, the Futawa Alemjir, made by order of the emperor Au-rungzebe, was printed in Calcutta (6 vols. 4to, 1828-'35), and a portion of it relating to the law of sale has been translated into English by Baillie (London, 1850). The chief authority on the law of inheritance, the Sirajiya, was translated by Sir William Jones (Calcutta, 1792). A compendium of the Malekite code by Khalil ibn Ishak has been translated into French by Perron (Paris, 1848-52); another of the Shafiite code, by Abu Shoja, has been published by Keijzer (Arabic and French, Leyden, 1859.) - Of historical works the number is very large (Hadji Khalfa enumerates 1,300), and the materials for the history of the countries and periods embraced in the Mohammedan dominion are very full and valuable, but outside of this meagre. In style they are for the most part mere chronicles, seldom rising to a comprehensive survey or attempting to trace the deeper historical connections of events.

It is a common habit of the writers to quote largely from their authorities, and this makes amends in part for the absence of anything like historical criticism. The following are some of the more important works that have been published, beginning with general histories: Abulfeda, Historia Muslemica (Arabic and Latin by Reiske, 6 vols. 4to, Copenhagen, 1789-'94), and Historia Antemuslemica (Arabic and Latin by Fleischer, Leipsic, 1831); Masudi, "Historical Encyclopaedia" (Arabic and French by Barbier de Meynard, vols. i.-vi., Paris, 1861-'7l; English by Sprenger, London, 1841, vol. i. only); Tabari, "Annals" (Arabic and Latin by Kosegarten, Greifswald, 1831-53); Ibn al-Athiri, "Chronicle" (Tornberg, Upsala and Lund, 1851 etseq.); Ibn Koteiba, "Manual of History" (Wustenfeld, Gottingen, 1850); Ibn Ettiktaka (Ahlwardt, Gotha, 1800); and Hamza of Ispahan (in Arabic and Latin by Rasmussen, Copenhagen, 1817). Histories of the early conquests: Al-Beladzori (De Goeje, Leyden," 1803-'7), and Al-Wakidi, "Mohammed's Campaigns" (Calcutta, 1856), "Conquest of Syria " (Lees, Calcutta, 1854), " Conquest of Mesopotamia " (Arabic by Mordtmann> German by Niebuhr, Hamburg, 1847). Histories of particular countries: Al-Makkari, on the history and literature of the Spanish Arabs (Arabic by Dozy and others, Leyden, 1855-61; English, with omission of the parts relating to literary history, by De Gayanos, London, 1841-'3); Ibn Adhari, Africa and Spain (Dozy, Leyden, 1848-'51); Ibn Abi Zer, Annates Begum Mauretaniœ (Arabic and Latin by Tornberg, Upsala, 1843-'6; French by Beaumier, Paris, 1860); Makrizi, "History of the Mameluke Saltans " (French by Quatremere, Paris, 1835-'7), "History of the Copts" (Arabic and German by Wustenfeld, Gottin-gen, 1845); Ibn Taghri, annals principally of Egypt (Juynboll and Matthes, Leyden, 1852-01); a collection of chronicles by various writers relating to the city of Mecca (Wustenfeld, Leipsic, 1857-'9); a collection relating to Sicily (Amari, Bibliotheca Arabo-Sicula, Leipsic, 1855-7); Al-Suyuti, "History of the Temple at Jerusalem " (English by Reynolds, London, 1830). To the general character of Arabic historical writing above given, we have a noble exception in Ibn Khaldun (died 1400), a writer of a philosophical spirit and a profound historical sense.

Of his history, the introduction has been published by Quatre-mere and translated into French by De Slane (in the Notices et extraits des manuscrits, vol. xvi. et seq.), and another part, the history of the Berbers, edited and translated by De Slane (Algiers, 1847-56). Among biographies, that of Mohammed by Ibn Ishak (Arabic by Wustenfeld, Gottingen, 1858-00; German by Weil, Stuttgart, 1864) is especially important. - For original speculation in philosophy we must look rather to the religious sects than to the philosophers so called, a name reserved for those who borrowed the systems of the Greeks, especially that of Aristotle, in which they introduced few changes of importance. The most celebrated names anions the eastern Arabs are Alkindi of the 9th, Alfarabius of the 10th, and above all Ibn Sina (A vicenna) of the early part of the 11 th century. More profound and original was Algazzali (died 1111), who aimed at the overthrow of the existing systems, and from skepticism passed finally to asceticism and mysticism.

With respect to the idea of cause, he held substantially the position and anticipated the arguments of Hume. In the 12th century Spain became the centre of philosophical activity, its chief representatives being Ibn Badja (Avempace), Ibn Tophail (Abubacer), and Ibn Roshd (Averroes). The schoolmen first obtained the Latin translations of some of the treatises of Aristotle, not directly from the Greek, but from Arabic versions, and Averroes, as the latest of his commentators, was accepted as his authorized interpreter. In the 13th and 14th centuries the authority of his commentary was hardly questioned, and in the 15th and 10th it was many times reprinted. These circumstances give to Arab philosophy a far higher importance in the history of European culture than its independent value would entitle it to claim. - In mathematics the Arabs were the pupils of Greece and India, but they added not a little to the sum of knowledge which they had received. Neither algebra nor the Arabic numerals were, as the names would seem to indicate, of Arab invention; but the Arabs perfected the processes of the one, arriving at the solution of cubic equations, and they facilitated the introduction of the other.

They simplified trigonometrical calculations by substituting the use of sines and tangents for chords.

In astronomy they improved the instruments of observation (Abulhassan, " Treatise on Astronomical Instruments," French by S6dillot, Paris, 1834-'5), and constructed new and more accurate tables (Ibn Yunis, Arabic and French by Caussin, Paris, 1804; Olug-Beg, Arabic and French by Sedillot, Paris, 1847-'53). They made some discoveries of importance, among which is perhaps to be reckoned that of the variation of the moon by Abul-Wefa, commonly ascribed to Tycho Brahe, six centuries later. - The science of medicine owes much to the Arabs, especially in the departments of pharmacy and materia medica. In surgery, from ignorance of anatomy, they made little advance. The most celebrated among the medical as well as among the philosophical writers is Avicenna, whose " Canon of Medicine" was for four centuries the leading text book in European schools (printed at Rome, 1593, and in Latin versions not far from 30 times). The Elhavi or Continens of Al-Razi (Rhazes) enjoyed also a wide reputation, and in the Latin translation passed through many editions. The study of medicine led naturally to that of chemistry and botany. Chemistry made substantial progress among the Arabs. To Geber we owe the first preparation of sulphuric and nitric acids and aqua regia.

The distillation of alcohol also, as the name implies, was a discovery of the Arabs. Botany was little more than the handmaid of medicine. There was no attempt at scientific classification, but only an alphabetic arrangement of the material, as among the Greek botanical writers. But in the number of plants described, the style of description, and the determination of synonymes, the advantage is largely on the side of the Arabs. The best known writers are Al-Nabati and Ibn Baitar (German by Sontheimer, Stuttgart, 1840-'42). - In geography the Arabs have rendered most important services, less in the mathematical than in the descriptive branch of the science. The vast extent of the empire of the caliphs, and the reports gathered from the governors of remote provinces, the commercial intercourse reaching even beyond the limits of the empire (witness the Arabic coins frequently dug up in northern Russia and even in Norway, which prove the existence of an established trade, if they do not necessarily suppose the presence of Arab merchants), the pilgrimage to Mecca, which it was the duty of every Moslem who had the ability to make once at least in the course of his life - all this could not but add materially to the sum of geographical knowledge.

The narrative of an Arab merchant named Soleyman, who visited China in the 9th century, was published in Arabic and French by Reinaud (Relation des voyages dans VInde et d la Chine, Paris, 1845). Al-Is-takhri and Ibn Haukal about 950 traversed the different Mohammedan provinces from the Atlantic to India. The Liber Climatum of the former was published by Moller (Gotha, 1839; German by Mordtmann, Hamburg, 1845).