medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Dear John,
I am very aware of the XIIth Century translations. Perhaps I should have
said : " But the introduction of the Greek and Arabic science to the
Medieval West itself should be mostly attributed to the Catalonians, to King
Alfonso X of Castille and to the proximity and the contributions of the
Al-Andalus" so as not to sound "parochial", and let me also say that most of
Southern Italy (i.e. Sicily, Sardinia) was then part of the Kingdom of
Aragon, Principality of Catalonia. Furthermore, Fibonacci was from the
court of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II of Sicily, uncle of Alfonso X
of Castille King Frederick had a court full of educated Arabs and Frederick
got a Muslim view of Christianity as well as a Christian view of Islam. This
'heretic' upbringing culminated in a lifelong struggle between emperor and
pope after Frederick II had secured the imperial crown.
But the brunt of the Greek and Arab translation during the Middle Ages was
done by the Toledo School of Translators under the supervision of Alfonso X
of Castille, also known as 'El Sabio'. the UNESCO described to Toledo this
way: "No other city can compare to Toledo in cultural, artistic and historic
richness....The fame of the ancient capital of Spain spread abroad, making
the city one of extraordinary importance in the universal art. During the
13th century, it became one of the most important cultural centers of its
time. At the Toledo School of Translators the most prominent and
intellectual men of the three ethnic-religious groups Arabs, Jews and
Christians, worked together in consensus. The three ethnic-religious groups
coexisted peacefully, each contributing to the rich diversity of Toledo. The
School of Translators' text translations of Aristotelian philosophy were
crucial for the whole of European thought."
I apologise if I sounded harsh when I said that the Arabs and Islam are
discredited, and I mentioned the contributions of the Al-Andalus due to the
geographical proximity to Toledo, since most of the Arabs who ran away from
the Almohadic rule went to Córdoba and Toledo. Of course I enjoy the
Phyllis' daily postings, I simply wanted that to say that Albertus Magnus
was famed "for the introduction of Greek and Arabic science more generally
to the medieval west" is an overgeneralisation of facts.
Please excuse my late reply but I have been ill and still am.
Regards,
Aida
Aida M. Benítez-Rexach
«Non dimitere credere pro credere, sed pro intelligere» (Ramón Llull)
----- Original Message -----
From: "John Dillon" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Sunday, November 16, 2003 1:27 PM
Subject: Re: [M-R] saints of the day 15. November, a question and some
comments
medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Dear Aida,
I agree with the general thrust of your comment about the role actually
played by Albertus Magnus vis-a-vis Greek and Arabic science in the medieval
Latin West. But I also think that a brief notice that mentions equally
"Greek and Arabic" science gives as much credit to Islamic culture as it
does to Greco-Roman and is consequently perhaps not the best example one
could find of the lack of credit to Arabs and to Islam that you deplore in
your final paragraph.
Again, it is true that the non-scholarly or semi-scholarly "books of saints"
from which Phyllis derives her daily postings transmit in their mass of
sometimes ill-digested factuality antiquated views and outright errors of
many sorts. But the Arabic/Islamic role in transmitting and developing
scientific knowledge from other cultures is so widely taught in "Western"
schools and universities (this extends from simple explanations of Arabic
numbers, often slighting their Indian ancestry, through standard courses in
the history of science and of learning in general, to scholarly books of the
sort that you cite in your post) that an intent to slight that role here
seems unlikely.
Finally, it is possible to discern in your eloquent affirmation of the
specific role of al-Andalus in this transmission a parochialism of your own
that neglects the lesser but still important contributions of the Greek
culture of Sicily and southern Italy (from Henry Aristippus all the way to
Nicholas of Reggio) and the Arabic culture of Sicily and of such ports as
Tunis and Bougie (which provided the route of learning for such seminal
figures as Constantine the African and Leonardo Pisano [Fibonacci]).
Thank you for a spirited contribution to these discussions.
Best,
John Dillon
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