Averroes in Córdoba

Averroes, as he is known in the west, or Ibn Rushd as he is known in the Middle East, was one of the foremost thinkers of the age in which he lived. Born in Córdoba in 1126, Averroes has also been called the founding father of secular thought in western Europe, and described as one of the key influences on scientific and philosophical thought during the transition from ancient to modern methods. His work, along with the works of Moses Maimonides and Aristotle, would become crucial to the great universities of Europe.

But by the time of Averroes the Muslim empire had begun to crumble, and in 1236 Córdoba was taken by the Christians. A bishop ritually cleansed the mosque, and declared it the new cathedral. The heart of Al-Andalus had been taken. Over the next 600 years, beginning with Columbus's conquering of the New World, the Christian European world would spread.  This was the world that Averreos was born into and lived.  He was able to be educated in a multicultural intellectual environment that allowed him to synthesize and fuse several schools of thought.

Averroes was a defender of Aristotelian philosophy against Ash-Ari theologians who were led by Al-Ghazali (who was considered to be the single most influential Muslim after Mohammed)--which was a very big task indeed. Averroes' philosophy was considered controversial in Muslim circles. Averroes had a greater impact on Europeans and he has been described as the "founding father of secular thought in Western Europe". The detailed commentaries on Aristotle earned Averroes the title "The Commentator" in Europe.  Latin translations of Averroes' work led the way to the popularization of Aristotle and were responsible for the development of intellectual scholarship in medieval Europe.