An Early Jesuit Encounter with the Qur’an

The manuscipt Animadversiones, Notae ac Disputationes in Pestilentem Alcoranum is an almost entirely unknown translation of the Qur'an into baroque Latin completed by the Jesuit priest Ignazio Lomellini in 1622, of which only one copy exists. It is accompanied by extensive commentaries and incl...

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Main Author: Paul Shore
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: International Institute of Islamic Thought 2017-01-01
Series:American Journal of Islam and Society
Online Access:https://www.ajis.org/index.php/ajiss/article/view/272
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author Paul Shore
author_facet Paul Shore
author_sort Paul Shore
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description The manuscipt Animadversiones, Notae ac Disputationes in Pestilentem Alcoranum is an almost entirely unknown translation of the Qur'an into baroque Latin completed by the Jesuit priest Ignazio Lomellini in 1622, of which only one copy exists. It is accompanied by extensive commentaries and includes a complete text of the Qur’an in Arabic and numerous marginalia. It is, therefore, one of the earliest complete translations of the Qur’an into a western European language and a crucial document of the encounter between western Christianity and Islam in the early modern period. This essay examines Lomellini’s understanding of Arabic and, specifically, of the cultural and religious underpinnings of Qur’anic Arabic. Special attention is given to his lexical choices. This essay also deals with the document’s intended audience, the resources upon which he drew (including the library of his patron, Cardinal Alessandro Orsini), and the manuscript’s relationship to the Jesuits’ broader literary and missionary efforts. Finally, it asks why scholars, particularly those who study the history of the Jesuits, have ignored this manuscript and its author.
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spelling doaj.art-5453a18c19724c04b773f113758114c82022-12-21T20:12:56ZengInternational Institute of Islamic ThoughtAmerican Journal of Islam and Society2690-37332690-37412017-01-0134110.35632/ajis.v34i1.272An Early Jesuit Encounter with the Qur’anPaul ShoreThe manuscipt Animadversiones, Notae ac Disputationes in Pestilentem Alcoranum is an almost entirely unknown translation of the Qur'an into baroque Latin completed by the Jesuit priest Ignazio Lomellini in 1622, of which only one copy exists. It is accompanied by extensive commentaries and includes a complete text of the Qur’an in Arabic and numerous marginalia. It is, therefore, one of the earliest complete translations of the Qur’an into a western European language and a crucial document of the encounter between western Christianity and Islam in the early modern period. This essay examines Lomellini’s understanding of Arabic and, specifically, of the cultural and religious underpinnings of Qur’anic Arabic. Special attention is given to his lexical choices. This essay also deals with the document’s intended audience, the resources upon which he drew (including the library of his patron, Cardinal Alessandro Orsini), and the manuscript’s relationship to the Jesuits’ broader literary and missionary efforts. Finally, it asks why scholars, particularly those who study the history of the Jesuits, have ignored this manuscript and its author.https://www.ajis.org/index.php/ajiss/article/view/272
spellingShingle Paul Shore
An Early Jesuit Encounter with the Qur’an
American Journal of Islam and Society
title An Early Jesuit Encounter with the Qur’an
title_full An Early Jesuit Encounter with the Qur’an
title_fullStr An Early Jesuit Encounter with the Qur’an
title_full_unstemmed An Early Jesuit Encounter with the Qur’an
title_short An Early Jesuit Encounter with the Qur’an
title_sort early jesuit encounter with the qur an
url https://www.ajis.org/index.php/ajiss/article/view/272
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