A part of Barack Obama’s Speech in Cairo, Egypt: Muslim Heritage in our World

From the the Speech of Barack Obama, President of the United States, 4th June 2009 Cairo, Egypt: As a student of history, I also know civilisation’s debt to Islam. It was Islam at places like Al-Azhar University that carried the light of learning through so many centuries, paving the way for Europe’s Renaissance and Enlightenment. It was innovation in Muslim communities that developed the order of algebra; our magnetic compass and tools of navigation; our mastery of pens and printing; our understanding