Ankara Üniversitesi İlahiyat Fakültesi Dergisi (May 2019)
Mehmet Fuat Sezgin’s Family Circle and His Academic Life in Turkey
Abstract
Mehmet Fuat Sezgin is a highly distinguished scholar in his studies on the foundations of modern sciences in Islamic çivilization. In his research, Sezgin examines the contributions of Muslim scholars to modern sciences, mainly through the ninth to sixteenth centuries. During this period, the fundamental scientific texts of Ancient Greeks were translated into Arabic, then interpreted and elaborated upon by Muslim scholars. Beginning in the late sixteenth century, the Greek sciences were transferred from the Islamic world to the Europe. However, contemporary works on the history of sciences have ignored the contribution of Islamic scholars to this matter and have described Greek and Latin civilizations as the uninterrupted continuations of one another. In his academic life of more than half a century, Sezgin elucidated the eight centuries old missing link of the history of science by bringing to light the life and works of thousands of Muslim scholars known for their scientific works. However, there are no studies yet that evaluate the outstanding works of Sezgin and his life. This article partly addresses that need and examines Sezgin's family and his early academic life.
