Who's Who in Medieval History
A B C D E F G H I J K L M
N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Ibn Khaldun was also known as:
Ibn Khaldun was noted for:
Occupations:
Places of Residence and Influence:
Important Dates:
Quotation attributed to Ibn Khaldun :
- "He who finds a new path is a pathfinder, even if the trail has to be found again by others; and he who walks far ahead of his contemporaries is a leader, even though centuries pass before he is recognized as such."
About Ibn Khaldun:
Abu Zayd 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Khaldun was born to an illustrious family and received a good education. He served as assistant and secretary to several government officials. Ibn Khaldun's career was dependent on the good will of his superiors, and he changed jobs frequently when political winds shifted. He led an extremely eventful life, traveling to, among other places, Mecca, Damascus. Palestine and Seville, and occasionally finding enough leisure time to teach, study, and write. Among the notable personalities Ibn Khaldun encountered in his adventures were King Pedro I of Castile and Timur.
Ibn Khaldun's Writings:
Ibn Khaldun's most significant work is the Muqaddimah. In this "introduction" to history, he discussed historical method and provided the necessary criteria for distinguishing historical truth from error. The Muqaddimah is considered one of the most phenomenal works on the philosophy of history ever written.
Ibn Khaldun also wrote a definitive history of Muslim North Africa, as well as an account of his eventful life in an autobiography entitled Al-ta'rif bi Ibn Khaldun.
For more information about Ibn Khaldun's extraordinary life, visit your Guide's Concise Biography of Ibn Khaldun.
