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Abbasid Baghdad

Type Object Region Iraq Time 762

Baghdad, the circular capital founded by the Abbasids in 762, long served as the Islamic world's political and scholarly center;…

Timeline

  1. 762–900Baghdad · IraqCaliph al-Mansur chose a site on the Tigris to build the circular capital; for centuries Baghdad became the core of the translation movement, astronomy, medicine, and philosophy, with institutions such as the House of Wisdom renowned far and wide.
  2. 1055–1090Baghdad · IraqAfter the Seljuks took power the caliph was merely a nominal head of state, yet Baghdad maintained its traditions of Islamic jurisprudence, astronomy, and medicine; Nizam al-Mulk founded the Nizamiyya madrasa around 1067, strengthening the Sunni scholarly network.
  3. 1081–1090Baghdad · IraqIn the 1080s, through madrasas, bookshops, and scholarly exchange, Baghdad formed transregional knowledge circulation with cities such as Cairo and Isfahan, continuing as one of the Islamic world's most important scholarly metropolises.

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