Late Antique Historiography

Life of St. Nino

Title(s):
  • Life of St. Nino
  • ცხორებაჲ წმიდისა ნინოჲსი
    (Ts‛khorebay tsmidisa ninoysi, Life of St. Nino)
Author:
Period covered:
First half of 4th c.
Language:
Georgian
State of Preservation:
Full
Genre:
  • Biography (general)
Remarks:
The Life of St.Nino exists in two main recensions: first, as the longest component of the ecclesiastical corpus Mok‛ts‛evay k‛art‛lisay (Mok‛c‛evay k‛art‛lisay, Moktseva Kartlisa); and second, as part of the initial suite of texts (titled Ts‛khorebay k‛art‛velt‛a mep‛et‛a) in K‛art‛lis ts‛khovreba (K‛art‛lis c‛xovreba, Kartlis Tskhovreba), the so-called Georgian chronicles including its medieval Armenian-language adaptation (Patmutiwn Vrats‛). There is considerable variation among redactions of the Mok‛ts‛evay k‛art‛lisay recension.
Edition - Translation:
  • I. Abuladze (1998) (ed.) 'K‛art‛lis ts‛khovrebis dzveli somkhuri t‛argmani'. In: K‛art‛lis c‛xovreba: The Georgian royal annals and their medieval Armenian adaptation. Two Volumes, ed. S. Rapp. Delmar (NY) = Abuladze, I. (1953) (ed.) K‛art‛lis ts‛khovrebis dzveli somkhuri t‛argmani [=Patmut‛iwn Vrats‛]. Tbilisi: 74-132.
  • I. Abuladze (1963) (ed.) Dzveli k‛art‛uli agiograp‛iuli literaturis dzeglebi. Volume One. Tbilisi: 98-163.
  • Z. Alek‛sidze (2001) Le nouveau manuscrit géorgien sinaïtique N Sin 50: Édition en fac-similé (Corpus scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium, 586: Subsidia, 108). Leuven: 84-215.
  • S. Jones (2014) (ed.) Kartlis Tskhovreba: A History of Georgia. Tbilisi: 45-67.
  • D.M. Lang (1976) Lives and legends of the Georgian Saints. Revised edition. Crestwood (NY.): 13-39.
  • C. Lerner (2004) The wellspring of Georgian historiography: The early medieval historical chronicle The conversion of K’art’li and the Life of St. Nino. London: 140-146.
  • R. Metreveli (2008) (ed.) K‛art‛lis ts‛khovreba. Tbilisi: 122-145.
  • S. Qaukhch‛ishvili (1955) (ed.) K‛art‛lis ts‛khovreba. Volume One. Tbilisi: 72-130.
  • R.W. Thomson (1996) Rewriting Caucasian history: The medieval Armenian adaptation of the Georgian chronicles, the original Georgian texts and the Armenian adaptation (Oxford Oriental monographs). Oxford: 84-145.
  • B. Gigineishvili, E. Giunashvili (1979) (ed.) Shatberdis krebuli X saukunisa: Dzveli k‛art‛uli mtserlobis dzeglebi. Volume One. Tbilisi: 320-321.
  • Z. Alek‛sidze (2009) ’Tsmida ninos ts‛khovrebis’ udzvelesi redak‛ts‛iebi'. Tsminda ninos ts‛khovreba da k‛art‛lis mok‛ts‛eva. Tbilisi: 334-370.
Fragments:
Users:
Sources:
Bibliography:
  • M. Ch‘khartishvili (1987) K‛art‛uli agiograp‛iis tsqarot‛mts‛odneobit‛i shestsavlis problemebi (‘ts‛khovrebay tsmidisa ninoysi’). Tbilisi: 125-126.
  • S.H. Rapp (2003) Studies in medieval Georgian historiography: Early texts and Eurasian contexts (Corpus scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium, 610: Subsidia, 113). Leuven.
  • S.H. Rapp (2014) The Sasanian world through Georgian eyes: Caucasia and the Iranian commonwealth in late antique Georgian literature. Farnham: 105-165.