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The Works of Omar Khayyam in the History of Mathematics

The Works of Omar Khayyam in the History of Mathematics. Thomas Bisom
In: The Mathematics Enthusiast, 18 (2021), nrs. 1 & 2, p. 290-305

The exact time when the mathematician Omar Khayyam lived is not well-defined, but it is generally agreed upon that he lived from the end of the 11th century to the beginning of the 12th century C.E. in Nishapur, which is in modern-day Iran and Afghanistan (Struik, 1958). Other than mathematics, Omar Khayyam also made considerable contributions to other fields, such as astronomy, philosophy, and poetry (Struik, 1958). He is probably most famous for his poem titled Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, which was translated by Edward Fitzgerald (Struik, 1958). Although famous for his poetry, he was professionally inclined to astronomy and mathematics. In mathematics, he is well-known for being the first individual to find positive root solutions to multiple cubic equations, and he is also known for furthering understanding of the parallel axiom (Eves, 1958, p. 285; Struik, 1958). In this report, details of Omar Khayyam’s life will be mentioned, but the focus will be on his contributions to mathematics and his role in the history of mathematics.
Open Access

Taking an Interest

Taking an Interest
In: Bubb (Ed.) 2023 – Asian Classics on the Victorian.  Flights of Translation. Oxford : Oxford U niversity Press, 2023. Pp. 33-62. ISBN: 9780198866275.

This chapter explains why nineteenth-century readers with no specialist or professional commitment to Asian languages and literatures began to take an interest in oriental translations, an interest that can be observed to grow steadily over the course of the century. It proposes four main ‘growth factors’: a climate of religious tolerance and ecumenism, increased opportunities for travel to Asia, imperial consciousness, and concerns surrounding decadence and the perceived cultural decline of the West. It is then shown how each of these factors contributes to the phenomenal popularity of the Rubaiyat of the Persian poet, Omar Khayyam, in a variety of translations between 1880 and 1920. Finally, the chapter defines some of the limits of Victorian cosmopolitanism, beyond which readerly curiosity or sympathy did not readily extend.

Quatrains of Many Receptions

Quatrains of Many Receptions: A Survey of Perceptions of ‘Omar Khayyām in Ottoman and Turkish Translations. Efe Murat Balıkçıoğlu
In: Iranian Studies, Vol. 57 (2024), 2, pp. 221–239

This article explores the wide range of responses to Persian polymath and poet ‘Omar Khayyām (d. ca. 526/1132) in Ottoman and Turkish literary sources. There is an extensive bibliography of translations and secondary literature.

 

The sweetest of Fitzgerald’s quatrains

The sweetest of Fitzgerald’s quatrains. Henry E. Legler
In: Book Lover, November-December 1902, p. 464-465

Compares FitzGerald’s famous quatrain no. 12 (1879) “A Book of Verses …” with translations by other authors (Le Galienne, Curtis, Pickering, Kerney, Whinfield, Garner, Keene, Anson, Costello, Cowell and Powell.

Ich kam wie Wasser und ich geh wie Wind

Ich kam wie Wasser und ich geh wie Wind. Fünfundsiebzig Rubaijat. Roland Phleps. [S.l. : s.n.], 2016. – Unp. [iii, 150, ix p.]

– Vorwort
– Rubaijat
– Omar Khayyam

“Dieser Gedichtband ist nicht käuflich, er ist als Geschenk für meine Freunde und für Freunde von Omar Chaijam gedacht.”

75 quatrains, printed on one side of the leave only. English (in italics) and German

With gift inscription by author: “Mir herzlichen Grüssen, lieve Frau Grupp”.