Arab Christian Studies

Annus Hegiræ vel Annus (H)Agarorum? Etymologische und vergleichende Anmerkungen zum Anfang der islamischen Jahreszählung

by Robert Kerr

To appear in Die Entstehung einer Weltreligion III (Schiler 2012).

The Episcopal Church in Jordan: Identity, Liturgy, and Mission

by Duane Alexander Miller

Philosophy, Science, and Belles-lettres in Syriac and Christian Arabic Literature: A Gentle Introduction and Survey

by Adam McCollum

For a lecture given at Saint John's University, April 7, 2011.

It might be assumed that the genres of Syriac and Christian Arabic literature are made up exclusively (or almost so)... more It might be assumed that the genres of Syriac and Christian Arabic literature are made up exclusively (or almost so) of sacred topics (Bible, commentary, liturgy, asceticism, hagiography, theology, etc.), the writers, scribes, and readers in these communities often being monks, presbyters, deacons, and bishops. A broad look at the surviving evidence of this literature, however, shows an immense interest in subjects not directly connected to the church, monastery, or Christian life at all, among them philosophy, science, and belles-lettres. This paper offers a basic overview of these subjects as Syriac and Christian Arabic authors dealt with them, especially from manuscript collections in eastern Turkey.

The Song of Hannah in Arabic from Vat. Barb. Or. 2 and Other Sources

by Adam McCollum

Pre-publication draft. To appear in a volume on the Song of Hannah.

Las traducciones árabes modernas de la frase" poseer la tierra" en hebreo bíblico

by Daniel Ayuch

“The Modern Arabic Translations of the Phrase Possessing the Land in Biblical Hebrew”, in: Collectanea Christiana Orientalia 6. p. 23-43. (SPANISH ).

This article studies the translation of the Hebrew phrase yrsh 'rz in three Modern Arabic Bibles: the Protestant SVD,... more This article studies the translation of the Hebrew phrase yrsh 'rz in three Modern Arabic Bibles: the Protestant SVD, the Roman Catholic ABJ and the ecumenical GNA. The analysis is based on a synchronic and linguistic study of the Old Testament in order to pinpoint the semantic field of this expression. The specialized biblical lexica and the dictionaries of Classical and Modern Arabic are consulted, as well.
Giving the sense of possessing to the stem yrsh is a well discussed issue and to translate it into Arabic by the root mlk is not only incorrect but also damaging to a theology that intends to contextualize with the sociopolitical problems in the area and aims at providing bridges of understanding between the three religions that coexist in the Middle East.

Religious Institutions and Authoritarian States: church–state relations in the Middle East

by Fiona McCallum

Christian political participation in the Arab world

by Fiona McCallum

Der aramäische Wortschatz des Koran

by Robert Kerr

Dûmat al-Jandal. Immémoriale oasis d'Arabie Saoudite

by Guillaume Charloux

Co-authored with R. Loreto, ʿAbd al-Hâdî K. al-Tirâd,
Ahmad ʿA. al-Qa`îd, ʿAbd al-ʿAzîz I. al-Dâyil, Hammûd M. al-ʿArjân,
ʿAbd al-Majîd N. al-Murshd, Thâmir ʿA. al-Mâlikî, Andrea Marcolongo,
Quentin Morel, Darʿân M. al-Qahtânî, Mansûr H. al-Qahtânî,
Jérémie Schiettecatte & Pierre Siméon

2012. Archéologia 495: 46-55

Historical and Archaeological Overview of Dûmat al-Jandal Oasis (al-Jawf) in Saudi Arabia (in french) Historical and Archaeological Overview of Dûmat al-Jandal Oasis (al-Jawf) in Saudi Arabia (in french)

Deserto Verde

by Guillaume Charloux

Co-authored with R. Loreto

2011. Archeo, Attualità del passato 321 (november): 26-37

Historical and Archaeological Overview of Dûmat al-Jandal Oasis (al-Jawf) in Saudi Arabia (in italian) Historical and Archaeological Overview of Dûmat al-Jandal Oasis (al-Jawf) in Saudi Arabia (in italian)

(with Alexander Treiger) Christian Arabic Theology in Byzantine Antioch 'Abdallāh ibn al-Faḍl al-Anṭākī and his Discourse on the Holy Trinity

by Samuel Noble

The present contribution offers a critical edition (based on eight manuscripts) and an annotated English translation... more The present contribution offers a critical edition (based on eight manuscripts) and an annotated English translation of ‘Abdallāh ibn al-Faḍl al-Anṭākī’s previously unpublished Christian Arabic theological text Discourse on the Holy Trinity (Kalām fī l-Tālūt al-muqaddas), also known as Theological Discourse or (erroneously) The Little Book of Benefit. It stresses the significance of Antioch during the period of Byzantine rule for the history of Christian literature in Arabic and provides a comprehensive survey of what is known about ‘Abdallāh ibn al-Faḍl’s life and oeuvre. It also offers an analysis of ‘Abdallāh ibn al-Faḍl’s Trinitarian and Christological views, thus demonstrating that in addition to being a prolific translator of Greek Patristic and Biblical texts, he also deserves to be studied more systematically as an important Christian philosophical theologian in his own right.

Alcune osservazioni sul Gadla ḥawāryāt

by Alessandro Bausi

“Annali dell’Istituto Orientale di Napoli” (Napoli), 60-61 (2000-2001 [2002]), pp. 77-114

Virtue and Sin: An Arab Christian Woman’s Perspective

by Rita Stephan

An Arabic Scholion to Genesis 9:18-21 (Noah's Drunkenness) attributed to Philoxenos of Mabbug

by Adam McCollum

Hugoye 13.2 (2010): 125-148.

Among the scholia of an Arabic catena to Genesis published by P. de Lagarde in 1867 is an explanation of Gen 9:18–21... more Among the scholia of an Arabic catena to Genesis published by P. de Lagarde in 1867 is an explanation of Gen 9:18–21 attributed to Philoxenos of Mabbug. This short passage is the subject of the present study. After a brief survey of the biblical text in question according to various Arabic versions, it will be shown that there is very little to commend its Philoxenian authenticity, while it clearly echoes an interpretation found in Ephrem’s Commentary on Genesis. In addition, two other related passages (one with a new interpretation) in Ephrem are brought to the discussion, and the scholion’s similarity and difference to Jewish traditions recorded in the Targums, Bereshit Rabba, and Midrash Tanhuma (Buber) are also pointed out.

Review of James HOWARD-JOHNSTON, Witnesses to a World Crisis: Historians and Histories of the Middle East in the Seventh Century (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010)

by Diego Sarrio Cucarella

Collectanea Christiana Orientalia 8 (2011), 360–365

Abu al-Barakat's Catalog of Christian Literature in Arabic

by Adam McCollum

An annotated English translation of Abu al-Barakat's (d. 1324) catalog of Christian writers and their works available... more An annotated English translation of Abu al-Barakat's (d. 1324) catalog of Christian writers and their works available in Arabic, beginning with Clement of Rome and reaching to Abu al-Barakat's own time. A downloadable PDF is available at the bottom of the page linked above.

« Stratigraphie d'un récit. L'intervention égyptienne du roi Cyriaque de Nubie dans l'historiographie copte-arabe et éthiopienne (XIe-XVIIIe siècle) », Hypothèses 2009, p. 49-59

by Robin Seignobos

‘“They shall speak the Arabic language and take pride in it”: reconsidering the fate of Coptic after the Arab conquest’, Le Muséon 120 (2007) 273-99

by Arietta Papaconstantinou

L'inscription arabe de Kilwa: nouvelle lecture

by Saba FARES

published in Semitica and Classica, 2011

This article is a revisioning of the Arabic inscription of Kilwa (Saudi Arabia). It is about a Christian community... more This article is a revisioning of the Arabic inscription of Kilwa (Saudi Arabia). It is about a Christian community which introduced very elaborated hydraulic system that enable them to grow fruits, surprisingly thing in desert.

يوحنا الدمشقي: حضور مستمر ومتنوع في الكنيسة الجامعة

by Georges NAHAS

نحّاس، ج. ن. (2009). يوحنا الدمشقي: حضور مستمر ومتنوع في الكنيسة الجامعة. يوحنا الدمشقي: لاهوت وصورة ونغم. المؤتمر اللاهوتي السنوي الثالث. معهد القديس يوحنا الدمشقي اللاهوتي، جامعة البلمند.