A Christian Appeal for the Survival of Syriac in an Arabic Literary Context: The "Book of the Interpreter" (Kitāb al-Tarjumān) of Elias of Nisibis (d. 1046)

The Kitāb al-Tarjumān is an onomasiological Arabic-Syriac lexicon written by the Church of the East cleric Elias of Nisibis (d. 1046). I will focus on the author Elias of Nisibis and recontextualize the Kitāb al-Tarjumān to understand the need for the composition of an Arabic-Syriac lexicon in the early second millennium in the Church of the East. I will then analyze in more detail the theological terms found in this lexicon and compare them to the other works of Elias of Nisibis to develop a holistic approach to Elias of Nisibis’ literary corpus by identifying the relationship between the Kitāb al-Tarjumān and other writings. I will then compare his theological vocabulary with that of his contemporaries and later Syriac authors as well as with the lemmata of other lexicographers. Finally, I will discuss the reception of the Kitāb al-Tarjumān from its writing to the present day.