T

he origin of Unani Medicine is traced back to ancient Egypt and Babylon. The studies of Papyri clearly show the ability of the Egyptians in the field of Medicine. Later on the Greeks developed the art of medicine in the light of medical knowledge of Egyptians and Babylonians. Hippocrates (460–370 BC) was the dominating figure of the classical period of Greek medical history. By searching the natural causes of disease and recording the existing knowledge, the the scientific ground for Medicine set up by Hippocrates. The contributions of Herophilus in the field of anatomy cannot be ignored. Dioscrides (40-90 AD) was the first person to write an illustrated book comprising of 600 herbal drugs i.e Kitab al Hashaish

After Hippocrates, a Roman scholar, physician & philosopher Galen (129-200 AD), stabilized the foundation of this science. After the Greek and Roman period, the manifestation of this medicine in the Arab lands, led to its greater growth as the Arab physicians not only adopted the existing knowledge but also contributed through their valuable observations and interventions in the field. Arabs contributed immensely to the field of material medica and this can be viewed in Ibn Baitar’s work i.e Kitab al Jami li Mufradat al Adwiya wa al Aghziya comprising 1400 drugs. Some of the well-known pharmacologists of this period were Ibn Wafid, Ibn Juljul, etc. Obstetrics and paediatrics took a definite shape through the efforts of Arab scholars. Abul Qasim Zahrawi, a Spanish Unani scholar has done a quantum of work in the field of Surgery. His work, Kitab al Tasrif is an appreciable one. From Uzbekistan, Ibn e Sina‘s contributions in the field of Unani Medicine is remarkable. His work Al Qanun Fil Tibb is a masterpiece. In the medieval period, the caravan of Unani Medicine went far and wide, going beyond the Arab region, covering Persia, Spain, Northern Africa, Turkey, Central Asia, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Uzbekistan, and Indian Subcontinent.