The construction of 100 new madrasas in Damascus reflected the desire of the Atabeg and Ayyubid dynasties to change and educate society. Both male and female members of the Turkish and Kurdish elite sponsored the madrasas and participated in nourishing the rich educational atmosphere within them. In his History of Damascus, the historian Ibn ‘Asakir (d. 571 / 1176) expressed gratitude for his teachers, counting 80 women among them.