Who was Averroës?
Q: Who was Averroës?
A: Averroës was a Muslim polymath from Al-Andalus who studied Greek and Islamic philosophy, theology, law, politics, classical music, and the sciences of medicine, psychology, physics, astronomy, geography and mathematics.
Q: What period did Averroës live in?
A: Averroes lived during a unique period in academic history when interest in philosophy and theology was declining in the Muslim world but just beginning to become influential in Christian Europe.
Q: How did Aristotle influence Averroës?
A: Averroes was influenced by the ideas of Aristotle. His own philosophy was often criticised by fellow Muslims.
Q: What is he most famous for?
A: Averroes is most famous for his commentaries of Aristotle's works which revived Western scholarly interest in Aristotle and ancient Greek philosophy in general as well as led to the development of scholasticism in medieval Europe.
Q: How had Aristotle been forgotten since the 6th century?
A: Aristotle had been mostly forgotten in the West since the 6th century due to lack of access to his works or knowledge about them.
Q: How did Averroës' interpretations revive Western scholarly interest?
A: Through his commentaries on Aristotle's works, Averroes' interpretations revived Western scholarly interest in Aristotle and ancient Greek philosophy as a whole.
Q: What has he been described as?
A: He has been described as the founder of secular thought in Western Europe due to his influence on Western European society through his interpretations of Aristotelian thought.
