Mobilities of Science
The Era of Translation into Arabic
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 3364637 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Scott L Montgomery (University of Washington, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2018 |
| Volume | 109 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 313-319 |
| Publication date | 2018-06-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Isis (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0021-1753 • E-ISSN: 1545-6994 |
| Publisher | University of Chicago Press (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1086/698236 |
| OpenAlex | W2806206436 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 3 |
Scientific knowledge is transferred, or mobilized, between cultures through the process of translation. One of the largest episodes of such transfer took place between the eighth and the eleventh centuries during the Abbasid Caliphate. Four sources of scientific knowledge were brought into the Arabic language: Greek (Byzantium), Syriac (Eastern Christian cities), Pahlavia (Persia), and Sanskrit (India). The focus was on Greek science, mathematics, and medicine, along with Aristotelian philosophy, with translation supported by the caliphs and much of urban society. Motives were complex and multifold, related to ideas of utility, political consolidation, and building a superior society. Results of the translation movement varied enormously and are sometimes difficult to characterize, combining material from several or more generations and languages. Certain texts of huge influence cast serious doubt on modern ideas about translation, its process, and its products. Important questions emerge, not only about what may be lost and gained in any translation activity but about how to conceive the profound role of this activity in the larger history of science
Arabic · Linguistics · Mobilities · Sociology · Translation (biology · Anthropology · Biochemistry · Chemistry · Education and Islamic Studies · Islamic Studies and History · Medieval and Classical Philosophy · Philosophy
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |