PERF No. 558 - One Of The Earliest Bilingual Papyri From 22 AH / 642 CE

Islamic Awareness

© Islamic Awareness, All Rights Reserved.

First Composed: 2nd November 2000

Last Modified: 1st December 2005

Assalamu ‘alaykum wa rahamatullahi wa barakatuhu:

Date

Jumādā I, 22 AH / 642 CE.

Features

It has Arabic and Greek text.

The place of disocvery of this document is unknown.

Contents

The translation of the document is given below. The Arabic part is in italics:

  1. God! In the name of God! I, Emir ‘Abdallah, to you, Christophoros and Theodorakios, Intendants of Herakleopolis!

  2. For the maintenance of the Sarasins who are with me, I took from you at Heracleopolis 65 sheep, I repeat: sixty-five and

  3. no more, and as an acknowledgement of this fact, we have made the present confirmation.

  4. In the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful! This is what have taken ‘Abdallāh,

  5. Written by me, Jean, notary and deacon. On the 30th of the month of Pharmouthi of the 1st indiction. Son of Jabir, and his companions-in-arms, as of slaughter sheep at Heracleopolis. We have taken

  6. from a representative of Theodorakios, second son of Apa Kyros, and from a substitute of Christophoros, eldest son of Apa Kyros, fifty sheep as of slaughter sheep

  7. and fifteen other sheep. He gave them, for slaughter, for the crew of his vessels, as well as his cavalry and his breastplated infantry in

  8. the month of Jumādā the first in the year twenty-two. Written by Ibn Hadid.

On the back

Document concerning the delivery of sheep to the Magarites and other people who arrived, as a down-payment of the taxes of the first indiction.

Comments

This is one of two earliest Arabic papyri; the other one being P. Berol. 15002.

The interesting part of this document is the use of Magarites that is written in Greek and is identified as mujahirun. This manuscript shows extensive dotting of Arabic script. Diacritical dots on the letters ج، خ، ذ، ز، ش and ن are clearly visible.

This papyrus is a part of Archduke Rainer Collection (usually abbreviated as PERF).

Location

Austrian National Museum, Vienna.

Acknowledgement

We are grateful to the Austrian National Museum, Vienna, for providing us the papyrus.

Related Articles

P. Berol. 15002 - One Of The Earliest Arabic Parchments From 22 AH.

The Dotting Of A Script And The Dating Of An Era: The Strange Neglect Of PERF 558.

References

[1] A. Grohmann, "Aperçu De Papyrologie Arabe", Études De Papyrologie, 1932, Tome Premier, pp. 39-46.

[2] A. Grohmann, I Arabische Chronologie. II Arabische Papyruskunde, 1966, Handbuch Der Orientalistik, E. J. Brill: Leiden/Köln, Plate II:1.

The images above are reproduced from the stated sources under the provisions of the copyright law. This allows for the reproduction of portions of copyrighted material for non-commercial, educational purposes.

With the exception for those images which have passed into the public domain, the use of these images for commercial purposes is expressly prohibited without the consent of the copyright holder.

Back To The Arabic Papyri