Tārika Walda ʾAmid (β-recension)Akademie der Wissenschaften in HamburgHiob-Ludolf-Zentrum für ÄthiopistikDie Schriftkultur des christlichen Äthiopiens und Eritreas: Eine multimediale
Forschungsumgebung / Beta maṣāḥǝftHamburg This file is
licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0. BL Oriental 814, which is indicated with M in Hoffmann 2021, but with O in
Derat and Seignobos 2015.EMML 21, which is indicated with P in Hoffmann 2021, but with E1 in
Derat and Seignobos 2015.EMML 192, which is indicated with Q in Hoffmann 2021, but with E2 in
Derat and Seignobos 2015.Bibliothèque nationale et universitaire de Strasbourg, éthiopien 5, which is indicated with O
and referred to as witness of the α-recension in Hoffmann 2021, but probably an interpolated version of α and β.
A digital born TEI file
The β-recension of the Tārika Walda ʾAmid is the second translation of this work from Arabic into Gǝʿǝz. According to a list of
Alexandrinian patriarchs at the end of the work, which was most probably extended by the translator(s) or early copyists up to
Gabriel VII, the 95th patriarch of Alexandria, who held office during the reign of , i.e. in the
period of their parallel offices in 1525-1540. It contains both the pre-Islamic and the Islamic parts, as
well as the aforementioned list of patriarchs and an account on the ecumenical councils, which were added to Ibn al-ʿAmīd's original work after his death.
According to 140-141, both Ethiopian
recensions have been translated from the 'old recension' of the Arabic version of the Tārīḫ Ibn al-ʿAmīd, that is represented by the manuscript
ANT from the Antonius Monastery in Egypt.
EnglishGǝʿǝzCreated entityUpdated subdivision of textpartsAdded textpart on Alexander from edition BudgeAdded textpart on Moses' wife from edition Derat/SeignobosUpdated labels according to edition DiezUpdated source desc, abstract and bibliographyAdded parts of text in Preface and Introduction as well as incipits and explicitsUpdated references in editionDeleted ms D from witlist, deleted mss of Alpha recension from bibl refs,
updated edition of textpartsAdd text from ms. M to edition of #Introduction to #YaredAdd ms O (interpolated version) to listWitAdd text of #M from #Lameh to #Arpaksed; changed q for abAdd text of #M from #Qaynan2 to #Eber (1st part) and incipits/explicits from #T,
update notes on texts in divs.Add text for #Enos from #M, add incipits/explicits from #T for #Eli to #DaraAdded incipits/explicits from #Ebor (Wonders) to #Abimelech from #HCollated incipit/explicits from #Tola to #Amon from #HMinor corrections to #Daryos2Updated orthography #SamardyosAdd text up to #Batlimos6Add text up to #Kalaabetara, update numbers to conventional standardAdd text up to #FitalosUpdate variants #JUpdate variants from #J up to #Felestem2Update variants from #J up to #Kalaabetara and text from #T up to #UrelyanosUpdate variants from #J up to #Fitalos and text from #T up to #YolyanosUpdate variants from #J up to #Galawdewos and text from #T up to #Harqal
104-207Edition of the geographical treatise in the story of Eber (15th generation).127-145Diplomatic edition of the geographical treatise in the story of Eber (15th generation).268-279, 290-301, 631Re-edition of the geographical treatise, based on the edition by Kračkovskij.276-278Edition of the story about the Ethiopian wife of Moses (27th generation) based on five manuscripts, three of which being of the β-recension,
one of the α-recension and one most likely of the α-recension.207-225Edition of the story about Alexander (92nd generation).546-551Re-edition of the geographical treatise, based on the edition by Kračkovskij.Edition of the parts from the beginning up to the prophet Samuel (51st generation), based on an unknown source.
Translation of the geographical treatise (15th generation), translated to German.Translation of the geographical treatise (15th generation), translated to Russian.Translation of the geographical treatise (15th generation), translated to Russian.Translation of the story on Alexander (92nd generation), translated to English.267-268Translation of the story on Moses (27th generation), translated to French.Translation for the parts from the beginning up to the prophet Samuel (51st generation), translated to Amharic.
62-66
This division into textparts and labels follows the division in .
The following text is taken from and .በስመ፡ እግዚአብሔር፡ መሓሪ፡ ወመስተሣህል፡ ቦቱ፡ እትረዳእ፡ ወእዌጥን፡ ጽሕፈተ፡ ታሪክ፡ ዘውእቱ፡ ዜናሆሙ፡ ለአበው፡ ቀደምት፡ ወሐሳበ፡ ኍልቈ፡
መዋዕሊሆሙ፡ ለነገሥት፡ እምአዳም፡ እስከ፡ ተፍጻሜቶሙ፡ ለእስራኤል፡ ወለአሕዛብ፡ ዘአስተጋብኦ፡ ክቡር፡ ወትሩፍ፡ ክርስቶሳዊ፡
ጊዮርጊስ፡ ወልደ፡ አሚድ፡ ዘብሔረ፡
ግብጽ።
ወሰላመ፡ እግዚአብሔር፡ የሀሉ፡ ላዕለ፡ ንጉሥነ፡ገብረ፡ እግዚአብሔር፡ክሳደ፡ ጊዮርጊስ፡
ለዓለመ፡ ዓለም፡ አሜን።
General introduction by the author containing a note on the final redaction of
the work as well as chronographic and cosmographic considerations as witnessed in the Arabic edition in
176-191.
The edition of the part about Wonders up to the 10th Wonder is based on
; the incipits and explicits of Wonders 11 to 29 and the epilogue are based
on .
The incipit and explicit of the Conclusion on Eber's Life are based on ,
and .አቤር፡ ፲ወ፭፡ እምነ፡ አዳም፡ ዘዘከርናሁ፡ ቅድመ፡ እስመ፡ በመዋዕሊሁ፡ ተሐንጸ፡ ማኅፈድ፡ ወኮነ፡ ልሳኑ፡ እብራይስጥ።
ወበመዋዕሊሁ፡ ለአቤር፡ በወርኃ፡
ከፉን፡ክፉን፡ካፉን፡ ዳግማይ፡
በ፴፻ወ፬፻፲ወ፯በ፴፻ወ፩፻፲ወ፯ ዓመት፡ እምፍጥረተ፡ ዓለም።
The incipits and explicits of the part on Peleg and the following parts up to Tola (40th generation) are based on
, and
.፲ወ፮ ፋሌቅ፡ ወልደ፡ አቤር፡
ወሞተ፡ በወርኃ፡ ኤሎን፡ኢሎን፡ በ፴፻፳ወ፯ ዓመት፡ እምፍጥረተ፡
ዓለም።
The kings of the Philistines and the Ammonites from the sons of Lot rule over Israel፵፻፪ ነገሥተ፡ ፍልስጥኤም፡ ወደቂቀ፡ አሞን፡ እምደቂቀ፡ ሎጥ፡ ተሰልጡ፡
ላዕለ፡ ደቂቀ፡ እስራኤል፡
ከመ፡ ይዕቀብዎሙ፡ ለዮናናዊያን፡ እምሥጥመት፡ ወእሙንቱ፡ ዝኩራን፡ ውስተ፡ ተአምራት፡ ዘቀደመ።
Section strongly abridged in . The incipits and explicits from Samuel to
Darius III Codomannus (91st generation) are taken from and
.፶ወ፩ እምአዳም። ሳሙኤል፡ ነቢይ፡ መገቦሙ፡ ለሕዝብ፡ ፳ ዓመተ። ወአዘዘ፡ወአዘዞ፡ እግዚአብሔር፡ ከመ፡ ይሤሞ፡
ለሳኦል፡ ወልደ፡ ቂስ፡ቄስ፡ ንጉሠ፡ ላዕሌሆሙ፡
ወውእቱኬ፡ ለፍጻሜ፡ ፳ ዓመት፡ እምግብርናሁ፡ ለሳሙኤል፡ ወለፍጻሜ፡ ፵፻ወ፬፻ወ፯ ዓመት፡ ለፍጥረተ፡ ዓለም።
The explicit is missing in . For this reason, the text in this section is based on
.፻ወ፱። እምአዳም፡ ጋብዮስ፡ ቄሳር፡ ነግሠ፡ እምድኅረ፡ ጢባርዮስ፡ ቄሳር፡ ፬ ዓመተ፡
ወእምድኅሬሁ፡ ለእስሜር፡ ፲ወ፫ ዓመተ፡ ሞተ፡ ኣቅልድስ፡ ቄሳር፡ በተፍጻሜተ፡ ፶፻ወ፭፻፶ወ፯ ዐመት፡ እምፍጥረተ፡ ዓለም።
it is not clear, whether this chapter is about Gordian I, Gordian II oder Gordian III.፻፴ወ፫ እምአዳም፡ ገርድያኖስ፡ ቄሳር፡ ነግሠ፡ ላዕለ፡ ሮም፡ ፬ ዓመተ።
ወሞተ፡ ገርድያኖስ፡ ቄሳር፡ በፍጻሜ፡ ፶፻፯፻፴ወ፯ ዓመት፡ ወመንፈቅ፡ እምፍጥረተ፡ ዓለም።
The emperors Gordian II, Pupienus, Balbinus and Gordian III are probably missing in this list፻፴ወ፬ እምአዳም፡ ፊልጶስ፡ ቄሳር፡ ነግሠ፡ ላዕለ፡ ሮም፡ ፯ ዓመተ።
ወበውእቱ፡ መዋዕል፡ ተንሥአ፡ ላዕለ፡ ፊልጶስ፡ ቄሳር፡ ፩ መስፍን፡ እመሳፍንቲሁ፡ ዘስሙ፡ ደቅስዮስ፡ ወቀተሎ፡ ወነግሠ፡ ህየንቴሁ።
ወውእቱኬ፡ በፍጻሜ፡ ፶፻፯፻፵ወ፫ ዓመት፡ ወመንፈቀ፡ ዓመት፡ እምፍጥረተ፡ ዓለም።
The emperor Philipp II is probably missing in this list.፻፴ወ፭ እምአዳም፡ ደቅስዮስ፡ ቄሳር፡ ነግሠ፡ ላዕለ፡ ሮም፡ ፭ ዓመተ።
ወሞተ፡ ደቅስዮስ፡ዳክዮስ፡ዳኪዮስ፡ ንጉሥ፡ በፍጻሜ፡
፶፻፯፻፵ወ፰ ዓመት፡ ወመንፈቅ፡ እምፍጥረተ፡ ዓለም።
The emperors Galerius, Constantius I Chlorus, Severus II, Maxentius, Licinius, Maximinus II, Valerius Valens and
Martinian are missing in this list.፻፵ወ፭ እምአዳም፡ ቈስጠንጢኖስ፡ ንጉሥ፡ ምእመን፡ወምእመን፡መእመን፡
ወጻድቅ፡ ዘየዐቢ፡ ወልደ፡ ቍስጠ፡ቁስጣ፡ ነግሠ፡ ፶ ዓመት።
ወካዕበ፡ ይቤ፡ ከመ፡ ውእቱ፡ ነግሠ፡ በ፯፻፲ወ፯ ዓመት፡ በዘ፡ለዘ፡ ፪ አቅርንቲሁ፡ በ፶፻፷፻ወ፵ ዓመተ፡ ዓለም።
Constans I and Constantius II are missing in this list.፻፵ወ፮ እምአዳም፡ ቈስጠንጢኖስ፡ ንጉሥ፡ ዘይንእስ፡ ወልደ፡ ቈስጠንጢኖስ፡ ዐቢይ፡ ነግሠ፡ እምድኅረ፡ አቡሁ፡ ላዕለ፡ ሮም፡ ፳ወ፬ ዓመት።
ወሞተ፡ ቈስጠንጢኖስ፡ ዘይንእስ፡ ለፍጻሜ፡ ፶፻ወ፷፻፶ወ፬ ዓመት፡ እምፍጥረተ፡ ዓለም።
Referred to as Yokyānos in .፻፵ወ፷ እምአዳም። ዮስያኖስ፡ዮክያኖስ፡ ነግሠ፡ እምድኅረ፡
ዮልያኖስ፡ ላዕለ፡ መንግሥተ፡ ሮም፡ አሐተ፡ ዓመተ።
ወሞተ፡ ለፍጻሜ፡ ፶፻፷፻፷ወ፱ ዓመት፡ እምፍጥረተ፡ ዓለም።
Not clear, whether this section is about Valentinian I, Valens or Valentinian II.፻፵ወ፱ እምአዳም፡ ዋሊጦስ፡ ነግሠ፡ ላዕለ፡ ሮም፡ ፲ወ፪ ዓመተ፡
ወሞተ፡ ለፍጻሜ፡ ፶፻ወ፷፻፷ወ፱ ዓመት፡ እምፍጥረተ፡ ዓለም።
Not clear, whether this section is about Valentinian I, Valens or Valentinian II.፻፶ እምአዳም፡ ዋልዮስ፡ እኁሁ፡ ነግሠ፡ እምድኅረ፡ እኁሁ፡ ባሕቲቱ፡ ላዕለ፡ ሮም፡ ፪ ዓመት።
ወተቀትለ፡ ዋልዮስ፡ በውስተ፡ ፀብእ፡ ለፍጻሜ፡ ፶፻ወ፷፻፸ወ፩ ዓመት፡ እምፍጥረተ፡ ዓለም።
The emperor Magnus Maximus is missing in this list.፻፶ወ፩ እምአዳም፡ ገራድያኖስ፡ እኁሁ፡ ነግሠ፡ እምድኅሬሁ፡ አሐተ፡ ዓመተ፡
ወሞተ፡ ገራድያኖስ፡ ወወልደ፡ እኁሁ፡ ዋሊጦስ፡ በአሐቲ፡ ዓመት፡ ወውእቱኬ፡ ለፍጻሜ፡ ፶፻ወ፷፻፸ወ፪ ዓመት፡ እምፍጥረተ፡ ዓለም።
The emperors Honorius, Constantine III and Valentinian III are missing in this list.፻፶ወ፬ እምአዳም፡ ቴዎዶስዮስ፡ ዘይንእስ፡ ወልደ፡ አርቃድዮስ፡ ነግሠ፡ ላዕለ፡ ሮም፡ ፵ወ፪ ዓመተ።
ወሞተ፡ ቴዎዶስዮስ፡ ንጉሠ፡ ሮም፡ ለፍጻሜ፡ ፶፻ወ፱፻፵ወ፬ ዓመት፡ እምፍጥረተ፡ ዓለም።
Description of the patriarchs of Alexandria from to
. Detailed descriptions end with .
The following incipit is based on and .በስመ፡ አብ፡ ወወልድ፡ ወመንፈሰ፡ ቅዱስ፡ ፩ አምላክ፡ ፶ አንቀጽ፡ በእንተ፡ አእምሮ፡ ስመ፡ ሊቃነ፡ ጳጳሳት፡ ዘግብጽ፡ ወምስር፡ እለ፡ ተሰይሙ፡
በእለ፡ እስክንድርያ፡በእለእስክንድርያ። እምአብ፡ ሐዋርያ፡ ማርቆስ፡
ወንጌላዊ፤ ወእስከ፡ አብ፡ አትናስዮስ፡። ዘአዕረፈ፡ ኀበ፡ ምሕረተ፡ እግዚአብሔር፡ ልዑል።
This list of Alexandrian patriarchs was not part of the original work, but was added later and successively expanded by
Ethiopian scribes. The following text is taken from .፹ወ፫አባ፡ ጴጥሮስ፡፹ወ፬አባ፡ ማርቆስ፡፹ወ፭አባ፡ ገብርኤል፡፹ወ፮አባ፡ ዮሐንስ፡፹ወ፯አባ፡ ገብርኤል፡፹ወ፰አባ፡ መቴዎስ፡፹ወ፱አባ፡ ገብርኤል፡፺አባ፡ ዮሐንስ፡፺ወ፩አባ፡ ገብርኤል፡፺ወ፪አባ፡ ሚካኤል፡፺ወ፫አባ፡ ዮሐንስ፡፺ወ፬አባ፡ ዮሐንስ፡፺ወ፭አባ፡ ገብርኤል፡ ዘነበረ፡ በዘመነ፡ ንጉሥነ፡ ልብነ፡ ድንግል፡፺ወ፮አባ፡ ዮሐንስ፡፺ወ፯አባ፡ ገብርኤል፡ ዘሀሌ፡ ይእዜ፡ በዘመነ፡ ንጉሥነ፡ ሠርፀ፡ ደንግል።
The following incipit is taken from .አንቀጽ፡ ፶ወ፫ በእንተ፡ ተዝካረ፡ ጉባኤ።
The following text is taken from .ዝውእቱ፡ አስማቲሆሙ፡ ለነገሥት፡ ዘተንባላት፡ እለ፡
ነግሡ፡ በምስር፡ ወበግዳድ፡ እማሐመድ፡ እስከ፡ ዘመንነ፡ ዛቲ፡ ወእሙንቱኬ፡ ነገድ፡ እለ፡
ይሰመዩ፡ እልእምውያ፡ ወእልባስያ፡ ወእልፍጥምያ፡ ወነገሥትሂ፡ እልአልዩብያ፡ ወካልኣኒሆሙ።
The title given below is quoted after .ምእትስም፡ በአላህ፡
The title given below is quoted after .ነገሥት፡ እለ፡ ነግሡ፡ ላዕለ፡ ምስር፡ እምነ፡ አሕመድ፡ ወልደ፡ ጡሉን፡ ወእስከ፡ ካፉር፡ ላእከ፡ እልእክሺድ፡
This division into textparts and labels follows the division in .
The translation is from Carsten Hoffmann, if not indicated otherwise.
In the name of God, the merciful and compassionate, I found rescue in Him and begin to write the history, a narration of
the forefathers and an account of the times of the kings from Adam until the end of Israel and the peoples, which was
collected by the honourable and respectable Giyorgis Walda ʾAmid from the land of Egypt.
May peace be upon our king in all eternity. Amen!
General introduction by the author containing a note on the final redaction of
the work as well as chronographic and cosmographic considerations as witnessed in the Arabic edition in
176-191.
Note by the author, in which he claims that his work was already circulating in Egypt when he decided to add a story
from another source about the Persian Empire (e.g. 'Ruzbihans history').Praise be to God, the First, who is without beginning and the Last, who is without ending; the Father, the Son and the
Holy Spirit, the one God, in His lordship; whose place cannot be encompassed; who cannot be known; who cannot be
understood by human intellect; God of gods and Lord of lords; originator of any species of moving beings and of its
creatures, the creator of everything that can be found, and the one who will find everything; the creator of (all) beings that
exist; (who) is cheered and exalted by all creatures; who is praised in all tongues and who is sanctified in all countries;
whose existence cannot be told and whose kingship cannot be found.
We praise Him for (all) the beautiful things He has given to us, and we ask Him to have pity on us in this world and in the
world to come. Amen!
I then compiled all the accounts of the creation of the world in this book.
I have told in it what happened in ancient times and epochs in the form of stories and events among the descendants
of the ancients and what came to pass among all peoples and nations in every kingdom - people after people, kingdom after
kingdom.
I have called the prophets by name, one by one, in their respective epochs and times.
I have communicated some of what I collected from the book of their prophecies and their narrations: The prophets, wise
men, learned men, teachers and the talismans, which they have encompassed, which was a sculptured idol and wonders that
have occurred in the world, each in their own place.
I have explained the division of the Earth, the seven climes, their longitude and latitude, their seas and their rivers, their cities
and the deeds of the people, who are living in each clime, and the advantages and disadvantages of each clime.
I have recounted the story of Moses the prophet, God's peace upon him, and the miracles, marvels and wonders that God
performed through his hand before Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, until he (Moses) led the Children of Israel out of Egypt and
brought them to their inherited land.
After this, I have recounted, what the prophets, princes, judges and kings of the Children of Israel have established, their
stories and their wars until the deterioration of the Temple and the rule of Rome, Persia and others.
Afterwards, I informed about the appearance of our Lord, Jesus Christ, praise be upon him!
I collected his deeds in the world and the miracles and wonders that he did until the time of his ascension to Heaven.
After this it (the chronology) tells the story of the Holy Apostles, the Patriarchs and kings of the Christians and collects the
story of their war until the appearance of the rule of the evil Muslims,
and what happened from this time on, how the Arabs ruled and their action was harsh and they ruled over many realms.
Again, after all these counsellors and kings of the Muslims, nothing is omitted.
From what I collected as much as I could until the rule of the king whose name was Rǝkundin Baybars (= Rukn ad-Dīn Baybars) - that
means 'the ears (?) of the belief'.
The Lord may destroy the rule of the Muslim soon, Amen! -->
When we the narration of this chronology (tārik), which is a calculation, was revealed in the country of Egypt, his news was
heard in all regions of the land and the honourable scholars have written it.
I have found after this another calculation, in which there is a strange report on the story of the kings of Zǝnguʿān, which
are the ʾAzam (= Persians) that I have not found in what I have picked before from their fruits.
I harvested some from their good stories and added (them) to it and placed (them) for it is not missing (in) this book
in terms of excellent (information) and good stories.
Then a confusion and disagreement in the calculation of the number of years between those, who wrote the calculation,
was revealed to me. I did not withdraw and was investigating them from the books and calculations until I made it certain,
knew it, made it fit and established it so that it is fitting in a way that one is pleased when passing by (?).
When it was finished in the right shape, what was before in it concerning errors of calculation, was removed.
Afterwards, someone whose requests I was indebted to comply with asked me, and I accepted to offer him to compile
the desired book from it (= the longer version), which is easier to carry and contains the ideas and knowledge that he
requested, as well as what was ordered at the beginning of this gathering and I collected a number of stories and deeds
in it.
However, I have not omitted anything from the obvious stories and well-known events.
At the beginning, it is necessary that we start with an explanation of the reality of the world
and the question of the (definition of the) epochs, because a calculation of them is sought since they form the basis of it.
Based on the translation of
104-207.
The number of people gathered for the construction of the tower was 72 captains. Among them were of Shem's
descendants, 25 men. They lived from the Euphrates to Syria and to the eastern edge. They included the Syrians, the areas
of Rabiʿā (= Diyar Rabi'a), the island of Wäḥarāmqā (= Ǧarāmiqa), the Chaldeans - that is the people of Babylon - as well
as Persia, Khorasan, Fergana, Sind, India, Temān (= Yemen), Ṭayf, Tamāmā (= al-Yamāma) and two seas and the
descendants of the Arabs. Those who know how to write letters are 8: Hebrew, Syrian, Persian, Indian, Chaldean, Chinese,
ḥāmāzi (= Himyaric) and Arabic. They have the Euphrates and the river Balch as rivers.
Of the descendants of Ham there are 32 men. They inhabited the land of Syria and the land of Canaan as far as the land
of Egypt as well as the western fringes. From them (came) the Canaanites, the Philistines, the Egyptians, the Māris
(= Meroites), the descendants of the Ethiopians and the land of the Blacks as well as the Zendj, the people of the West
and the Berbers. They have 26 islands with names such as Sardinia, Malta, Crete and others around them. The letters
they wrote were 7 (sic): Coptic, Nubian, Ethiopian, Frankish, qolāqi (= Phoenician?) and qilǝqi (= Cilician?). They
have the Nile as a (major) river and the Jordan as a river.
There were 15 men among the descendants of Japhet. They lived from the Tigris to the far north of the world.
Among them are the Turks, the Nǝḥyān (= the Pechenegs), the Ṭaʿārʿir (= the Ṭoġuzġuz), the Natǝb (= Tibetans),
Gog and Magog, the Ḥarzä Wālän (= the Khazars, the Alans), ʾAygār (= Abkhazia), Ṣabāyǝr (= Siberian), Greater
Armenia and Lesser Armenia, Antioch, Kaldǝyā (= Chaldia), Cappadocia, Karastā (= Jerash?), Greece, Rome,
Britain, Russia, Dailam (= Dalmatia), Slavonia, Franconia, Andalusia and what that follows. They have twelve islands,
including: Rhodes, Sicily, Cyprus and Athens (sic!). They have 7 (sic!) alphabets that they know how to write: Greek,
Roman, Armenian, Andalusian, Frankish and ḥǝrzāwi (= Khazar). In terms of rivers, they have the Tigris and the Siṭ
(= Ister/Danube). The writer of this book said: 'Thus have I remembered the parts of the whole earth, as the
descendants of Noah divided it.
Once more we must explain the boundaries of the climes and their outlines, and the wonders and peculiarities within
them. We shall report what we have discovered of the works of each of the peoples who dwell in them - and of the events
to which they have been subjected. For the climes, we will tell you about the lions, cattle, birds and animals that can be
found in each clime. The division of the countries is as explained by the wise Ptolemy: They are divided into five parts.
Four of them are desolate and no man and no one lives in them.
The first part is the eastern fringe - in it is a fire of constant heat. No animals live (in it).
The second part is the northern (sic!), which lies to the right of (sic!) the first part. Its heat increases a lot because it is
close to it. Nobody can live in it.
The third part is to the west. It contains seas that cannot be navigable and its islands are desolate.
The fourth part is the northern one, which is next to the seventh clime. In it there is a lot of cold and harsh dryness.
There is always ice and snow. Neither animals nor livestock live in it.
The fifth part is the one in the centre of the earth where people live. This is divided into seven parts. These are the
well-known and famous 7 climes, which are now listed:
We must first make it clear that the Earth is round, like a bowl. The part in the centre - the one in which the whole
creation dwells - is very much elevated above the four parts that are desolate. These four parts are much lower than the
fifth. That is why the sun is obscured by this clime when it descends into the area the low-lying countries and darkness
spreads. This time is called night. The day is long when the sun rises in the northern orbit - of the 12 constellations -
at the head of the star Säräṭan. Its duration is the end of the night (?) when the sun sets in the southern orbits, which
we mentioned are excessively cold.
Ptolemy declared that the first of the the 7 climes has its beginning near the place of the burnt land. This clime is the
one towards India and distant China. Its longest day stretches over 13 hours.
The second clime is the country from Cush to Ethiopia. Its longest day stretches over 13 and a half hours.
The third clime is the clime of Alexandria and Egypt. Its longest day stretches over 14 hours.
The fourth clime, on the other hand, is called “Rhodes” in the Roman language - an island that lies in the sea.
In this clime, the land of Syria, the land of the ʽislandʼ (= al-Ǧazīra) - in which Babylon is located - and other countries
are included. Its longest day stretches over 14 and a half hours.
The fifth clime is called in Roman ʽPontosʼ. It contains Constantinople, Amoria and Rome. Its longest day stretches
over 15 hours.
The sixth clime is the land of Bargān (= Burǧān) and the surrounding area. Its longest day is 15 and a half hours.
The seventh clime is called in Roman ʽYāros and the surrounding areaʼ. Its longest day extends over 16 hours.
We will now explain the extent of each clime - each of the seven climes in which people live. Their width - that is, the
width of the seven climes in which people live, which are in the centre of the earth, the beginning of which is India and
distant China towards the fiery land, to the end of the seventh clime - that is, from the southern edge to the north,
the width of everything, as divided by the wise Ptolemy, is 63 degrees. The width of each individual clime is 9 degrees.
One degree is 3 days of travel - that makes 27 days of travel. Every 1 degree is 100 miles.
The beginning of this clime is in the east (and it reaches) to its end in the west. Its length is 180 degrees. One half of
the sphere is above and one half is below. Its entire lenght from the sea of Okeanos to its end in the east is 160 days of
travel. 160 - (this corresponds to) the number of 5700 parasangs according to the reckoning of the Persians and the
peoples of the East. Furthermore, one parasang corresponds to 4 miles. We believe that the width of this first clime,
which began at the boundary of the burning land, extends to the boundary of Sarandib (= Sri Lanka). The dimension
of its width from south to north is 285 parasangs.
Those who dwell in this clime - distant China and India, on a strip from the end of the earth in the east to its edge in
the west - are always naked people - ugly is their face and evil is their nature. They are descendants of Ham. They have
knowledge of sorcery and witchcraft. Their days (= age) are long. In this clime, there are large, very terrible beasts
and hoofed animals as well as large birds - including birds that are (similar to) the hoofed animals; the bird that is
like the ostrich; the ʾAgriṗā; the ʾAlyāṭon; and the bird called the ‘elephant bird’. In this clime there are large
elephants, terrible reptiles and a large snake. Among the people there are those who know woods and stones, which
they make themselves and which are a salvation. In it is a cure from these terrible dragons and (other) animals. They
place it on those who have been attacked by these evil dragons and they then survive.
The second clime, which is Ethiopia: Its length extends from the border of Sarandib (Sri Lanka) to the the end of the
country of Ethiopia in the west, as well as to the mountains where hyacinths, precious stones and grains of gold are
found. Those who live in them are from nearby China, Sind and India. In this clime, there are also large, terrible
hoofed animals and (other) animals. But they are smaller than those in the first clime. In this clime, there are woods
and stones in which, because of their nature, are a remedy for those who have been bitten by the animals of the
creation from this (clime). There are those who live in this clime who have knowledge of witches, magic formulae,
medicines and healing with wood and stones. Their days (= age) are shorter compared to the days of those living in
the first clime. Its length and its width are like the first (clime).
The third clime is the clime of Alexandria. This clime has its beginning at the tip of the land of Egypt in the west -
its east is in the direction of the land of Sandos (= Sind?). Its length extends from the west to the border of outer
Syria and Persia minor as well as to the border of Alexandria and the areas of Barka and Africa minor. Those who
live in this clime are explorers because of their lasting achievements. Its length and its width are like the first (clime).
Including a list of the ten sciences.
The fourth clime is the one in the centre of the island of Rhodes. Its cities are many. In view of their number, we
mention a few that we know: Damascus, Homs, Caesarea, Aleppo, Manbiǧ, Apamea, Antioch, Harran, Urfa, Raqqa,
Ras al-Ayn, Nusaybin, Syria (sic!), Baghdad and Arabia (sic!). Its territory extends from its beginning in the east on a
line to the west. It extends from the land of ʾAsfār (= Hispania) and a part of the land of Africa up to the north of
Sicily and the land of ʾAfrāṭi (= Crete) which lie opposite it, and (to) the land of Anqiyās (= Athens) from the land
of Rome, together with Cyprus and the great Asia. This clime is in the centre of the earth. That is why it is the best of
all countries in terms of its air and winds and the balance of its elements. That is why the people who live in it are wise
men and philosophers, star experts and masters of science. They conduct research into existing things (?) and the
elements as well as precious stones. They have books in which the wonders, peculiarities and insights of the 10
(sciences) are summarised:
(1) The knowledge of the spheres and the movements of the stars and the regularity therein;
(2) knowledge of the science of geodesy;
(3) the craftsmanship;
(4) the calculation of what will be;
(5) the knowledge of music - these are the enchantments of songs;
(6) knowledge of the preparation of remedies to cure any animal of any disease - both the talking animals - that is, the
human beings - as well as to cure the animals that do not speak, as well as the birds and others;
(7) knowledge of the manufacture of gold and silver through workmanship;
(8) knowledge of magic and oracles;
(9) the knowledge of the interpretation of speech by differentiating and making sure of the truthfulness of another's
speech;
(10) the knowledge of the philosophers - that is the knowledge of the divine.
Those who live in this clime are famous for their wisdom and philosophy. They even surpass those who live in the
third clime - in the fineness of their heart and their knowledge and in the pleasant air of their country. Its length and
its width is as we said before.
The fifth clime is known as Hǝlus and Bǝnṭus (= Hellespont). It is the one in which Constantinople, Amoria, Rome,
Andalusia and the countries of Africa are (located). Those who live there are red people who are very lustful, strong,
very irritable and hot-tempered - just like as their father Esau was. They have little wisdom - the knowledge is from the
fourth clime. They are a wild people with no discipline, but they rush to receive instruction so that they may learn
quickly. But when they dwell in the fourth clime, they are kind and have a purer heart than those who live in this clime.
Its length and its width are like the first (clime).
Including a description of the Amazons.
The sixth clime, known as ‘Soryo Ṭomis’ (= ‘dia pontu mesu’), belongs to the islands of the sea. Those who live in this
clime are the peoples of the Bargān, the Slavs and the Bāʿdān (= Amazons). There are women who live alone in this
clime with no men living with them. They always cut off their right breasts and put fire in them, so that they do not
become large and shed blood, so that they are ready to fight and kill, because the Sāmǝrs (= Samirus) fight against
them and kill their male children whom they have given birth to. That is why they do not raise their male children, but
they only raise their female children. Every year they go to the areas of the men, get married and get pregnant. When
they are pregnant, they return back to their homes. This is a well-known fact and nobody doubts it. The people of this
clime who impregnate the women are skilled in killing, men who fight and spill blood. They have no compassion. That
is why they capture the Slavs and turn them into castrati. They are people who have no knowledge, no books, no laws,
no education at all. Its length and its width are like the first (clime).
The seventh clime is the one known as Yārǝs Bārǝs (= Borysthenes). This is the clime where the people live who
are called in Roman ʽBamidosʼ (= Numidians) - which means ‘the sleepy ones’. They are weak people who move little
due to their great, excessive cold, as they are close to the north and the desert areas where no humans live. The stars,
which are called ‘Daughters of the Stretcher’ (= Plough / Big Dipper), are close to them, always circling above them.
Their cattle and the animals of their clime are very small. Their sheep have no horns because of the bitter cold. Snakes
or anything that moves by crawling cannot be found in their clime. As they cannot build houses to live in, they rather
make houses out of wood, put them on a wagon and live in them. Their cattle pull it. They wander around day and
night, as their cattle pull this vehicle to a to (a place) where they can find food and pastures for their cattle. In their
bad behaviour and life they are pathetic at all times. It is said about them that when they suffer from a serious illness,
they place their sick on a wagon. They take off their their men's clothes and put them in women's clothes - then they
are healed. Its length and its width are like the first (clime).
Including a description of the polar night and polar day.
He said: ‘What goes beyond the end of the 63 degrees of width - that is what was called “beyond the seventh clime”.
The day does not depart - when it extends northwards, it is beyond the land where people live - for 21 hours and 22
minutes from one hour (sic!) until it extends over 24 (hours). Thus the daylight does not give way until the land of
darkness. The night is six months and the day is six months here. There are too many wonders that exist on earth in a
particular clime, and talismans that are sought and produced, and there is no number to count them. But we only want
to mention the little that is mentioned in the history book, to which we have referred. We have not added anyhing to
what is written, so as not to prolong the story.
They also measured and estimated the sea of India. They said that its longitude stretches from west to east - that is
from the coast of India to the coast of Ethiopia - this longitude is 8000 miles and its latitudinal extent is 2700 miles -
until it approaches the island of the equinox. The other coastline is 2900 (miles). There is a small gulf in the country
of Ethiopia that extends towards Barbār. It is called 'Barbarian Gulf'. Its length is 500 miles and the width at its end is
100 miles. It has by another gulf in the direction of Eilat. Its length is 1400 miles and its width 700 miles. Its termination -
that is its end - which close to the so-called Erythraean Sea, is 200 miles long. It has another gulf that extends towards
Persia, which is called the ‘Persian Gulf’. Its length is 1400 miles, its width width 500 miles and its end 150 miles.
Between these two seas, there is the land of Qedār, the son of Ishmael, and the land of Yemen. Between the Gulf of
Eilat and the Persian Gulf is 1500 miles. Another gulf stretches from it to the coast of the country of India. It is called
the ‘Green Gulf’. Opposite to the land of India - from the land of India in the east - (there is an island) called ‘Ṭirabāy’
(= Sri Lanka). 3000 miles surround it. There are large mountains and many rivers on it. From it comes the red
emerald and (the gemstone of) the colour of the sky. This island is surrounded by 90 islands on which people live and
towns are numerous.
Nothing is known of the Green Sea except what extends to the west and north - from the border of the country of
Ethiopia to Barṭonyā (= Britain). It is a sea on which no ships sail. Seven (sic!) of its islands are opposite the country
of Ethiopia. They are called the 'inhabited (!) islands' (= Canaries). Another island is called ʾAdrā (= Gadera / Cadiz).
This island is opposite to Andalusia, next to a gulf, namely the gulf that flows out of the sea, whose width is four miles,
which is between Andalusia and Tangier and which is called Seṭā (= Ceuta) and which flows out of the Sea from
Rome. In it (= in the Green Sea) to the north (there are also) twelve islands, which are called the Islands of Britain.
And then one moves away from (the place) where people live and nobody knows what it is like. The Sea of Rome and
Egypt is (attached) to the sea that comes out of the Green Sea - in the east as far as Tyre and Sidon. Its length is 5000
miles and its width is 800 miles at one point. There is a gulf in it that reaches as far north as close to Rome. Its length
is 500 miles and it is is called Hǝndǝris (= the Adriatic Sea). Another gulf emerges opposite the Barbarian Land. Its
length is 200 miles. There are 162 islands in it on which people live on, including 15 large islands. Currents flow
through it.
The following section on the alleged Ethiopian wife of Moses is
based on the translation by 276-278.
At that time, the people of Cush, who are the people of Ethiopia, waged war against the people of Egypt. They destroyed
their land and diverted the water of the Takkaze (= Nile) to another route so that it would no longer flow into their land
because their water came from Ethiopia. Then the people persuaded the king of Egypt to send Moses to make war on the
people of Ethiopia. He said to them, 'All right'. And they said: 'O Moses, do you know what happened to us because of the
Ethiopians? They destroyed our land, they captured the people, then they cut off the water of the Takkaze (= the Nile)
and diverted it. It is right that you should help the kingdom because of the grace it has shown you out of kindness. He
(= Moses) was shown to them as a sign and he did not betray them. Now the king wants you and all his officers to go to
Ethiopia and wage war against the people (of Ethiopia). Take the army you have chosen and be their leader'. And he
chose 10,000 horsemen from among the children of Israel and 10,000 horsemen from among the Egyptian people.
When Moses came to the desert, he heard that there were snakes and vipers on the road between Egypt and Ethiopia.
Moses took from among the birds those that eat many snakes, and among them the vulture, the ʾalyoton and the owl.
When he came to this land, he commanded them not to feed any of these birds except at dawn. And it happened that
when the soldiers came down, they opened the cages and distributed the birds around the army camp, and they ate
nothing. They cried all night, because they were very hungry. The snakes heard their cries and hid in the ground
because they were so frightened. And he (Moses) did this until he reached Ethiopia. When the people of Cush,
(people of) Ethiopia, saw many soldiers, they were greatly troubled and they were afraid with great fear. They (the
Egyptians) fought a great battle and defeated them. When the daughter of the king of Ethiopia heard that Moses had
defeated them and he wanted to kill everyone who was there, she sent a message to him so that he would
take her as his wife and she would guide him on the path by which he would be victorious. And he received it like this.
She showed him the places to enter the city and he took possession of the kingdom. Moses married the daughter of
the king of Ethiopia. This is the Ethiopian woman, who is mentioned in the Old Testament: Maryam and Aron
accused Moses of marrying an Ethiopian woman who was not red. Moses remained with the soldiers who spread out
with him in the land of Ethiopia until the day of the flood and the deluge of the Takkaze (= Nile) and observed his
work. And he built a great wall of stones and masonry bricks so that it would protect the water when it increased, until
the land of Ethiopia was watered. And it occupied the land that it needed after that. Again the water flowed to the
land of Egypt. Moses appointed the brother of his wife as head of the kingdom of Ethiopia and made him swear not to
divert the water of Egypt to another path.
The kings of the Philistines and the Ammonites from the sons of Lot rule over Israel
The kings of the Philistines
The following section on life and deeds of is based on the translation of
207-225.
Description of the patriarchs of Alexandria from to
. Detailed descriptions end with .