Mohd Hafiz Safiai

Tracing the History of Astrolabe Inventions Across Civilisations

This article surveys the history and application of astrolabes from before Islam’s ascendance until the peak of the golden age of Islamic astronomy (falak). It also showcases the perpetuity of astrolabes as a multipurpose astronomical instrument used by a number of civilisations, Islamic and non-Islamic. The qualitative research method used involved document analysis and observations and the review of works on astrolabes by numerous scholars on its use in the field of astronomy. History and falak books were referenced to understand the use of this instrument in Islamic astronomy, which is currently known as astrofiqh. The astrolabe is a multipurpose analogue instrument for astronomical calculation and observation. The astrolabe invention became a symbol of ingenuity of Islamic scholars, and the concept behind it became a foundation for development of the latest digital astronomical instruments. Thus, knowledge of the astrolabe’s development should be recorded to document one of the glories of Islamic civilisation while acting to inspire and enhance related fields such as the development of astrofiqh in Malaysia.