in 809, during the Abbasid period, in al-Hirah, to an ethnic Arab family. Hunayn in classical sources is said to have belonged to the ʿIbad, thus his nisba "al-Ibadi. The ʿIbad was an Arab community composed of different Arab tribes that had once converted to Nestorian Christianity and lived in al-Hira. They were known for their high-literacy and multilingualism being fluent in Syriac, their liturgical and cultural language, besides their native-Arabic. As a child, he learned the Syriac and Arabic languages. Although al-Hira was known for commerce and banking, and his father was a pharmacist, Hunayn went to Baghdad in order to study medicine. In Baghdad, Hunayn had the privilege to study under renowned physician Yuhanna ibn Masawayh; however, Hunayn's countless questions irritated Yuhanna, causing him to scold Hunayn and forcing him to leave. Hunayn promised himself to return to Baghdad when he became a physician. He went abroad to master the Greek language. On his return to Baghdad, Hunayn displayed his newly acquired skills by reciting the works of Homer and Galen. In awe, ibn Masawayh reconciled with Hunayn, and the two started to work cooperatively. Hunayn was extremely motivated in his work to master Greek studies, which enabled him to translate Greek texts into Syriac and Arabic. The Abbasid Caliph al-Mamun noticed Hunayn's talents and placed him in charge of the House of Wisdom, the Bayt al Hikmah. The House of Wisdom was an institution where Greek works were translated and made available to scholars. (Sylvain Gougenheim argued, though, that there is no evidence of Hunayn being in charge of the Bayt al Hikmah) The caliph also gave Hunayn the opportunity to travel to Byzantium in search of additional manuscripts, such as those of Aristotle and other prominent authors. Accomplishments In Hunayn ibn Ishaq's lifetime, he devoted himself to working on a multitude of writings; both translations and original works. As a writer of original work Hunayn wrote on a variety of subjects that included philosophy, religion and medicine. In "How to Grasp Religion", Hunayn explains the truths of religion that include miracles not possibly made by humans and humans' incapacity to explain facts about some phenomena, and false notions of religion that include depression and an inclination for glory. He also worked on Arabic grammar and lexicography, writing a unique grammar of the Arabic language titled "The Rules of Inflexion According to the System of the Greeks."