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—Into Hebrew:

After the early victories of the Mohammedans and the consequent spread of Arabic civilization, the Jews of the Eastern countries became familiar with and adopted to a large extent the Arabic language; so much so that rabbis and scholars, if they desired to be understood by the masses, were compelled to write their works in that language. After the center of Jewish learning shifted from the Orient to Spain and southern France, some of these works, especially those dealing with the Halakah and Hebrew grammar, were translated from Arabic into Hebrew. In the lists of translations in this article the title of the translation is, as a rule, given in parentheses, with the date and place of publication of the first edition.

From Arabic.

The oldest Hebrew translations from Arabic date from the eleventh century. In 1078 Isaac ben Reuben Albargeloni rendered into Hebrew, under the title "Ha-Miḳḳaḥ weha-Mimkar," Hai Gaon's treatise on purchase (Venice, 1602), also Ibn Janaḥ's lexicon "Kitab al-Uṣul" ("Sefer ha-Shorashim"). About the same time, perhaps a little earlier, some Karaite writings were translated into Hebrew by Moses ben Tobia. At the beginning of the twelfth century Moses ben Samuel ha-Kohen ibn Gikatilla translated the two principal works of Ḥayyuj, the treatises on "Verbs Containing Weak Letters" and "Verbs Containing Double Letters" (edited with an English translation by John W. Nutt, London andBerlin, 1870). From the first half of the twelfth century there are a translation, or rather a paraphrase, of Saadia's" Emunot we-De'ot," and a translation of his commentary on the "Sefer Yeẓirah," both by Moses ben Joseph of Lucena. Toward the middle of the same century Ibn Ezra translated Ḥayyuj's grammatical works, two works on the astrology of Mashallah ("She'elot" and "Kadrut"), and a treatise on geomancy ("Sefer ha-Goralot"). About the same time Judah ben Isaac ibn Ghayyat translated a casuistical dissertation on a part of Shebu'ot.

All these translations are said by Judah ibn Tibbon, in the introduction to the "Ḥobot ha-Lebabot," to be defective in character, their imperfections being due either to a less than thorough knowledge of Arabic or Hebrew on the part of the translators, or to the fact that the latter give their own opinions instead of those of the authors. A similar view is expressed by Judah ben Barzillai, in his commentary on the "Sefer Yeẓirah," with regard to Moses ben Joseph's translation of Saadia's commentary on that work, the Hebrew of which he declares to be unintelligible.

The Ibn Tibbons.

A new era in regard to methods of translation began with Judah see IBN TIBBON, "the father of translators." At the request of Meshullam ben Jacob and his son Asher, Judah translated, in 1161, the first treatise of Baḥya ben Joseph ibn Paḳuda's ethical work "Kitab al-Hidayah ila Fara'iḍ al-Ḳulub." After its completion Joseph Ḳimḥi translated the remaining nine treatises and then the first one also. However, at the request of Abraham ben David of Posquières, Judah completed, under the title "Ḥobot ha-Lebabot" (Naples, 1489), the translation of the whole work, his version gradually superseding that by Ḳimḥi, of which only a small fragment has been preserved (published by Jellinek in Benjacob's edition of the "Ḥobot ha-Lebabot," Leipsic, 1846). The translation of Baḥya's work was followed by translations of Ibn Gabirol's "Kitab Iṣlaḥal-Akhlaḳ" ("Tiḳḳun Middot ha-Nefesh, "Constantinople, 1550), Judah ha-Levi's "Kitab al-Ḥujjah" ("Sefer ha-Kuzari," Fano, 1506), Ibn Janaḥ's "Kitab al-Luma'" ("Sefer ha-Riḳmah," ed. B. Goldberg, Frankfort-on-the-Main, 1856) and "Kitab al-Uṣul" ("Sefer ha-Shorashim," ed. W. Bacher, Berlin, 1896), and Saadia's "Kitab al-Amanat wal-I'tiḳadat" ("Sefer ha-Emunot weha-De'ot," Constantinople, 1562). To Judah ibn Tibbon is attributed also, although on very slight grounds, the translation of the collection of maxims "Mibḥar ha-Peninim," usually ascribed to Ibn Gabirol, and of Aristotle's "Posterior Analytics." In all these translations Judah endeavored to render faithfully the very words of the authors—by no means an easy task, considering the richness of the Arabic vocabulary and the poverty of the Hebrew.

Literal Method of Translation.

In order to reproduce the abstract ideas found in the philosophical writings new word-forms and technical terms had to be established. These word-forms and technical terms were naturally modeled after those of the Arabic, which, in their turn, were literal translations from the Greek. It is not surprising, therefore, that in the Hebrew versions of the philosophical writings there are many expressions which are unintelligible to those unacquainted with the Arabic terminology; but this can not be imputed as a fault to the translator, who could not find in Hebrew words adequate to the expression of abstract ideas, Hebrew being essentially the language of a people of concrete ideas. Judah's work is nevertheless far from being above criticism; it contains many faults which are due either to the translator's limited knowledge of Hebrew or to his misunderstanding of the original. Desiring to be faithful to the latter, Judah, like all the translators who took him as their guide, invariably rendered each Arabic word into an equivalent in Hebrew, without considering that a literal translation is not always possible and that some sentences must necessarily be recast in order to make them intelligible to a reader who is a stranger to Arabic constructions.

Another grave defect in Judah's method of translation, and one which gave rise to many errors and misunderstandings, was that he always used the same Hebrew word as an equivalent for a given Arabic word, regardless of the variations of meaning attached to the latter. Thus, for instance, he always uses the Hebrew verb ("to stand") for the Arabic , although, according to the preposition by which the latter is followed, it may also mean "to read," "to study," etc. Yet, notwithstanding numerous faults, Judah's translations were recognized as standards and accepted as models by all the Hebrew translators of Arabic in the Middle Ages. Thus his version of the "Cuzari" superseded that made a little later by Judah ibn Cardinal, as his rendering of the "Kitab al-Uá¹£ul" superseded those made by Isaac ha-Levi and Isaac ben Judah Albargeloni.

Translation of Maimonides.

The thirteenth century was especially rich in Hebrew translations from the Arabic, and those of Samuel IBN TIBBON, the son of Judah, were prominent among them. An enthusiastic admirer of Maimonides, Samuel began by translating several of his works, the most important among which was the "Dalalat al-Ḥa'irin," which he finished in 1190 under the title "Moreh Nebukim." Samuel clung more tenaciously than his father to the letter of the Arabic text; he even introduced Arabic words into his translations, and, by analogy with the Arabic, gave to certain Hebrew words meanings different from the accepted ones. This system of translation could but impair the intelligibility of a text difficult in itself; and thus the "Moreh" abounds in passages which are enigmatic to those who do not possess a profound knowledge of Arabic. Samuel's translation was, indeed, approved by Maimonides himself, to whom it had been sent for revision; but in such a case Maimonides was the person least qualified to judge, since, as the author of the original and an expert in Arabic, he naturally had no difficulty in reading the Hebrew version. This at least must have been the opinion of the poet Judah al-Ḥarizi, who, at the beginning of the thirteenth century, made a new translation of Maimonides' work and accused Samuel ibn Tibbonof having intentionally obscured the text. Al-Ḥarizi was not successful in his attempt to supersede Samuel's translation with his own, for the former was found by some critics to be more faithful to the original. Thus Shem-Ṭob ibn Falaquera, passing judgment upon both translations, says: "In Ibn Tibbon's translation the errors are few, and if the learned translator had had time he certainly would have corrected them; but in Al-Ḥarizi's, mistakes are numerous and words are often given wrong meanings."

In addition to the "Moreh," Samuel translated the following works of Maimonides: a treatise on resurrection ("Iggeret," or "Ma'amar Teḥiyyat ha-Metim"); the Mishnah commentary on Pirḳe Abot, with the psychological introduction ("Shemonah Peraḳm"); the "Thirteen Articles of Faith" ("Shelosh 'Esreh 'Iḳḳarim"); a letter addressed to Joseph ibn 'Aknin. Samuel did not confine his activity to Jewish writings, but translated works written by Arabs and bearing on philosophy and medicine. Among these were: Yaḥya ibn Baṭriḳ's Arabic translation of Aristotle's "Meteora" ("Otot ha-Shamayim," or "Otot 'Elyonot"), three small treatises of Averroes ("Sheloshah Ma'amarim"), and Ali ibn Riḍwan's commentary on the "Ars Parva" of Galen.

Judah al-Ḥarizi.

No less prominent in the field of translation was the above-mentioned poet Judah al-Ḥarizi. In addition to the "Dalalat al-Ḥa'irin," he translated Maimonides' treatise on resurrection (already rendered into Hebrew by Samuel ibn Tibbon) and his Mishnah commentary on Zera'im, Ḥariri of Busrah's " Maḳamat" ("Maḥberot Itiel"), Ali ibn Riḍwan's ethical epistle, Galen's essay against hasty interment, a treatise on the soul ("Sefer ha-Nefesh") also attributed to Galen, an originally Greek work on the "Dicta of the Philosophers" ("Mussare ha-Filosofim"), and an anonymous treatise on geomancy ("Sefer ha-Goralot").

A prolific translator, whose style, although less poetic, was more clear than that of his contemporary Al-Ḥarizi, was Abraham ben Samuel Ḥasdai. Among his translations are the following: the pseudo-Aristotelian "Kitab al-Tuffaḥah" ("Sefer ha-Tappuaḥ," Venice, 1519; frequently reprinted); Ghazali's ethical work "Mizan al-'Amal" ("Mozene Ẓedeḳ," in which the translator replaced the quotations from the Koran and the Sunnah with their equivalents from Bible and Talmud; ed. Goldenthal, Leipsic, 1839); Isaac Israeli's "Kitab al-Istiḳat" ("Sefer ha-Yesodot"); Maimonides' "Sefer ha-Miẓwot," with his letter to the Yemenite Jews("Iggeret Teman"); and a romance presenting incidents in the life of Buddha ("Ben ha-Melek weha-Nazir," Constantinople, 1518). About the same time as the last-named work a famous book of fables was translated, under the title "Sefer Kalilah wa-Dimnah," by the grammarian Jacob ben Eleazar.

From about 1230 to 1300 the most important Arabic works on philosophy, medicine, astronomy, mathematics, and other branches of learning were translated. The leading translators of that period were Jacob Anatolio (son-in-law of Samuel ibn Tibbon), Moses IBN TIBBON, Jacob ben Machir IBN TIBBON, the Italian physician Nathan ha-Me'ati, and Zerahiah ben Isaac ben Shealtiel GRACIAN. Anatolio translated the "Almagest" of Ptolemy ("Ḥibbur ha-Gadol ha-Niḳra al-Majesti"), the "Elements of Astronomy" by Al-Fargani, a treatise on syllogisms by Al-Farabi ("Sefer Heḳḳesh ha-Ḳaẓer"), and the first five books of Averroes' Middle Commentary on Aristotle's "Logic," consisting of the Introduction of Porphyry and the four books of Aristotle on the "Categories," "Interpretation," "Syllogisms," and "Demonstration."

Arabic Philosophy and Science.

Moses ibn Tibbon, like his father, began his career as a translator with several works of Maimonides, including the treatise on hygiene ("Miktab," or "Ma'amar be-Hanhagat ha-Beri'ut "), a mishnaic commentary (probably on Zera'im), the "Book of Precepts" ("Sefer ha-Miẓwot," Constantinople, c. 1516), the treatise on logic ("Millot ha-Higgayon," Venice, 1552), the treatise on poisons ("Ha-Ma'amar ha-Nikbad," or "Ha-Ma'amar be-Ṭeri'ak"), and the commentary on Hippocrates' "Aphorisms." Moses' other translations are: Averroes' commentaries on Aristotle's "Physica Auscultatio" ("Kiẓẓure ibn Roshd 'al-Shema' Ṭib'i," Riva di Trento, 1559); "De Cœlo et Mundo" ("Kelale ha-Shamayim weha-'Olam"); "De Generatione et Corruptione" ("Sefer ha-Hawayah weha-Hefsed"); "Meteora" ("Sefer Otot ha-'Elyonot"); "De Anima" ("Kelale Sefer ha-Nefesh"); the Middle Commentary on the last-named work ("Bi'ur Sefer ha-Nefesh"); "Parva Naturalia" ("Ha-Ḥush weha-Muḥash"); "Metaphysica" ("Mah she-Aḥar ha-Ṭeba'"); a commentary on Avicenna's "Arjuzah" ("Bi'ur Arguza"); Avicenna's "Small Canon" ("Ha-Seder ha-Ḳaṭan"); Batalyusi's "Al-Ḥada'iḳ" ("Ha-'Agullot ha-Ra'yoniyyot," ed. Kaufmann, Leipsic, 1880); Al-Ḥaṣṣar's treatise on arithmetic ("Sefer ha-Ḥeshbon"); Euclid's "Elements" ("Shorashim," or "Yesodot"); Al-Farabi's "Book of the Principles" ("Hatḥalot ha-Nimẓa'ot ha-Ṭib'iyyim," ed. Filipowski, Leipsic, 1849); Geminus' introduction to the "Almagest" ("↔okmat ha-Kokabim," or "Ḥokmat ha-Tekunah"); Ibn al-Yazzar's "Viaticum" ("Ẓedat ha-Derakim"); Ḥunain's introduction to medical science ("Mabo el-Meleket ha-Refu'ah"); Razi's works on the division of maladies ("Ha-Hilluḳ weha-Ḥilluf") and on the antidotes; Ḥunain's translation of Themistius' commentary on the treatise "Lamda" ("Perush Ma'amar ha-Nirsham be-Ot Lamed") and of the Aristotelian physical questions ("She'elot Ṭib'iyyot"); Kosta ben Luka's translation of the "Sphærica" of Theodosius Tripolitanus ("Sefer Teodosiyus be-Kadur"); and Ibn Aflaḥ's astronomical work "Kitab Ilahiyah."

Jacob ben Machir ibn Tibbon translated: the "Elements" of Euclid; the treatise of Kosta ben Luka on the armillary sphere; the "Data" of Euclid ("Sefer ha-Mattanot") according to the Arabic translation of Isḥaḳ ben Ḥunain; the treatise of Autolycus on the sphere in movement ("Ma'amar Ṭalḳus"); three treatises on the sphere by Menelaus of Alexandria; Abu 'Ali ibn Ḥasan ibn al-Ḥaitham's astronomical work ("Ma'amar bi-Tekunah," or "Sefer 'al Tekunah"); Abu al-Ḳasim Aḥmad ibn al-Ṣaffar's treatise on the use of the astrolabe; AbuMohammed Jabar ibn Aflaḥ's compendium of the "Almagest"; Abu Isḥaḳ ben al-Zarḳalah's astronomical work ("Iggeret ha-Ma'aseh be-Luaḥ ha-Niḳra Sofiḥah"); the preface to Abraham bar Ḥiyya's astronomical work; an extract from the "Almagest" on the arc of a circle; Averroes' compendium of the "Organon" ("Ḳiẓẓur mi-Kol Meleket Higgayon," Riva di Trento, 1559); Averroes' paraphrase of books - of Aristotle's history of animals; Ghazali's "Mizan al-'Uyun," in which are refuted the philosophical ideas antagonistic to religion ("Mozene ha-'Iyyunim").

Thirteenth-Century Activity.

Nathan ha-Me'ati, called the "Prince of Translators" and the "Italian Tibbonide," translated the following medical works: 'Ammar ben 'Ali al-Mauṣuli's "Al-Muntaḥib fi 'Ilaj al-'Ain," on the treatment of the eye; the "Canon" of Avicenna; the aphorisms of Hippocrates, with Galen's commentary; the aphorisms of Maimonides, and a selection from various authors, chiefly from Galen ("Pirḳe Moṣheh," Lemberg, 1804). Many anonymous translations are attributed to Nathan ha-Me'ati: Razi's treatise on bleeding ("Ma'amar be-Haḳḳazah"); Zahrawi's "Kitab al-Taṣrif" (Hebrew title, "Ẓeruf"); Ibn Zuhr's "Kitab al-Aghdhiyah" ("Sefer ha-Mezonot"); an anonymous work on the causes of eclipses ("Ma'amar 'al Libbot Liḳḳut ha-Me'orot"). A translation of Galen's commentary on Hippocrates' work "On Airs, Waters, and Places," begun by Nathan, was completed in 1299 by his son Solomon, whose son Samuel in turn concluded the translation of an extract from Galen's commentary on Hippocrates' work "On Regimen in Acute Diseases," and the translation of a medical work by Ibn Zuhr.

Zerahiah ben Isaac ben Shealtiel. Gracian translated: Aristotle's "Physics" ("Sefer ha-Ṭeba'"), "Metaphysics" ("Mah she-Aḥar ha-Ṭeba'"), "De Cœlo et Mundo" ("Ha-Shamayim weha-'Olam"), "De Anima" ("Sefer ha-Nefesh"), and "De Causis" ("Ha-Bi'ur ha-Ṭob ha-Gamur"); Averroes' Middle Commentaries on Aristotle's "Physics," "Metaphysics," and "De Cœlo et Mundo," with the commentary of Themistius on the last-named work; the first two books of Avicenna's "Canon"; Al-Farabi's "Risalah fi Mahiyyat al-Nafs" ("Ma'amar be-Mahut ha-Nefesh"); a medical work of Galen from the Arabic of Ḥunain ibn Isḥaḳ ("Sefer ha-Ḥola'im weha-Miḳrim"); three chapters of Galen's Καταγενή, with the same title in Hebrew characters; Maimonides' treatise on sexual intercourse; the "Aphorisms" of Maimonides.

The other translations of the second half of the thirteenth century were by:

A great number of Arabic works on mathematics, medicine, astronomy, and philosophy, especially by Averroes, were translated during the fourteenth century. The leading translator in the first twenty years of that century was KALONYMUS BEN KALONYMUS BEN MEÏR (Maestro Calo), who rendered the following Arabic works into Hebrew:

Translations of Averroes.

Another important translator from the Arabic, and of the same period, was Samuel ben Judah (Bonjudas) Males. His translations include:

Other Arabic works were translated in the fourteenth century by:

Aristotelian Commentaries.

With the fourteenth century the era of translations from the Arabic was practically closed, only a few works being translated during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. These were:

Several translations from the Arabic were made in the second half of the nineteenth century: Reckendorf translated the Koran (Leipsic, 1857); Joseph Derenbourg translated Maimonides' commentary on Seder Ṭohorot (Berlin, 1887-89); fragments of Saadia's commentaries on Proverbs, Isaiah, and Job were translated by Derenbourg, Meyer Lambert, and Wilhelm Bacher; Isaac Broydé translated Bahya's "Ma'ani al-Nafs" ("Torot ha-Nefesh," Paris, 1896).

The following are among the numerous works translated anonymously by Jewish authors:

Anonymous Translations.

  1. Sahl ibn Bishr, astrological work, under the title "Kelalim";
  2. works attributed to Isaac Israeli: (1) "Kitab al-Adwiyat al-Mufridah wal-Aghdhiyah," on diet ("Sefer Meḥubbar mi-Ma'amar ha-Rishonim be-Ṭeba ha-Mezonot we-Koḥatam"); (2) "Kitab al-Bul" ("Sefer Meḥubbar mi-Ma'amar ha-Rishonim be-Yedi'at ha-Sheten"); (3) "Kitab, al-Ḥummayat"; (4) "Aphorisms" ("Musar ha-Rofe'im");
  3. Saadia's "Emunot";
  4. Hai Gaon's treatise on oaths ("Mishpeá¹­e Shebu'ot");
  5. Responsa of the Geonim (Naá¹­ronai, Saadia, Sherira, Hai);
  6. Japheth ben Ali's commentary on the Pentateuch;
  7. Joshua's "Teshubot ha-'Iḳḳarim" and Bereshit Rabbah;
  8. Judah ibn Baalam's works on homonyms ("Kitab al-Tajnis"), on the particle ("Otot ha-'Inyanim"), and on Verba Denominativa," "Al-Af'al al-Mushtaḳḳah min al-Asma" ("Ha-Po'alim Shehem me-Gizrot ha-Shemot");
  9. Moses ibn Ezra's "Kitab al-Ḥada'iḳ fi Ma'ani al-Mujaz wal-Ḥaḳiḳah" ("'Arugat ha-Bosem");
  10. Joseph ibn Ẓaddiḳ's "Microcosm" ("'Olam Ḳaṭan");
  11. Maimonides' treatises on the calendar ("Sefer ha-'Ibbur"), on happiness, "Maḳalah fl al-Sa'adah" ("Pirḳe ha-Haẓlaḥah"), and on forced conversions ("Iggeret ha-Shemad"), responsa on hemorrhoids, "Fi al-Bawasir" ("Ha-Ma'amar be-Refu'at ha-Ṭeḥarim"), on sexual intercourse, "Fi al-Jama'ah" ("Ma'amar ha-Mishgal"), and on poisons, "Al-Sumum wal-Mutaḥarriz min al-Adwiyah al-Ḳitalah," and the commentary on Hippocrates' "Aphorisms";
  12. Joseph ibn 'Aḳnin's" Maḳalah fl Ṭibb al-Nafs" ("Marpe le-Nefesh");
  13. Abraham Maimonides' "Kifayah";
  14. Moses Abulafla's theological work "Ma'amar Elohi";
  15. Joseph ibn Naḥmias' astronomical work "Nur al-'Alam" ("Or 'Olam");
  16. Joseph ibn Waḳḳar's work on the Seflrot.

The oldest known Hebrew translation from the Latin belongs to the thirteenth century. About 1250 Solomon ben Moses Melgueiri translated the treatise known as "De Somno et Vigilia" and attributed to Aristotle ("Ha-Shanah weha-Yeḳiẓah"); Averroes' commentary on the third book of Aristotle's "Metaphysics"; Avicenna's "De Cœlo et Mundo"; and Matthæus Platearius' "De Simplici Medicina." About the same time Berechiah ben Naṭronai Krespia ha-Naḳdan gave a Hebrew version of Adelard of Bath's "Quæstiones Naturales," and of a "Lapidary" containing a description of sixty-three kinds of stones. Toward the end of the same century Samuel ben Jacob of Capua rendered into Hebrew, under the general title "Meha-'Eẓah weha-Ṭeba'im," the Latin version "De Medicamentarum Purgationum Delectio," or "Castigatione," of a work of Mesue the Elder. About the same time Hillel ben Samuel translated the Latin version of Hippocrates' "Aphorisms" by Constantinus Africanus, and "Chirurgia Burni."

From the Latin.

The fourteenth century, an age of translations from the Arabic, was equally fertile in translations from the Latin. About 1305 Estori Farḥi translated, under the title "Targum Sefer Refu'ot," Armengaud Blaise's "De Remediis," and, under the title "Sefer ha-Kibbusim," an anonymous work on purgatives that had been rendered into Latin from the Arabic by Elijah ben Judah. In 1320 Hezekiah ben Ḥalafta gave a Hebrew version of Petrus Hispanus' treatise on logic ("Higgayon"). About the sametime Samuel ben Benveniste translated, under the title "Menaḥem Meshib Nafshi," Boethius' "De Consolatione Philosophiæ." In 1327 Israel Caslari translated, under the title "Ma'amar be-Hanhagat ha-Beri'ut," Arnaud de Villeneuve's "Regimen Sanitatis."

More important than the above translations from the Latin were those made by Leone Romano, who, toward the middle of the same century, rendered into Hebrew the following works: Ægidius, "De Esse et Essentia" ("Ma'amar ha-Nimẓa weha-Meẓi'ut"); his treatises on the faculties of the soul("Ma'amar Hebdale Koḥot ha-Nefesh we-Ḥilluḳehem"), and on syllogisms ("Ma'amar ha-Hawayah ha-Heḳḳeshiyyah"); his commentary on the third book of Aristotle's "De Anima"; and extracts from the commentary on Aristotle's "De Demonstratione"; Albertus Magnus' commentary on the third book of Aristotle's "De Anima," and various extracts from Albertus Magnus' works; Alexander the Minarite's glosses to Aristotle's "Metaphysics"; extracts from Angelo de Camerino's works; the "Liber de Causis" ascribed to Aristotle; Thomas Aquinas' "Treatise on Ideas," and extracts from his "Contra Gentiles" ("Neged ha-Ummot"); Averroes' "De Substantia Orbis" ("'Eẓem ha-Shamayim"); Boethius' "De Unitate et Uno" ("Ma'amar ha-Eḥad weha-Aḥadut"). Other translations from the Latin were as follows: Johannes Paulinus' treatise on the medical virtues of the skin of the serpent ("Ma'amar bi-Segullot 'Or ha-Naḥash"), by David ibn Bilia; Francesco dei Cenneli's, Gentile da Foligno's, and John of Burgundy's "Consilia" ("'Eẓah"), by Joshua of Bologna; Arnaud de Villeneuve's treatise "De Vinis" ("Ha-Dibbur be-Yenot"), and Bernard of Gordon's and Gilbert's treatises on fevers, both translated by Judah Nathan ("En Bongodas" and "Bonjues"); Bernard de Gordon's "Lilium Medicinæ" ("Peraḥ ha-Refu'ot"), by Moses ben Samuel of Roccambra (John of Avignon) and by Jekuthiel ben Solomon of Narbonne ("Shoshan ha-Refu'ah"); Leon's "Historia de Prœliis" ("Toledot Aleksander"), by Immanuel ben Jacob Bonfils; Bernard Alberti's "Materia Medica" ("Mebo ha-Melek"), Arnaud de Villeneuve's "Medicationis Parabolæ" and his work on digestion and purgatives, the commentary of Gerard de Solo on the ninth book of Razi's "Al-Manẓuri," and Petrus Hispanus' treatise on logic, all by Abraham Abigdor (Bonet) ben Meshullam ben Solomon; Gerard de Solo's commentary on the ninth book ("Pathology") of Razi and his manual of medicine ("Meyashsher ha-Matḥilim"), a chapter on the relation between astronomy and medicine attributed to Hippocrates, and Bernard de Gordon's "Lilium Medicinæ" and "Prognostic," all by Leon Joseph of Carcassonne; Arnold de Villeneuve's "Digestiva," by Todros ben Moses Yom-Ṭob; Arnold de Villeneuve's "De Judiciis Astronomiæ" ("Panim la-Mishpaṭ") and Sacrobosco's "Sphæra Mundi" ("Moreh ha-Ofannim"), by Solomon ben Abraham Abigdor (the first work was translated by him at the age of fifteen); Arnold de Villeneuve's "Tabula Super Vita Brevis," by Bonenfante of Milhaud; Ibn Rijal's astronomical work from the Latin version of Ægidius or of Petro de Regio ("Mishpaṭe ha-Kokabim,"), by Solomon ben David Davin.

The fifteenth century was for the Hebrew translations from the Latin what the fourteenth was for those from the Arabic; it was the richer in literary productions, but with it the era of translations closed. The most important of the translated works in that century were:

Medieval Science and Philosophy.

After the sixteenth century Hebrew translations from the Latin became very scarce. The few works translated included: a treatise on eclipses of the sun and moon ("Ma'amar Nikbad be-Liḳḳuyot Shamshiyyot we-Yeraḥiyyot"), by Moses ben Abraham Sahlun; Albertus' (Magnus?) "Questions and Answers on the Six Natural Things Required by the Body According to the Science of Medicine," by Moses ibn Ḥabib; an ethical work ("Ẓemaḥ Ẓaddiḳ," Venice, 1600), by Leon de Modena; Thomas Aquinas' "Summa Theologiæ Contra Gentiles," by Joseph Ẓahalon; the letters of Seneca, by Judah Leon ben Eliezer Brieli (published in "Kerem Ḥemed," 2:119 et seq.); Spinoza's "Ethics," by Solomon Rubin ("Ḥeḳer Eloah"); the thirteenth chapter of Tacitus' history, by Solomon Mandelkern.

Modern Times.

During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries very few works of any kind were translated into Hebrew; but with the Haskalah movement in Russia and Galicia the works of prominent European writers began to be rendered into that language. The following is a list of them, given under the heading of the language from which the translations were made:

English. French. German. Italian. Polish. Russian. Spanish.

Into Arabic.

—From the Hebrew:

Aside from the Arabic versions of the Bible, the Talmud, and the prayers (with which this article is not concerned), only three Arabic translations from the Hebrew are extant: the travels of Eldad ha-Dani, by an anonymous translator; the Yosippon ("Yusuf ibn Karyun"), by Zechariah ibn Sa'id; and Isaac ibn Crispin's "Sefer ha-Musar" ("Maḥasin al-Adab"), by Joseph ibn Ḥasan, which is supposed by Steinschneider to have been itself an adaptation from the Arabic. Through the Hebrew versions of the Arabic scientific works the treasures of the East and of ancient Greece were opened to the West. Indeed, with the exception of a small number of Latin translations made directly from the Arabic, mostly with the assistance of Jewish interpreters, all the works from which the Latin world learned mathematics, astronomy, medicine, philosophy, and other sciences were translated from the Hebrew versions made from the Arabic. Although it is possible that some among the Latin translations of the twelfth century were made from the Hebrew, the oldest known dates only from the thirteenth century. About 1260 John of Capua translated, under the title "Directorium Vitæ Humanæ" (published by J. Derenbourg, Paris, 1887), Joel's Hebrew version of the "Kalilah wa-Dimnah." He translated also Maimonides' work on the dietary laws and Ibn Zuhr's medical work "Al-Taisir." Toward the end of the same century Armengaud Blasius translated Jacob ben Machir ibn Tibbon's treatise on the quadrant invented by the latter, under the title "Quadrans Novus" or "Quadrans Judaicus."

Into Latin.

During the fourteenth century only a few works were translated from the Hebrew into Latin. Among these were the anonymous "Sefer ha-Ḥinnuk," on the precepts, and Abner of Burgos' "Iggeret ha-Gezerah." During the fifteenth century Latin literature was enriched with many valuable works from the Hebrew. About 1486 Elijah Delmedigo made the following translations: "Quæstiones Tres: DePrimo Motore; De Mundi Efficientia; De Esse Essentia et Uno" (Venice, 1501); "Averrois Quæstio in Libro Priorum" ("Analytics," Venice, 1497); Averroes' commentary on Plato's "Republic" ("De Regimine Civitatis"); "Averrois Commentatio [Summa] in Meteora Aristotelis," with fragments from Averroes' Middle Commentary (ib. 1488); "Averrois Commentatio [Media] in Metaph. Aristotelis," - (ib. 1560); Averroes' proem to the Large Commentary on Aristotle's "Metaphysics,"; Averroes' "De Substantia Orbis"; "Sperma." Delmedigo's protector, Pico de Mirandola, translated at the same time the commentary of Menahem Recanati on the Pentateuch, the "Ḥokmat ha-Nefesh" ("Scientia Animæ") of Eleazar of Worms, and the "Sefer ha-Ma'alot" of Shem-Ṭob Falaquera. The teacher of Pico de Mirandola, Flavius Mithridates, translated thirty-eight fragments of various cabalistic works, Maimonides' epistle on resurrection, Levi ben Gershon's commentary on Canticles, and Judah's "Ma'amar ha-Hawwayah ha-Heḳḳeshiyyah" ("Sermo de Generatione Syllogismorum Simplicium et Compositorum in Omni Figura").

Very important contributions to Latin literature from the Jewish mystical writings were made at the end of the fifteenth century and at the beginning of the sixteenth by Cardinal Ægidius de Viterbo, who translated the Zohar, "Ginnat Egoz," "Sefer Razi'el," "Ma'areket Elahut," "'Eser Sefirot," and other cabalistic works. Among the translations of purely scientific works made in the sixteenth century, the most noteworthy are those of Abraham de Balmes, Kalonymus ben Judah (Maestro Calo), Jacob Mantino, and Moses Alatino. Abraham de Balmes translated Ibn Haitham's astronomical work ("Liber de Mundo") from the Hebrew version of Jacob ben Machir ibn Tibbon, and the "farewell letter" of the Arabic philosopher Ibn Baga or Avempace ("Epistolæ Expeditionis"). Kalonymus ben Judah translated Zerahiah ha-Levi's Hebrew version of Ghazali's "Tahafut al-Falasifah" ("Destructio," Venice, 1527), Samuel ibn Tibbon's Hebrew version of Averroes' treatise on the intellect ("De Conversione Intellectus," ib.), and Moses ibn Tibbon's Hebrew version of Alpetragius' treatise on astronomy (Venice, 1531). The translations of Jacob Mantino were: "Paraphrasis Averrois de Partibus et Generatione Animalium," with the commentary of Levi ben Gershon; Averroes' compendium of Aristotle's "Metaphysics"; the Middle Commentary on Aristotle's "Isagoge"; books - of "Topics" and "Poetics" (Venice, 1550); a commentary on Plato's "Republic"; proem to the Large Commentary on the third book of Aristotle's treatise on the soul; proem to book of Aristotle's "Metaphysics"; the Middle Commentary on Aristotle's "Physics"; Averroes' medical work "Colliget"; the first book of Avicenna's "Canon"; Maimonides' "Shemonah Peraḳim." Moses Alatino translated Moses ibn Tibbon's Hebrew version of Themistius' paraphrase of the four books of Aristotle's "De Cœlo" (Venice, 1574); Avicenna's "Canon"; Nathan ha-Me'ati's Hebrew version of Galen's commentary on a work of Hippocrates ("De Aëre, Aquis et Locis"). Among other works translated into Latin in the sixteenth century were: Ezobi's "Ḳa'arat Kesef" (by Reuchlin, Tübingen, 1512-14, and Jean Mercier, Paris, 1561); Levita's "Tishbi" (by Paul Fagius, 1541, who translated also the "Alfabeta de Ben Sira" and the "Sefer Amanah"); Benjamin of Tudela's travels (by Arias Montanas); the travels of Eldad ha-Dani (by G. Genebrard, Paris, 1584); Levita's grammatical works and Maimonides' treatise on logic (by Sebastian Münster, Basel, 1524 et seq., who translated also the Yosippon, 1529-41); and a list of the 613 commandments from "SeMaG" (1533).

Christian Translators into Latin.

With the close of the sixteenth century the era of Latin translations, from the Hebrew, of Arabic scientific works ended, and the Jews ceased to serve as intermediaries between the civilizations of the East and the West. The work dropped by them was taken up by Christians, who had acquired from Jews their knowledge of Hebrew and other Oriental languages, and who made Latin translations of many Jewish writings of the Middle Ages. Foremost among these translators, in the first half of the seventeenth century, were the Buxtorfs; the elder Buxtorf translated the Biblical concordance, "Me'ir Netib," of Isaac Nathan ben Kalonymus and the "Iggeret Shelomim" ("Institutio Epistolaris Hebraica, sive de Conscribendis Epistolis Liber, cum Epistolarum Hebraicarum Centuria," Basel, 1610); the younger Buxtorf, Johannes, translated Maimonides' "Moreh Nebukim" ("Doctor Perplexorum," Basel, 1629) and Judah ha-Levi's "Cuzari" ("Liber Cosri," ib. 1660). Among the other Jewish works translated in the same century the most noteworthy were: Lipman-Mühlhausen's "Sefer ha-Niẓẓahon" (by John Heinrich Blendinger, Altdorf, 1645); the disputations of R. Jehiel and of Naḥmanides; Isaac Troki's "Ḥizzuḳ Emunah"; the "Toledot Yeshu"; the "travels" of R. Pethahiah and the "Megillat Wenz" (by Wagenseil); Cordovero's "Pardes Rimmonim" ("De Sanctissima Trinitate Contra Judæos," by Joseph Ciantes, Rome, 1664); Leon de Modena's dialogue on the subject of gambling (by August Pfeifer, Wittenberg, 1665; also by Thomas Hyde, Oxford, 1698, who translated Farissol's "Iggeret Orḥot 'Olam," under the title "Tractatus Itinerum Mundi," ib. 1691); the commentaries of Abravanel and others on Joshua; Moses Ḳimḥi's "Introductio ad Scientiam"; Joseph Yaḥya's commentary on Daniel; "Itinerarum Benjaminis of Tudela" (by Constantin l'Empereur); the "Alphabet of Ben Sira," "Megillat Antiochus," "Otiot de Rabbi 'Aḳiba," a part of Eldad ha-Dani's mythical travels, and Azariah dei Rossi's "Me'or 'Enayim" (all by Bartolocci in his "Bibliotheca Magna Rabbinica"); Abravanel's commentary on Daniel (by Höttinger); the "Idra Rabbah," the "Idra Zuṭa," the "Sifra de-Ẓeni'uta," the cabalistic essays of Naphtali Herz and Jacob Elhanan, the "Sha'arha-Shamayim" of Abraham Cohen de Herrera, and several of the writings of Isaac Luria (by Knorr von Rosenroth in his "Kabbala Denudata," Sulzbach, 1677-78); Maimonides' hilkot "'Abodat Yom ha-Kippurim," "Ḥameẓ u-Maẓẓah," "Ḳiddush ha-Ḥodesh," "Ta'aniyot," "Seder ha-'Abodah," and "Seder ha-Ḳorbonot" (by LudwigCompiegne de Weil, who translated also Abraham Yagel's catechism, "Leḳaḥ Ṭob"); the first part of Gans's "Ẓemaḥ Ṭob" (by Wilhelm Varot and also by Voisin); Zacuto's "Sefer ha-Yuḥasin," various parts of Maimonides' "Mishneh Torah," and part of the account of the travels of the Karaite Samuel ben David; Maimonides' "Yad," Talmud Torah and Teshubah (by Robertus Claverius).

Among the Latin translations of the eighteenth century the most noteworthy are: part of Maimonides' "Mishneh Torah" and extracts from the rabbinical commentaries on Psalms (by Heinrich Jacob Bashuysen, Hanover, 1705; Hanau, 1712); the "Sefer ha-Tappuaḥ" ("Biga Dissertationum," Giessen, 1706); Rashi's commentary on the Bible and the "Yosippon" (by John Frederick Breithaupt, Gotha, 1707, 1710); the Karaite Mordecai ben Nissim's "Dod Mordekai" ("Notitia Karæorum ex Tractate Mardochai," by Wolf, who translated also various fragments of Jewish writings in his "Bibliotheca Hebræa"); selections from the commentaries of Rashi, Abravanel, Ibn Ezra, and Isaiah di Trani on Joshua, and Moses Naḳdan's "Sha'ar ha-Neginot" ("Porta Accentuum," by John Georg Abicht); a part of Elijah Levita's "Shibre Luḥot" (by Nagel, Altdorf, 1758-71); portions of the "Taḥkemoni" (by Ure); Jedaiah Bedersi's "Beḥinat 'Olam" (by Uchtmann); the "Seder 'Olam Rabbah" (by Eduard Maier).

The following is a list of the works which have been translated from Hebrew into modern languages:

English. French. German. Italian. Russian. Spanish.

For other translations from and into the Hebrew BIBLE TRANSLATIONS; MAḤZOR; TALMUD.

J.
I. Br.
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Bibliography Information
Singer, Isidore, Ph.D, Projector and Managing Editor. Entry for 'Translations'. 1901 The Jewish Encyclopedia. https://www.studylight.org/​encyclopedias/​eng/​tje/​t/translations.html. 1901.
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