Initial Roots of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the Early Islamic Era

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.63320/jrhs.v1.i1.2

Keywords:

Artificail Intelligence, early islamic traditions, AI, Muslim Community

Abstract

Islam accepts all forms of advancement, including progress in artificial intelligence. Technology requires Muslims to be proactive concerning their impacts, whether positive or negative. AI technologies are gradually overtaking older forms of work, yet the author claims that there is no existing barrier within Islam that hinders the use of AI in the workplace. In fact, there is significant evidence supporting the notion that modern AI’s foundational concepts were present in early Islamic and Arab traditions.

In quran Allah SWT says:
وَعَلَّمَءَادَمَٱلۡأَسۡمَآءَكُلَّهَا
He taught Adam the names of all things (Quran 2:31)

Allah SWT declares in the Quran that he gives all the knowledge to Adam. Qualitative methodology was chosen for this study. Secondary data was collected and analyzed to answer all the questions. The findings of the study revealed that the initial roots of AI were developed and properly implemented in the early Islamic era. This study has significant implications for the Muslim community.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biography

  • Manzoor Ahmed, Universitas Islam International Indonesia

    PhD Scholar, Universitas Islam International Indonesia.

References

Albertini, T. (2005). Crisis and Certainty of Knowledge in Al-Ghazālī (1058–1111) and Descartes (1596–1650). Philosophy East and West, 55, 1–14. https://philpapers.org/rec/ALBCAC

Al-Jazari. (1974). The book of knowledge of ingenious mechanical devices (D. R. Hill, Trans.). D. Reidel Publishing Company. (Original work published 1206)

Al-Khwarizmi. (1981). The algebra of al-Khwarizmi: Algebra and arithmetics from the Islamic golden age (F. Rosen, Trans.). Bibliotheca Islamica. (Original work ca. 820 CE) https://archive.org/details/algebraofmohamme00khuwuoft/page/n9/mode/2up

Ibraham A. “Al-Kindi: The origins of cryptology: The Arab contributions”, Crypto logia, vol.16, no 2 (April 1992) pp. 97-126.

Al-Raysuni, A. (2005). Imam Al-Shatibi’s theory of the higher objectives and intents of Islamic law. International Institute of Islamic Thought. https://iiit.org/en/book/imam-al-shatibis-theory-of-the-higher-objectives-and-intents-of-islamic-law/

Elmahjub, E. Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Islamic Ethics: Towards Pluralist Ethical Benchmarking for AI. Philos. Technol. 36, 73 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13347-023-00668-x

Ghaly, M. What Makes Work “Good” in the Age of Artificial Intelligence (AI)? Islamic Perspectives on AI-Mediated Work Ethics. J Ethics 28, 429–453 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10892-023-09456-3

Gutas, D. (2001). Avicenna and the Aristotelian tradition: Introduction to reading Avicenna’s philosophical works. Brill.

Druart, Therese-Anne, "al-Farabi", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2024 Edition), Edward N. Zalta & Uri Nodelman (eds.).https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/al-farabi/

Ibn Ḥajar. 1959. Fatḥ al-Bārī sharḥ Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī. Beirut: Dār al-Maʿrifa.

Islamweb. 2013. Ḍawābṭ jawāz taṣnīʿ al-rūbūtāt. Online fatwa issued on 11 March 2013. Available at shorturl.at/EGHOZ (accessed 23 August 2022).

Islamweb. 2009. Ḥukm rasm al-rūbūt. Online fatwa issued on 15 November 2009. https://www.islamweb.net/ar/fatwa/129139/ (accessed 23 August 2022).

Islamweb. 2002. Al-Insān al-ālī (al-rubūt) bayna al-ḥaẓr wa al-ibāḥa. Online fatwa issued on 26 July 2002. https://www.islamweb.net/ar/fatwa/20017/ (accessed 23 August 2022).

Islamweb. 2003. Working with and using robots. Online fatwa issued on 11 May 2003. http://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/85827/wor%20king-with-and-using-robots (accessed 23 August 2022).

Jazarī, al-. 1974. The Book of knowledge of ingenious mechanical devices. Translated by Donald Hill. D. Reidel Publishing Company.

Māwardī, al-. 1999. Al-Ḥāwī al-kabīr. Beirut: Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmiyya. https://www.scribd.com/document/121149085/Al-Hawi-Al-Kabir-Al-Imam-Al-Mawardi-20-of-26

Mīlād, ʿA. A.-F. A.-S. (2004). Al-buyūʿ al-muḥarrama wa al-manhiyy ʿanhā (Forbidden sales and prohibited transactions). Dār al-Hady al-Nabawī. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10892-023-09456-3

Nasr, S. H. (2006). Science and civilization in Islam. Harvard University Press. https://archive.org/details/sciencecivilizat0000nasr/page/n5/mode/2up

Opwis, F. (2010). Maṣlaḥa and the Purpose of the Law. Brill Quran 49:12. (https://quran.com/49/12)

Quran 2:31 (https://quran.com/2/31)

Sahih Bukhari, Book 73, Hadith 90.

https://sunnah.com/bukhari/78/90)

Saliba, G. (2007). Islamic science and the making of the European Renaissance. MIT Press.

Sarakhsī, al-. 1993. Al-Mabsūṭ. Beirut: Dār al-Maʿrifa.

Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. (n.d.). Al-Fārābī. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/al-farabi/

Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. (n.d.). The Analysis of Knowledge. ( https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/knowledge-analysis/)

Turner, H. (1995). Science in medieval Islam: An illustrated introduction. University of Texas Press. https://books.google.com.pk/books/about/Science_in_Medieval_Islam.html?id=nVcSnwEACAAJ&redir_esc=y

Zuboff, S. (2018). The Age of Surveillance Capitalism: The Fight for a Human Future at the New Frontier of Power. PublicAffairs. https://www.publicaffairsbooks.com/titles/shoshana-zuboff/the-age-of-surveillance-capitalism/9781610395694/

Downloads

Published

2025-06-30

How to Cite

Ahmed, M., & Sikander Raho. (2025). Initial Roots of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the Early Islamic Era. Journal of Religion, Health and Society, 1(1), 01-08. https://doi.org/10.63320/jrhs.v1.i1.2

Similar Articles

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.