The most complete study of Latin into Hebrew translations published

UAB researchers have led the publication of the most complete study on translations from Latin into Hebrew. Latin-into-Hebrew: Texts and Studies, coordinated by ICREA professor and UAB lecturer Alexander Fidora, is a unique study which sheds light on a phenomenon completely neglected in the history of Medieval Europe: the transmission of knowledge and texts from Latin into Hebrew from the 13th to the 15th centuries.

03/12/2013

Although it is true that Jewish philosophy and science in Christian Europe during the Middle Ages were largely dependent on Arabic texts, the contributions of Christian culture to Hebrew thought are of considerable importance. This is demonstrated in the study, key to understanding the history of philosophical and scientific thought in Hebrew, Latin and Arabic in the Middle Ages and the vicissitudes of the relations between Jews and Christians.

Throughout over 1,000 pages, the two Latin-into-Hebrew volumes set the historical balance straight. Alexander Fidora, professors Harvey Hames (Ben Gurion University) and Yossef Schwartz (Tel Aviv University), both collaborating with Fidora at the UAB during the two years that the study was prepared, and other specialists present and analyse the different phases of translations from Latin into Hebrew, and highlight the unique role played by the translations of medical and philosophical texts in Latin.

The publication, which received support from the European Research Council, is made up of two volumes. The first, Studies, offers 18 critical analyses carried out by the authors. The second, Texts in Contexts, includes editions of unpublished texts of medieval translations form Latin into Hebrew, such as De anima by Albert Magne.

Expert in Medieval Philosophy in Spain
Alexander Fidora, the work's coordinator, is one of the world's expert in the study of inter-religion dimensions of medieval philosophy in Spain, especially in the cultural contacts between Jews, Christians and Muslims.

Born in 1975 in Offenbach, Germany, Fidora studies philosophy at the University of Frankfurt and at the UAB. He obtained his PhD in 2003 from the University of Frankfurt. In 2006 he became a resesarch professor at ICREA and at the Department of Ancient and Medieval Studies of the UAB, where he is also Vice-Director of the Institute of Medieval Studies. He was visiting professor at the University of Saint Louis, the Panamerican University of Mexico City, the Erlangen-Nuremberg University and the University of Pennsylvania. His work has earned him the "Catalonia International Award" in 2011 and the "Samuel Toledano Award" in 2012. Fidora is member of the Board of Directors of the International Society of Medieval Philosophy (SIEPM) and co-director of the Spanish Society of Medieval Philosophy (SOFIME).

Reference book: A. Fidora, R. Fontaine, G. Freudenthal, H. Hames and Y. Schwartz (eds.), Latin-into-Hebrew: Texts and Studies, 2 vols.,Leiden/Boston: Brill, 2013.