Ibn Rushd Prize for Freedom of Thought

The Ibn Rushd Prize for Freedom of Thought (Arabic: جائزة ابن رشد للفكر الحرّ‎‎; German: Ibn-Ruschd-Preis für freies Denken) is awarded for merits concerning democracy and freedom of speech in the Arab world. The prize is endowed with EUR 2,500, and is awarded once a year. It has been awarded since 1999 by the non-governmental Ibn-Rushd-Fund (Arabic: مؤسسة ابن رشد للفكر الحرّ‎‎) whose members are for the most part Arab citizens living in Germany. The Fund was founded 1998 on the occasion of the 800th anniversary of Ibn Rushd's death. Ibn Rushd, a philosopher, physician and judge, better known as Averroës in medieval Europe was one of the best-known commentators on Aristotle and critic of early theologian and later Sufi mystic al-Ghazali (1058-1111). The fund has chosen the name of Ibn-Rushd as he stands for building a bridge between Islam and enlightenment. The judging committee wants to link to that flowering theologic and philosophic stage in the Arab world.