Abu l-Faraj bin Harun

Abu-l- Faraj was born in 1226 in the city of Malatya in the family of the doctor Aaron (the Arabic name is Harun bin Tuma al-Malati). The family was quite wealthy ^[8] . In addition to his native Syrian, Abul al-Faraj owned Arabic, Armenian , Greek , Persian , various Mongolian dialects ^[9] , he also studied theology and philosophy. Under the guidance of his father and other famous doctors of the city, he also joined the medical art.

In 1243 , fearing the advance of the Mongol army , most of the city's population fled to Aleppo . However, doctor Aaron and his family remained in Malatya and already in 1244 entered the service of one of the Mongol military leaders, with whom he traveled around the conquered territories for some time. In the same year, Aaron was released from service and moved with his family to Antioch , the capital of the Principality of Antioch . Here Abul al-Faraj continued his education. Soon he became a monk of one of the Jacobite monasteries , and later went to Tripoli .

In 1246 , in the twentieth year of his life, Abul al-Faraj was consecrated by the Jacobite Patriarch Ignatius III to the Bishops of Gubos (near Malatya) and took the name Gregory. A year later, he became bishop of Lacabena, and in 1253 he was transferred with the same rank to Aleppo. In 1264, the new Patriarch Ignatius IV appointed Abul al-Faraj the Mafrian of the Jacobites of Mesopotamia , he remained in this post until his death.

Abul al-Faraj has been to Maragh and Tabriz , the capital of the Hulaguids , more than once, met with the Ilkhanis Abaga and Tekuder . In 1268, he traveled first to Tabriz, then to Maragu, where he lectured on Euclid in the Jacobite monastery. Four years later, Abul al-Faraj read about the "Universe" of Ptolemy . Mafrian contributed to the construction of religious buildings in these cities: by his order , a chapel of the new church in Maraga was built in 1272 , and a new church in Tabriz in 1282 .

Since Abul al-Faraj tried to defend all Christians, regardless of belonging to different movements, before the Mongol rulers, on his first visit to Maragi, where there were few Yakovites, he was greeted with honor by all the Christians of the city. The death of Abul al-Faraj, which followed in the same city on June 30, 1286 , was bitterly perceived by the inhabitants. Nestorian Catholicos mar Yabalaha III called on the townspeople not to open shops and not to trade as a sign of mourning. Jacobites, Nestorians, Gregorians, Orthodox - fulfilled the request of the Catholicos.

Abu al-Faraj was one of the most prolific and distinguished Syrian writers. In all his writings, a conscientious and critical researcher is visible who is trying to delve deeper into the causal connection of events. Contemporaries called him the Beauty of the Century (Farîd al zamân) because of his excellent knowledge in all sciences.

The main historical work of Abul al-Faraj "Chronicle" sets out all the knowledge of him and his predecessors in the field of history and consists of two parts. The first part, devoted to civil and political history, is known as “Chronicon syriacum” and was published by P.I. Bruns and G.V. Kirsch in 1789. The second volume contains the history of the Syrian church, as well as the Nestorians and the Antiochian Patriarchate, published J. B. Abbelos and T. J. Lamy (3 volumes, Leuven , 1872–74).

Some fragments of his extensive theological work The Treasures of Secrets (Aussar râfe) became famous thanks to Bernstein, through whose efforts they were published in Breslavl.

Abbé Martin Fartej published the complete collection of grammar works by Obeuvres grammaticales d'Aboul-Faradj dit Bar Hebraeus, parts 1 and 2, (Paris, 1873), and Berto (Goett., 1843) published his brief Syriac grammar. .

His autobiography was printed by Joseph Assemani in the Bibliotheca orientalis (vol. 2), which at the same time contains a complete list of Bar-Ebrei's works. In the last months of his life, Abul al-Faraj worked, at the request of friends, to compose in Arabic an extract from his vast historical work. This extract was published by E. Pocock under the title “Abulpharagii historia dynastiarum” (Oxford, 1663).

• Mar Yabalaha III

Works of Abu l-Faraj

• Aboul Faraj. Book of entertaining stories / Per. from Syriac, note. and article by A. Belov and L. Wilsker ; Ed. and foreword. N.V. Pigulevskaya ; The artist. A. D. Bukharov. - M .: Goslitizdat , 1957.- 272 p. - 150,000 copies.
• Aboul Faraj. Book of entertaining stories / Per. from Syriac, after and note. A. Belova and L. Wilsker ; Ed. and foreword. N.V. Pigulevskaya . - M .; L .: Goslitizdat . Leningra. Department, 1961 .-- 296 p. - 100,000 copies. [one]

Literature

• Bar-Gebreus // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.
• Huseynov R. A. Bar-Ebray and his "General History" // Syrian sources XII-XIII centuries. about Azerbaijan / R. A. Huseynov; Acad. Sciences of the Azerbaijan SSR. Institute of History. - Baku: Publishing House of the Academy of Sciences of the Azerbaijan SSR, 1960 .-- S. 53-63. - 181 p.

• Abul Faraj and his Book of Entertaining Stories
• Abu l-Faraj (neopr.) . - on the website Oriental literature . Date of treatment September 17, 2008. Archived on August 25, 2011.