אבן אל-ביטאר—חוקר צמחי אש-שאם

Ibn al-Baytar (born in Spain, d. 1248) practiced medicine in a variety of countries, and later served as a physician to the last Ayyubid rulers in the region of Greater Syria. In his writings, he lists about 60 medicinal plants in use among the local population. Some of them grew in Eretz Israel, Syria, and Lebanon, and some were imported from Egypt, the Maghreb, Turkey, Asia Minor, and Italy. His works reflect the thriving practice of medicine in his time, that served both the rulers as well as the lower classes. They also contribute information about the flourishing commercial ties of the period, and document a variety of languages and dialects in use among the various social and cultural groups in the Mediterranean world.