(Ghiyathuddin Abulfath Omar Ibn Ibrahim Al-khayyami) (d. 1123 or 1132). Persian mathematician, astronomer and poet. His Rubáiyát, a popular poem, was introduced into the West by Edward Fitzgerald in 1859. Fitzgerald wrote five different versions of the poem, but his first is the one most frequently quoted. Fitzgerald did not work from a manuscript of a complete poem, but selected suitable items from many to make a connected theme. The poem is considered by some to have significant SUFI connections, but this is difficult to substantiate and he was not particularly religious.

Khayyám died in Nishapur, but the date of his death is uncertain, being given as 1123 or 1132 by various authorities.

P.S.H.

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