Books of Definition in Islamic Philosophy

Islamic Philosophy has unusual origins. Originally a hybrid of Greek philosophy and early Islamic theology, its technical language consisted of a number of words translated from the Greek. This book studies how Islamic philosophers of the ninth century AD, such as al-Kindi, al-Farabi and Ibn Sina, developed an indigenous set of terms and concepts. Their Books of Definition influenced the revision of the Arabic language to incorporate these new fields of knowledge. Books of Definition in Islamic Philosophy: The Limits of Words uses the work of these philosophers as a basis from which a comparison with their Greek precedents is enabled. The book presents a framework for incorporating an Islamic and historically contextualised philosophy into a continuum of world philosophers. At the core of this framework is Ibn Sina's Kitab al-hudud which the author has translated into English and situates it in its correct geopolitical framework. In establishing a historical and literary context for the writing and circulation of Ibn Sina's definitions, the book breaks new ground in the integration of Islamic philosophy within a general history of philosophies. This fascinating and comprehensive study will be of interest to scholars and postgraduate students of Islamic Philosophy.

Kiki Kennedy-Day focuses on the philosophical writings of Ibn Sina. Kennedy-Day has a Ph.D in Near Eastern Languages and Literatures from New York University and has taught philosophy and religion at various New York universities and at Fatih University in Istanbul, Turkey. Her current work focuses on connections among Islamic, Greek and Scholastic philosophy.

Dedication Acknowledgments List of Abbreviations Introduction Part I Definitions of the Philosophers Chapter 1. What is a Definition? 1. The Role of Definition in Islamic Philosophy 2. Types of Definition 3. Definitions in a Historical Context Chapter 2. al-Kindi: the First Arabic Book of Definitions 1. The Style of al-Kindi's On the Definitions 2. Al-Kindi's Definitions 3. Conclusions Chapter 3. al-Farabi: the Emergence of Arabicized Greek Logic 1. The State of Greek Translation in the Tenth Century 2. The Style of Kitab al-huruf 3. The Definition of Definition 4. al-Farabi's Definitions 5. Conclusions Chapter 4. Ibn-Sina: the Second Book of Definitions 1. The Style of Ibn-Sina's Book of Definitions 2. Ibn Sina on Definition of hadd 3. Ibn Sina's Definitions 4. Conclusions Chapter 5. Comparison of Vocabulary 1. al-Jawhar 2. al-Illa 4. al-Hayula and al-Madda Part II Ibn Sina's Book of Definitions Chapter 6. The Socio-political Milieu of Ibn Sina Chapter 7. Translation of Kitab al-hudud Chapter 8. Commentary Appendices Bibliography Index