The Father of Chemistry
The title “Father of Chemistry” can be attributed to multiple figures, making it a subject of ongoing debate. Some scholars credit this title to Antoine Lavoisier, who is renowned for discovering and naming the elements oxygen and hydrogen. He also compiled the first comprehensive list of elements and formulated the Law of Conservation of Mass. Conversely, many scientific references assign this title to the Muslim scholar Jabir ibn Hayyan, recognized for developing a systematic approach to chemistry that categorizes substances based on their properties into alcohols, metals, and compounds suitable for transformation into powders. Jabir is also credited with inventing the alembic for distilling acids. In some contexts, the title of the Father of Modern Chemistry has been attributed to other notable figures such as Robert Boyle, Jöns Jacob Berzelius, and John Dalton.
Jabir ibn Hayyan
Abu Musa Jabir ibn Hayyan ibn Abdullah al-Azdi was a prominent Muslim scholar born in 721 AD in Tus, and he passed away in 815 AD. He is recognized as the founder of experimental chemistry and the first scientist to derive his chemical knowledge through experimentation, systematic observation, and scientific reasoning. Jabir ibn Hayyan has earned several titles, including “Chief of Chemists” and “The Father of Chemistry.” The historian Ibn Khaldun described him in his introduction to the study of chemistry, stating that “Jabir ibn Hayyan is regarded as the Imam among the scholars in this field, so much so that the science is often referred to as the Science of Jabir, with around seventy treatises attributed to him.” Jabir’s contributions to chemistry are extensive, including being the first to prepare sulfuric acid through the distillation of alum, as well as producing mercuric oxide, nitric acid, hydrochloric acid, caustic soda, silver nitrate, mercurous chloride, and nitrohydrochloric acid. He was also the pioneer in employing highly sensitive balances in his laboratory experiments, which predominantly took place in a lab discovered among the ruins of the ancient city of Kufa in the late 18th century.
Works of Ibn Hayyan
Jabir ibn Hayyan authored numerous books and treatises, some of which include:
- Book of Poisons and Their Antidotes.
- Great Book of Properties.
- Book of Remedies.
- Book of Balances.
- Book of Iron.
- Book of the End of Perfection.
- Book of the Seventy.
- Book of Mercy.
- Book of the Twenty Concepts.
- Book of the Secrets of Chemistry.
- Foundations of Chemistry.
- Message on Furnaces.