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Ma Yize (traditional: 馬依澤, simplified: 马依泽,July 29, 921 –June 19, 1005)[1] was a Muslim Hui Chinese astronomer and astronomerofArab[2] origin who worked as the chief official of the astronomical observatory for the Song dynasty. According to Chinese sources, his origin lies in an area in Northeast Yemen, 60 kilometers South of Mecca and belonged to a family which descended from a certain companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.[3]
In the early 10th century, the Chinese emperor of the Song dynasty encouraged the advancement of the study of astronomy and its related disciplines. In 961, the Emperor Taizu (r. 960-976) appointed Ma Yize (910?-1005) as the chief official to take charge of the government observatory.
Ma Yize assisted Wang Chuna in compiling several important astrological works, including the Yingtianli (Calendar of Corresponding Heavens). His job was to provide observation, and computation of the regularities in celestial phenomena, using the Islamic methods. His findings were used by Wang Chuna in the compilation of Yingtianli, which was completed in 963. The calculation, based on a 7-day week system similar to that in the Islamic calendar, was first adopted in this document, which was the most important occurrence in the Chinese history of calendrical methods.
Ma Yize might have consulted many works of Islamic mathematical astronomy into Chinese, including:
It is possible that Ma was influenced by Al-Battani and Al-Hamdani. Owing to Ma's contribution to the compilation of 'Yingtianli', Ma was made a hereditary noble and his sons later succeeded his position with the Imperial Observatory.
關於馬依澤的生平和來華後的活動，在《懷寧馬氏宗譜·始祖妣序》中有更詳細的記載：「馬依澤公，號漁叟。西域魯穆國人。肇由來中，時建隆二年，歲次辛酉。旌表天文略部，授欽天監，世襲侯爵。築居陝西西安府涇縣永安鎮，李尚書塔傍。來中時四旬，生於勒比阿熬勿里月第二十日，故於景德二年五月初十日。」可知他不但將自己的阿拉伯語名字音譯成漢名，同時還根據中國人的習慣，取號曰漁叟。此處還載明了其生卒年月日，為研究他的生平提供了方便。按照該宗譜用實歲的傳統，從建隆二年辛酉來華時四十歲，可推知其誕生於公元921年；死於景德二年，即1005年。有趣的是，其生日用伊斯蘭歷表示，忌日用漢歷表示。隨鄉入俗，生年和死年使用不同的歷法，這是當時歷史的實錄。看来，古代人們並不懂得兩種歷的換算方法，故只能以兩種歷日共載。伊斯蘭歷的名都是用專名表示的，經查，勒比阿里月，就是伊斯蘭歷三月Rabia-al-awwel的音譯。前人將其譯為賴比爾敖外魯，其音也相近。由921年伊斯蘭歷三月二十日和1005年農歷五月初十日，便可推得馬依澤生於公元921年7月29日，死於1005年6月19日。
