Is islamic rationalism of Greek origin? A historical study

Soleh, Achmad Khudori ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5145-6046 (2025) Is islamic rationalism of Greek origin? A historical study. The Islamic Quarterly, 69 (3). pp. 377-142. ISSN 0021 - 1842

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Abstract

Ernest Renan and Leon Gauthier claimed that Islam lacks rationality and that Islamic philosophy is a plagiarism of Greek thought. This study aims to achieve two objectives: first, to reject the conclusions of Renan and Gauthier, and second, to demonstrate that Islamic rationalism originates from Islam itself. Conducted as a historical study, the research draws on literature from both books and journals. The results show that Islamic philosophy does not originate from Greece for three reasons: (a) historical evidence indicates that Greek philosophy entered the Islamic tradition only after the rational thought of the Mu‛tazila had been established and institutionalized as the official state doctrine; (b) historically, many Muslim thinkers did not accept Greek philosophy; and (c) Muslim philosophers developed concepts that differ fundamentally from Greek philosophical teachings. Furthermore, Islamic rationalism emerges from Islam itself through (a) the rationalisation of the Arabic language, (b) the rational methods of deriving Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh), and (c) the rationalisation of theological thought. Based on these findings, this study rejects the conclusions of Renan and Gauthier, asserting that their claims regarding Islamic rationalism and philosophy lack a valid evidential basis.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Keywords:	language rationalization, theological rationalism, method of determining Islamic jurisprudence, Ernest Renan, Leon Gauthier
Subjects:	22 PHILOSOPHY AND RELIGIOUS STUDIES > 2203 Philosophy
Divisions:	Faculty of Psychology
Depositing User:	Dr Achmad Khudori Soleh
Date Deposited:	28 Jul 2026 08:37

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