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• 1 2023-04-28T15:22:27-07:00 The Impact of Scholars in Norman Sicily 4 plain 2023-05-11T08:47:49-07:00 With the Normans ruling over the Sicilian island, cities like in Palermo served as a hub for trade, arts, and science. Thanks to the presence of the Greeks and Berbers present on the island, many texts and scholarship were present and available for the Normans to observe. The Normans had ordered the translations of scholarly texts from Greek and Arabic into Latin, where the works of scholars like Henricus Aristippus would be rewarded with political positions such as the chief advisor to the Norman King. Within the administration of the Norman King William I, Greek studies were fairly common and practiced. Some Greek studies observed and practiced by the Normans included philosophy and natural sciences.
  One such notable Muslim scholar living in Norman Sicily was Muhammad al-Idrisi, who was a geographer and served under Norman kings like Roger II and William I. During the reign of William I, Al-Idrisi was instructed to write newer editions of his geography work, where he would combine different maps collected in Palermo that resulted in the creation of 70 maps during his lifetime. On top of mapmaking, Al-Idrisi wrote books on medicinal plants and poetry. While al-Idrisi was just one of many scholars in the region, the long-term impact of scholarship in the urban parts of Sicily helped provide the Normans with an understanding of Arabic art, language, and science over the next two centuries.