Al-Akhwayini Al-Bukhari, a Pioneer in Psychiatry

Document Type : Conference Paper

Author

M.A. in Epigraphy and Manuscripts at the Institute of History, Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan, Uzbekistan

Abstract

Abu Bakr Rabi’ ibn Ahmad Al-Akhawayni Al-Bukhari, a prominent 10th-century physician from Bukhara and a pioneer in psychiatry, played a key role in the development of medical science during the early Islamic Renaissance in Turan (Transoxiana). This article examines Akhawayni’s life, works, and scientific innovations by analyzing his most important surviving work, “Hidāyat al-Mutaʿallimīn fi al-Ṭibb” (lit. The Students’ Guide to Medicine). Regarded as the first comprehensive medical text in the Persian language, this book was not only used as a valuable textbook for generations but also contains extensive clinical observations and the author’s personal experiences. Akhawayni’s innovations in medical classification, diagnosis, and treatment of mental illnesses—which earned him the title “Physician of the Insane”—along with his descriptions of diseases, such as diabetes and infectious diseases, solidify his status as a distinguished physician and researcher in the history of medicine.

Keywords

References

  1. Al-Akhawayni Al-Bukhari, A.B.R., 1965. Hidāyat al-Mutaʿallimīn fī al-Ṭibb (The Students’ Guide to Medicine). Edited by J. Matini. Mashhad: Mashhad University Press.
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Journal of Research on History of Medicine
Volume 14, Suppl. 1
The 2nd History of Medicine Meeting: Entangled Histories: Contribution of Iran and Türkiye to the Development of Medical Sciences; 2025 Oct 7-10; Shiraz, Iran
October 2025
Pages 125-128

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