Ismail ibn Hammad al-Jawhari (died 1002 or 1008)
Al-Jawhari, born in Kazakhstan, is famous in the Arab world for writing an Arabic dictionary entitled Taj al-Lugha wa Sihah al-Arabiya – “The Crown of Language and the Correct Arabic”. The dictionary is considered the most important medieval Arabic dictionary in existence, but al-Jawhari didn’t get the opportunity to complete it before his untimely demise…
In 1002 or 1008 he decided to try his hand at making a glider. He jumped from the roof of a mosque and died on impact.
