Sinbad the Sailor
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| - | '''Petrus Alphonsi''' (also spelled ''Alfonsi'', ''Peter''; born '''Moses Sepharadi''') (1062-1110) was a [[Jew]]ish [[Spain|Spanish]] [[writer]] and [[astronomer]], and [[polemic]]ist, who converted to [[Christianity]]. He is best remembered for ''[[Disciplina Clericalis]]''. | + | ''' (also spelled '''Sindbad''';[Hindi '''सिन्बाद द सेलर''']Persian language|Persian]] '''سندباد''' ''Sendbād''; [[Arabic]] '''السندباد البحري''' ''as-Sindibād al-Baḥri'') is a story-cycle of ancient Middle Eastern origin. '''Sinbad''' is a Persian word<ref> W. Eilers (1983), "Iran and Mesopotamia" in E. Yarshater, The Cambridge History of Iran, vol. 3, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pg 497</ref> hinting at a [[Persia|Persian]] origin. In fact some scholars believe that the ''book of Sindbad'', as such, was originally compiled in [[Sassanid Persia]], in the [[Middle Persian]] language, and that while it is not a translation of a pre-existing [[Sanskrit]] work, its author was familiar with [[India]]n narrative and nomic works, presumably in [[Middle Persian]] translations. The oldest texts of the cycle are however in Arabic, and no ancient or medieval Persian version has survived. A variation of the name, '''Smbat''', can also be found in [[Armenia]], as well as the version '''Lempad''' of his father's name '''Lambad'''. |
| - | ===''Disciplina Clericalis''=== | + | |
| - | Alfonsi's fame rests chiefly on a collection of thirty-three tales, composed in [[Latin]]. This work is a collection of oriental tales of moralizing character, [[Latin translations of the 12th century|translated]] from [[Arabic literature|Arabic]], [[Persian literature|Persian]] and [[Sanskrit literature|Sanskrit]]. Some of the tales he drew on were from the ''[[Panchatantra]]'' and ''[[One Thousand and One Nights|Arabian Nights]]'', including the "[[Sinbad the Sailor]]" story cycle and "[[The Tale of Attaf]]". It established some [[Didacticism|didactic]] models that would be followed by other medieval authors. | + | |
| - | The collection enjoyed remarkable popularity, and is an interesting study in [[comparative literature]]. It is entitled ''Disciplina Clericalis'' (A Training-school for the Clergy), and was often used by clergymen in their discourses, notwithstanding the questionable moral tone of some of the stories. The work is important as throwing light on the migration of [[fables]], and is almost indispensable to the student of medieval folk-lore. Translations of it into French, Spanish, German, and English are extant. [[Joseph Jacobs]] discovered some of the stories at the end of [[William Caxton|Caxton]]'s translation of the fables of [[Æsop]], where thirteen [[apologue]]s of "Alfonce" are taken in fact from the ''Disciplina Clericalis''. | + | Sinbad, the hero of the stories, is a [[sailor]] from [[Basrah]], living during the [[Abbasid]] [[Caliphate]]. The stories themselves are based partly on real experiences of sailors around the [[Indian Ocean]], partly on ancient poetry (including [[Homer]]'s ''[[Odyssey]]'' and [[Vishnu Sarma]]'s ''[[Panchatantra]]''), and partly upon [[Arab]], [[India]]n and [[Persian Empire|Persian]] collections of tales. They recount the fantastic adventures of Sinbad during his voyages throughout the seas east of [[Africa]] and south of [[Asia]]. |
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| + | The collection is tale 133 in Volume 6 of Sir [[Richard Francis Burton|Richard Burton]]'s translation of ''[[The Book of One Thousand and One Nights]]'' (''Arabian Nights''). This remains the classic translation in [[English language|English]] (famed as much for Burton's footnotes as for the tales themselves), but modern readers are perhaps more familiar with abridged versions produced for a more juvenile audience. While Burton and other Western translators have grouped the Sinbad stories within the tales of [[Scheherazade]] in the ''Arabian Nights'', its origin appears to have been quite independent from that story cycle and modern translations by Arab scholars often do not include the stories of Sinbad or several other of the ''Arabian Nights'' that have become familiar to Western audiences. | ||
| - | An outline of the tales, by [[Douce]], is prefixed to Ellis' "Early English Metrical Romances." Nearly all the stories are adopted in the ''[[Gesta Romanorum]]''. Chapters ii and iii were done into [[Hebrew]] and issued under the title, ''[[Book of Enoch]]''. An early French translation of this [[Hebrew language]] extract was made prior to 1698 by [[Piques]], and [[August Pichard]] published another version in Paris, 1838. | ||
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| - | [[Friedrich Wilhelm Valentin Schmidt]] produced a scholarly edition in 1827. | ||
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Revision as of 14:20, 10 June 2009
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(also spelled Sindbad;[Hindi सिन्बाद द सेलर]Persian language|Persian]] سندباد Sendbād; Arabic السندباد البحري as-Sindibād al-Baḥri) is a story-cycle of ancient Middle Eastern origin. Sinbad is a Persian word<ref> W. Eilers (1983), "Iran and Mesopotamia" in E. Yarshater, The Cambridge History of Iran, vol. 3, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pg 497</ref> hinting at a Persian origin. In fact some scholars believe that the book of Sindbad, as such, was originally compiled in Sassanid Persia, in the Middle Persian language, and that while it is not a translation of a pre-existing Sanskrit work, its author was familiar with Indian narrative and nomic works, presumably in Middle Persian translations. The oldest texts of the cycle are however in Arabic, and no ancient or medieval Persian version has survived. A variation of the name, Smbat, can also be found in Armenia, as well as the version Lempad of his father's name Lambad.
Sinbad, the hero of the stories, is a sailor from Basrah, living during the Abbasid Caliphate. The stories themselves are based partly on real experiences of sailors around the Indian Ocean, partly on ancient poetry (including Homer's Odyssey and Vishnu Sarma's Panchatantra), and partly upon Arab, Indian and Persian collections of tales. They recount the fantastic adventures of Sinbad during his voyages throughout the seas east of Africa and south of Asia.
The collection is tale 133 in Volume 6 of Sir Richard Burton's translation of The Book of One Thousand and One Nights (Arabian Nights). This remains the classic translation in English (famed as much for Burton's footnotes as for the tales themselves), but modern readers are perhaps more familiar with abridged versions produced for a more juvenile audience. While Burton and other Western translators have grouped the Sinbad stories within the tales of Scheherazade in the Arabian Nights, its origin appears to have been quite independent from that story cycle and modern translations by Arab scholars often do not include the stories of Sinbad or several other of the Arabian Nights that have become familiar to Western audiences.
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