Umar, also spelled Omar, Umar ibn Al-Khattab, Umar Son of Al-Khattab, was one of the most powerful and influential Muslim caliphs (rulers) in history. He was a companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. He succeeded Abu Bakr (632–634) as th...

Emperor Taizong of Tang, previously Prince of Qin, personal name Li Shimin, was the second emperor of the Tang dynasty of China, ruling from 626 to 649. He is traditionally regarded as a co-founder of the dynasty for his role in encouraging...

Brahmagupta was a great Indian mathematician and astronomer who wrote many important works on mathematics and astronomy. His best known work is the Brahmasphutasiddhanta (Correctly Established Doctrine of Brahma), written in 628 in Bhinmal...

Beowulf is an Old English epic poem consisting of 3182 alliterative lines. It may be the oldest surviving long poem in Old English and is commonly cited as one of the most important works of Old English literature. A date of composition is...

Dagobert I was the king of Austrasia (623–634), king of all the Franks (629–634), and king of Neustria and Burgundy (629–639). He was the last king of the Merovingian dynasty to wield any real royal power. Dagobert was the first of the Fran...

St Paul's Cathedral, London, is an Anglican cathedral, the seat of the Bishop of London and the mother church of the Diocese of London. It sits on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grade I listed building. Its...

The Tang Dynasty followed the Sui Dynasty and preceded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period in China. The dynasty was interrupted by the Second Zhou Dynasty (690–705) when Empress Wu Zhao seized the throne. The dynasty was founded by...

Wu Zetian or Empress Wu, was a Chinese sovereign, who ruled officially under the name of her self-proclaimed "Zhou dynasty", from 690 to 705. She was the only female emperor of China in more than 4,000 years. She had previous imperial posit...

The Qur'an is a compilation of the Muslim faith's Final Revelation from God to mankind through the last Prophet Muhammad, Peace be upon Him. The Qur'an has a wealth of information--both worldly wisdom and intellectual concepts--providing a...

An-Nawawi's Forty Hadith: An Anthology of the Sayings of the Prophet Muhammad. This collection of forty hadith by one of the most famous compilers of hadith is generally regarded as the most popular anthology and the best introduction to th...

Known as Saint Aidan of Lindisfarne, St Aidan the Apostle of Northumbria (died 651), was the founder and first bishop of the monastery on the island of Lindisfarne in England. A Christian missionary, he is credited with restoring Christiani...

Bishop of Utrecht, Apostle of the Frisians, and son of St. Hilgis, born in Northumbria, 658; died at Echternach, Luxemburg, 7 Nov., 739. Willibrord made his early studies at the Abbey of Ripon near York, as a disciple of St. Wilfrid, and th...

Bede, also referred to as Saint Bede or the Venerable Bede, was a monk at the Northumbrian monastery of Saint Peter at Monkwearmouth, today part of Sunderland, England, and of its companion monastery, Saint Paul's, in modern Jarrow (see Wea...

Born to a noble family of Wessex, England, as Wynfrid or Wynfrith, Boniface (in Latin, Bonifatius) is known as the "Apostle of Germany" for his work in Christianizing that country. First a benedictine monk and then ordained as a pr...

The Battle of Karbala took place on Muharram 10, in the year 61 of the Islamic calendar (October 10, 680) in Karbala, in present day Iraq. On one side of the highly uneven battle were a small group of supporters and relatives of Muhammad's...