Learning Commons Episode 4: The Ancient Library as Cultural Centre

SUMMARY: The ancient library in Bagdad known as the House of Wisdom is described. How its scholars created and shared knowledge suggests a timely model of the learning commons as a cultural centre.

The House of Wisdom
from http://www.whyislam.org/

The House of Wisdom

I have one more port of call in our story of ancient libraries as models for the contemporary concept of the learning commons.

From the 9th to the 13th century, the House of Wisdom (Arabic) بيت الحكمة; Bait al-Hikma) flourished in Baghdad as a library and translation centre. al-Ma’mmon established the House of Wisdom as an institute for research and education in mathematics, astronomy, medicine, chemistry, geography, and alchemy, building a famous collection of Islamic, Greek, Persian, and Indian texts. One of the library's most famous residents was the mathematician al-Khawarizmi, the father of algebra. The term is derived from the title of his book, Kitab al-Jabr.

The library actively attracted world scholars to share and construct texts, ideas, and knowledge in what one source described as an “intellectual ambiance.”

Timely Technologies

The library depended on literacies and technologies that could spread both its fame and its function. As Brian Whitaker points out:

These developments in Iraq were made possible by widespread literacy and also by the availability of paper as an everyday writing material. The first paper arrived in Iraq from China, probably along the silk route via Samarkand, in the eighth century - long before it reached Europe. Shortly afterwards, a paper mill was established in Baghdad, and by the end of the 10th century, paper had replaced parchment and papyrus in the Arab world. 

Again, one wonders if the Internet is making another House of Wisdom possible. Some would question the homely term of "House", let alone the intellectual claim of "Wisdom!"

The Learning Commons as Cultural Centre

In the end, this is what attracts me about most libraries, ancient and modern: they can become cultural centres for knowledge. This is an important aspect of the learning commons: while knowledge is preserved and developed, the culture of learning is celebrated and woven deeply into our lives.

The search for knowledge transcends polarities and boundaries. It is done by the individual and the group,  the specialist and non-specialist, within both the developed and developing world. Establishing a learning commons locally or globally is both a special and an ordinary endeavour. It is as natural as human curiosity itself. It is not a new idea but it is now reachable for more and more of us.

Knowledge is not about manipulating power or riches: it is about sharing a learning culture that brings joy and wisdom. For me, most libraries, including school libraries, are Houses of Wisdom.