So why did the Arabs who invented our numbering system, have such control
over language, had great empires (as witnessed by Pyramids, ruins of
mesopotamia) and still have most of the oil, lose control? Imperial power
gradually moved West, being in Britain 100 years ago and now in USA.
We workers are having a MayDay holiday weekend here. A local ENT surgeon has
invited the local medical world to his tropical island hideaway. Must rush,
or I'll miss the boat!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Stephen Crawshaw MB BS MSc
Townsville, Australia.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-----Original Message-----
From: Ahmad Risk <
500 years of the Arabs there certainly left the marks. It was one of
the most productive and beautiful periods of Arab civilisation, the
legacy of which in Portugal and Spain is the language and architecture!
On this part of the world, it is worth mentioning that 'Gibraltar'
comes from the Arabic 'Jabal Tarik' (jabal means mountain). This
refers to Tarik ben Ziad, the first Arab commander to cross the
straits! He went on to set fire to all his ships and is credited with
the phrase: "the enemy is ahead and the sea is behind"
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