As the caliph’s librarian and secretary, Lubna of Córdoba (d. 984) played a key role in the cultural development of al-Andalus. One of the most brilliant minds of her time, her knowledge ranged from mathematics to poetry.
A brilliant mind
Lubna’s origins are unclear, but she was likely a slave or a freed slave—like many learned women in the palace. In al-Andalus, enslaved women could receive an education and were evaluated for their mastery of Arabic, penmanship, musical skills, and their ability to memorize poems and songs. The Andalusian jurist and theologian Ibn Hazm, for instance, was taught theology, poetry, and calligraphy by his father’s slave women.
Despite their education, these women lived in a precarious position. As slaves, they were not recognized as equals and had no legal recourse in the face of injustice.
Educated women were not exceptional in this context. The use of female copyists and calligraphers seems to have been common in Lubna’s time. In the suburbs of Córdoba, for example, 127 women worked on copying the Quran. Some of them not only transcribed texts but also annotated and commented on them.
The caliph’s librarian
Thanks to her talents and education, Lubna rose quickly through the ranks. She became the personal secretary and librarian of Caliph Al-Hakam II, playing a central role in Córdoba’s intellectual flourishing.
The caliph was determined to build a vast library, and Lubna was one of the few women sent to Cairo, Baghdad, and Damascus to collect books.
Lubna was renowned for her unmatched intelligence and erudition. No other secretary in the palace could rival her. She even wrote and signed some of the caliph’s letters on his behalf, using a refined and elegant literary style.
Lubna the mathematician
Lubna was truly a polymath. According to Ibn Bashkuwal’s 12th-century biographical dictionary, she was:
“An intelligent writer, grammarian, poetess, knowledgeable in arithmetic, comprehensive in her learning; none in the palace was as noble as she.”
Her poetry was noted for its sensitivity, and her expertise extended to mathematics and geometry. Lubna translated, annotated, and commented on the works of ancient Greek scholars. According to some accounts, she would leave the palace to teach mathematics to children in the streets. The children would follow her, reciting multiplication tables until they reached the palace gates.
Lubna died in 984, but she remains remembered as one of the brightest intellectuals of al-Andalus.
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Further reading:
Baziz Yacine, “Femmes politiques et savantes à la cour omeyyade de Cordoue : Sara la Gothe, Loubna de Cordoue et Ṣubḥ (Aurora)”
Salisbury Joyce E., Warriors, Queens, and Intellectuals: 36 Great Women before 1400
Shamsie Kamila, “Librarians, rebels, property owners, slaves: Women in al-Andalus”
