Das Buch der Ersten Philosophie aus dem Kompendium Rahm der Weisheit “Butyrum Sapientiae” des Bar HebräusSyriaca.org: The Syriac Reference PortalThe National Endowment for the HumanitiesThe International Balzan Prize FoundationDavid A. Michelsoncbsc_adminRecord added to Zotero bycbsc_adminSyriaca.org: The Syriac Reference Portalhttp://syriaca.org/cbss/FLEW6Y2V/tei
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CREATED: This bibl record was autogenerated from a Zotero record.YousefKouriyheDas Buch der Ersten Philosophie aus dem Kompendium Rahm der Weisheit “Butyrum Sapientiae” des Bar Hebräushttp://syriaca.org/cbss/FLEW6Y2Vhttps://www.zotero.org/groups/a_comprehensive_bibliography_on_syriac_studies/items/FLEW6Y2Vhttps://www.zotero.org/groups/4861694/items/FLEW6Y2V2011The subject of this work is the “First Philosophy” (Prima Philosophia) of Bar Hebraeus’ 13th century compendium “Cream of Wisdom” (Butyrum Sapientiae). The compendium is written in Syriac. The section of the “First Philosophy” is only found in this compendium of scholastic philosophy, of which only two manuscripts are extant. Bar Hebraeus’ dealing with the aristotelian philosophical concepts demonstrate his intimate knowledge of the matter. He continues and develops the oriental-aristotelian philosophical tradition, while following both Christian and Muslim Arabic philosophers. As such, he is one of the last representatives (authors) of scholastic philosophy in the Syriac tradition. Meanwhile the Arabic elements in his philosophy are clearly visible, which comes as no surprise, given the cohabitation of both cultures. This work further looks at the history of metaphysics among Syriac and Arabic speaking populations demonstrating, that the book of the “First Philosophy” was partly translated and commented upon. The numerous translations and revisions of the book of metaphysics start in the 9th century. These translations are certainly, at least in part, due to the inquiries and wishes of the new Islamic rulers and scholars. The fact, that some parts were also translated into Syriac is testimony to the fact that Syriac must be regarded as a language of science and scholarship at the time. The circumstance that there was as yet no complete translation into Syriac, lends special importance to Bar Hebraeus’ work. In our view, Bar Hebraeus’ main aim in translating and editing the “Cream of Wisdom” was to provide a basic introduction to philosophy for Syriac pupils and students. The question of Bar Hebraeus’ origin is also dealt with. Ever since Pocockii (1650) there existed the hypothesis of Bar Hebraeus being of Jewish origin. This hypothesis consolidated already with Assemani (1687-1768) and is dominant to this day. Opponents of the hypothesis are mostly found among Syriac literary scholars such as Šaīḵo, Barṣom und Behnam. The question is being examined and answered by historical-philological means, not least by using numerous manuscripts from the time of Bar Hebraeus. Last but not least, the present work contains an edition and translation of the manuscripts. Both weren’t always easy due to the lack of parallels and the sometimes difficult language of the text. We hope this work derives some special value from this and that it will serve as a basis for further studies. Citing from Prof. Dr. W. Schmidt-Biggemann’s survey: „The teachings of Aristotle apparently almost demanded for a treatment. The present compendium is excellent corroboration of this tendency. In the Latin philosophy of the 13th century, there is no comparable compendium. It is remarkable, that it was only in the 17th century, that a comparable curriculum came into existence. That gives special importance to the present text in its systematic conception.“
Kouriyhe, Yousef. “Das Buch Der Ersten Philosophie Aus Dem Kompendium Rahm Der Weisheit ‘Butyrum Sapientiae’ Des Bar Hebräus.” Dissertation zu Erlangung des Grades eines Doktors am Fachbereich Philosophie und Geisteswissenschaften, Freie Universität Berlin, 2011.
Yousef Kouriyhe, Das Buch Der Ersten Philosophie Aus Dem Kompendium Rahm Der Weisheit ‘Butyrum Sapientiae’ Des Bar Hebräus (Dissertation zu Erlangung des Grades eines Doktors am Fachbereich Philosophie und Geisteswissenschaften, Freie Universität Berlin, 2011).BarhebraeusJacobitesVII-XVIII CEXIII CEphilosophyprimary sources [Syriac] + German translation