Editing Soap (section)

=== Islamic Golden Age ===
Hard toilet soap with a pleasant smell was produced in the [[Middle East]] during the [[Islamic Golden Age]], when soap-making became an established industry. Recipes for soap-making are described by [[Muhammad ibn Zakariya al-Razi]] (c. 865–925), who also gave a recipe for producing [[glycerine]] from [[olive oil]]. In the Middle East, soap was produced from the interaction of [[fatty oil]]s and [[fat]]s with [[alkali]]. In [[Syria]], soap was produced using olive oil together with alkali and [[Lime (material)|lime]]. Soap was exported from Syria to other parts of the [[Muslim world]] and to Europe.<ref name="hassan">[[Ahmad Y. al-Hassan]] (2001), [https://books.google.com/books?id=h2g1qte4iegC&pg=PA73 ''Science and Technology in Islam: Technology and applied sciences'', pages 73–74]. {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171209061203/https://books.google.com/books?id=h2g1qte4iegC&pg=PA73|date=2017-12-09}}, [[UNESCO]].</ref>

A 12th-century document describes the process of soap production.<ref>BBC ''Science and Islam'' Part 2, Jim Al-Khalili. BBC Productions. Accessed 30 January 2012.</ref> It mentions the key ingredient, [[alkali]], which later became crucial to modern chemistry, derived from ''al-qaly'' or "ashes".

By the 13th century, the manufacture of soap in the Middle East had become a major cottage industry, with sources in [[Nablus]], [[Fes]], [[Damascus]], and [[Aleppo]].{{Citation needed|date=April 2023}}