20-24 septembrie 2009 - Biblioteca Metropolitana Bucuresti

Arabic biblical and liturgical texts printed in Europe... 181resurgence. This was partly caused by increased Russian support followingthe Russian-Turkish treaty of Küçük Kaynarca in 1774, which gaveRussia protection rights over Orthodox peoples in the Ottoman Empire.So in 1784 Kaiser Joseph II discontinued his support for the Franciscans,while expanding the trading activities of the Habsburg Empire in Ottomanterritories. It is likely that support for Orthodox publishing activities waspart of moves towards increasing Habsburg influence in the Levant, incompetition with Russia. It was also in line with a policy of increasedreligious toleration in Habsburg territory at that time. So Patriarch Anthimuswas able to have his Arabic Psalms, with his Orthodox commentary onthem, printed in Catholic Austria.*After this cursory survey of Arabic Biblical and liturgical books printedin Europe for Arab use, it remains to consider briefly two questions whichnaturally arise from it: – firstly, how did these books reach their readers,in other words, how were they distributed? These printed books, and thelines of text which they contained, were of course noticeably differentfrom the manuscripts to which Arab readers were accustomed. Theirnatural resistance to such a break with tradition, especially one comingfrom outside, inevitably meant that the demand for these imports would atfirst be low, and the task of disseminating them one that was unlikely to besuccessful through the normal commercial channels established for othercommodities.There seem to have been two principal channels of distribution in theMiddle East for Arabic Bibles and liturgical books from Europe. The firstwas individual travellers, who took books in their personal baggage. Mostof these were missionaries or ecclesiastical envoys, such as the JesuitsGiambattista Eliano and Girolamo Dandini in the late 16 th century, and thechaplains of the English Levant Company in the 17 th and 18 th centuries.Others were Arab Christians, mainly Maronites, returning home afterperiods of study and training in Rome and elsewhere. 44 This will havebeen true also of the Orthodox prelates who supervised the production ofArabic books in 18 th century Romania, and then took them back to Syriaand Lebanon. A few other individuals were merchants, but in most casesthey carried books because they were also devout Christians or missionaryagents, rather than as articles of commerce for their own sake. Nearly allthese travellers, once disembarked in Ottoman territory, joined existing44Gdoura, 1985: 38-39.