How did Islam contribute to medieval science and mathematics through translation and translation movement?

• A. Islamic scholars preserved Greek texts, expanded mathematics, astronomy, and medicine; translations into Latin and Hebrew enriched European scholasticism.
• B. They suppressed Greek science and stopped translations, hindering Europe.
• C. They only translated poetry and had no scientific contributions.
• D. They copied Greek texts without adding new mathematical or scientific advances.

Answer: (A)

The key idea is that a vibrant translation movement acted as a bridge carrying knowledge across cultures. Islamic scholars did more than copy old texts; they actively collected Greek, Persian, and Indian works, translated them into Arabic, and layered on commentary, critique, and new discoveries. This created a rich body of Arabic science that preserved and extended mathematics, astronomy, and medicine. In mathematics, al-Khwarizmi’s systematic work on algebra laid foundations that European scholars would later adopt and transform. In astronomy, Arabic astronomers refined planetary models, produced precise tables, and integrated observational techniques that built on Greek work. In medicine, Ibn Sina and others synthesized Galenic medicine and expanded it, producing encyclopedic texts that guided medical practice for centuries.

As European scholars sought to recover ancient learning, many works came to them in Latin and Hebrew translations of Arabic texts (often via Spain and Sicily). These translations carried forward Greek ideas, now enriched with Arabic commentary and innovations, and helped ignite European scholasticism and the revival of science in the later Middle Ages. So the movement connected preservation, expansion, and transmission, enabling a lasting impact on medieval science and mathematics.