Description

Sir Muhammad Iqbal (1877–1938) was a South Asian Islamic philosopher, poet, and politician, renowned for his poetry, which is considered among the greatest of the 20th century. His vision for the Muslims of British-ruled India significantly inspired the Pakistan Movement. Known by the honorific Allama (Persian for "learned"), Iqbal is widely regarded as one of the most influential Muslim thinkers and Western religious philosophers of his time.

In August 1947, nine years after Iqbal's death, the partition of India led to the establishment of Pakistan, where Iqbal is honored as the national poet. In Pakistani society, he is also referred to as Hakim ul-Ummat ("The Wise Man of the Ummah") and Mufakkir-e-Pakistan ("The Thinker of Pakistan"). His birth anniversary, Yom-e Weladat-e Muḥammad Iqbal, on 9 November, is celebrated as a public holiday in Pakistan.