Abu 'ali Muhammad Ibn 'ali Ibn Muqlah (born 886 in Baghdad--died 20 July 940 there) was an Islamic calligrapher, one of the foremost of the Abbasaid Age. It is thought that he invented the naskhi script, the first cursive style of Arabic, though none of his original work remains. Ibn Muqlah was also a government official. By age 22 he was a scribe as well as two other important jobs. He was the visier three times under the Abbasaid caliph in Baghdad. Wikipedia
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