Late Antique Historiography

History of the dynasties

Title(s):
  • History of the dynasties
  • مختصر تاريخ الدول
    (muhkhtaṣar ta’rīhkh al-duwal, Brief history of the dynasties)
Author:
Period covered:
Creation-1286
Language:
Arabic
State of Preservation:
Full
Genre:
  • Chronicle (chronica)
Remarks:
The description of the work as an Arabic translation of the Syriac Chronicle relies on a statement of Barsoum, brother of Bar Ebroyo, in the continuation of the Ecclesiastical history (Abbeloos-Lamy: 467-469), but it is erroneous. The work was carried out on the basis of additional sources. Barsoum affirms that Bar Ebroyo started to write the Arabic chronicle in the last year of his life after having taken up residence in Maragha. However, Conrad (1994: 328-331) has shown that Bar Ebroyo most likely started to work on his Arabic chronicle long before his arrival in Maragha. This strengthens the hypothesis that Bar Ebroyo undertook this project autonomously and not on request of a Muslim friend.
Edition - Translation:
Fragments:
Users:
Sources:
Bibliography:
  • J.B. Abbeloos, T.J. Lamy (1877) (ed.-tr.) Gregorii Barhebræi Chronicon ecclesiasticum. Paris e.a.
  • D. Aigle (2005) 'Bar Hebraeus et son public à travers ses chroniques en Syriaque et en Arabe'. Le muséon 118.1-2: 83-106.
  • P.G. Borbone (2004) 'Barhebræus e Juwayni: Un cronista siro et la sua fonte Persiana'. Egitto e Vicino Oriente 27: 121-144.
  • P.G. Borbone (2016) ‘Wooden Stirrups and Christian Khans: Bar ‘Ebroyo’s Use of Juwaynī’s “History of the World Conquerer” as a Source for His “Chronography"’. Hugoye: Journal of Syriac Studies 19:2 : 333-369
  • L.I. Conrad (1994) 'On the Arabic Chronicle of Barhebraeus: His aims and his audience'. Parole de l'Orient 19: 319-378.
  • M. Debié (2015) L'écriture de l'histoire en syriaque: Transmissions interculturelles et constructions identitaires entre hellénisme et Islam (Late antique history and religion, 12). Leuven - Paris - Bristol: 643-647.
  • H. Takahashi (2005) Barhebraeus: A bio-bibliography. Piscataway (NJ): 75-76, 301-313.
  • H. Teule (1996) 'The crusaders in Barhebræus' Syriac and Arabic secular chronicles'. In: East and West in the crusader states, ed. K. Ciggaar - A. Davids - H. Teule (Orientalia Lovaniensia analecta, 75). Leuven: 39-49.
  • S. Todt (1988) 'Die syrische und die arabische Weltgeschichte des Bar Hebräus: Ein Vergleich'. Der Islam 65: 60-80.