This was one of the most significant events in the history of ideas.Ī third important factor was the establishment in Baghdad of a paper mill. Another was the development of Arabic, by the ninth century, into the language of international scholarship as well as the language of the Divine Truth.
Geographical unity, however, was but one factor. During this period, from 750 to 950, the territory of the Muslim Empire encompassed present-day Iran, Syria, Iraq, Egypt, Palestine, North Africa, Spain, and parts of Turkey and drew to Baghdad peoples of all those lands in an unparalleled cross-fertilization of once isolated intellectual traditions. The foundation of this legacy was the astonishing achievements of Muslim scholars, scientists, craftsmen, and traders during the few hundred years or so that are called the Golden Age.
