What is it about?
In this article I show how a Christian Arabic Bible version found in twenty medieval manuscripts can be characterized and linked to the Syriac Peshitta, which served as its source-text. Both the Syriac and Arabic texts render a short version of the list of unclean birds, which includes only 15 birds as opposed to the older Hebrew and Greek versions, which feature 20 birds.
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Why is it important?
By taking into account all the available manuscript evidence for a specific biblical passage, this article shows how a certain Christian Arabic version was transmitted in the medieval Arabic context. It further shows step by step how one can determine which version it was translated from and which characteristics it took over from its source text. Finally, it shows the complexity of the work of the author of the Syriac translation known as the Peshitta and possible connections to the contemporary rabbinic and targumic literature.
Perspectives
Personally, I think this article raises important issues on the transmission of the list of unclean birds and more generally on the work of the translators. Indeed, the list of birds faced the translators of any language with difficulties and as such, this textual passage is helpful to distinguish specific literary and linguistic traditions. The article calls for further research on medieval Arabic taxonomy to understand more fully the choices of the Arabic translator and to better the identification of the birds.
Aurélie Bischofberger
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: The Rendering of Unclean Birds in an Arabic Translation of Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14, Vetus Testamentum, May 2022, Brill,
DOI: 10.1163/15685330-bja10095.
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