Sociological reasoning predates the foundation of the discipline itself. Social analysis has origins in the common stock of universal, global knowledge and philosophy, having been carried out from as far back as the time of old comic poetry which features social and political criticism,[9] and ancient Greek philosophers Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. For instance, the origin of the survey can be traced back to at least the Domesday Book in 1086,[10][11] while ancient philosophers such as Confucius wrote about the importance of social roles.[citation needed]
Medieval Arabic writings encompass a rich tradition that unveils early insights into the field of sociology. Some sources consider Ibn Khaldun, a 14th-century Muslim scholar from Tunisia,[note 1] to have been the father of sociology, although there is no reference to his work in the writings of European contributors to modern sociology.[12][13][14][15] Khaldun's Muqaddimah was considered to be amongst the first work to advance social-scientific reasoning on social cohesion and social conflict.