Abu Raihan Mohammad Al Beruni was born in 973 A.D. He is considered by many the first anthropologist. He was born in Khwarizm and lived in the court of Mahmud of Ghazni (Afghanistan).
He was not an Arab. He was a versatile genius. Scientist, mathematician, astronomer and historian, Al Beruni’s versatility unbounded his faith in Islam is strong, his God is the creator of all things and all peoples.
His famous contribution is the Kitab-al-Hind. He had ample knowledge of Sanskrit and Hindi scriptures too. Al Beruni died in 1048 A.D.
Ibn Khaldun is essentially the sociologist of Islam-the Islam of the arid zone inhabited by tribes and nomads. He was born in Tunis in 1332 A.D. Original’y he is an Arab although he lived his life in North Africa.
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He was jurist, historian, scholar, traveller and statesman. He is considered the father of sociology to which he gave the name Ilm-al- imran, meaning the science of society. His contribution Kitab-al-lbar, world history, ranks high in the esteem of scholars.