The Modern Medical Science: a Journey Through History

to Muslim medical students in the hospitals. It is said that there as no arrangement for such education in Alexandria before the Muslim era. According to Al-Razi, a physician had to, satisfy two conditions for selection: firstly, he should be well versed in new and old medical literature, and secondly, he must have worked in hospitals as a house surgeon.10
The second ‘Abbãsi Caliph Al-Mansür called to Baghdad from Jundishapur a Christian physician of Persian origin, named Jarjis Ibn Bakhtyishu who remained in charge of the hospital of that city until 765-6. His arrival at Baghdad with two of his pupils marked the beginning of a great activity in the field of medicine. He seems to be the earliest member of the famous Bakhtyishu family of medical practitioners. This family remained attached to the court of a number of ‘Abbãsi caliphs, and exerted a great influence on the progress of Muslim medicine in the eighth and ninth centuries. Jarjis is said to have been the first to translate some medical works into Arabic. The translations were made by the order of the Caliph. 11
In the ninth century of the Christian era the greatest medical activity was shown by the Arabic speaking peoples. Much activity was devoted to translating the Greek medical works into Syrian and into Arabic. All the translators were Christians. One of them, Ibn-Sahda translated some works of Hippocrates into Arabic. Jibril Ibn Bakhtyishu (d. 828-29) patronized the translators, and worked hard to obtain Greek medical texts. He also wrote some medical works of his own. He made a great contribution to the progress of science in Baghdad. He was the most prominent member of the Bakhtyishu family. A Christian Physician, Salmawaih Ibn Bunan. (d. 839-40) helped Hunáin to

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