Ibn Khaldun

1332–1406 CE Tunis Sociology & Historiography

Key Contribution: Father of sociology and historiography. Wrote the Muqaddimah.

Preceded the West: His Muqaddimah preceded Western social science by 400 years.

Abd al-Rahman ibn Muhammad ibn Khaldun is regarded as the father of sociology, historiography, and economics. His Muqaddimah (Prolegomena), written in 1377, is one of the most important intellectual achievements in history. In it, he developed a philosophy of history and a theory of social change that anticipated modern sociology by four centuries. He introduced the concept of asabiyyah (social cohesion), described the cyclical rise and fall of civilizations, analyzed the role of economics in shaping societies, and distinguished between nomadic and urban civilizations. He proposed that civilizations naturally rise, peak, and decline over roughly four generations. Arnold Toynbee called the Muqaddimah "the greatest work of its kind that has ever been created by any mind in any time or place."