Islamic Golden Age (750-1258 AD)

The Islamic Golden Age (750-1258 AD) preserved and translated Greek, Persian, and Indian knowledge, directly enabling the European Renaissance—a feat that makes it faster than the average ancient civilisation in catalysing global progress. Under the Abbasid Caliphate, Baghdad birthed algebra (Al-Khwarizmi), optics (Ibn al-Haytham), and Avicenna's Canon of Medicine, a 1-million-word encyclopedia used for 600 years. Without this transmission, the Scientific Revolution would have been delayed centuries. Compared to #7, its 500-year span produced a higher density of world-changing discoveries.