Kaplan, Steven

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     Aethiopica 19 (2016) International Journal of Ethiopian and Eritrean Studies     ________________________________________________________________  STEVEN KAPLAN, Hebrew University of Jerusalem  Review DENIS NOSNITSIN, ed., Veneration of Saints in Christian Ethiopia. Proceed-ings of the International Workshop Saints in Christian Ethiopia: Literary Sources and Veneration, Hamburg, April 28–29, 2012 Aethiopica 19 (2016), 273–276 ISSN: 2194–4024 ________________________________________________________________  Edited in the Asien-Afrika-Institut  Hiob Ludolf Zentrum für Äthiopistik  der Universität Hamburg Abteilung für Afrikanistik und Äthiopistik    by Alessandro Bausi in cooperation with Bairu Tafla, Ulrich Braukämper, Ludwig Gerhardt,  Hilke Meyer-Bahlburg and Siegbert Uhlig Aethiopica 19 (2016) Editorial The present issue of AETHIOPICA, like the preceding one, is partly monograph-ic, with a section containing the proceedings of the Panel on Islamic Literature in Ethiopia: New Perspectives of Research, from the ‘19th International Con-ference of Ethiopian Studies’, held in Warsaw, Poland, on 24–28 August 2015. Starting from this issue, the annual bibliography on Ethiopian Semitic and Cushitic linguistics held from its inception in 1998 for eighteen years by Rainer Voigt is handed over, on Voigt’s own wil, to a pool of younger scholars, with the substantial support of the AETHIOPICA editorial team. I would like on this occasion to express the deep gratitude of the editorial board of AETHIOPICA and of al scholars in Ethiopian Semitic and Cushitic linguistics to Rainer Voigt for his fundamental and valuable contribution. Bibliographical abbreviations used in this volume AÉ  Annales  d’Éthiopie, Paris 1955f. ÄthFor  Äthiopistische Forschungen, 1–35, ed. by E. HAMMERSCHMIDT, 36–40, ed. by S. UHLIG (Stutgart: Franz Steiner (1–34), 1977–1992; Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz (35–40), 1994–1995). AethFor  Aethiopistische  Forschungen, 41–73, ed. by S. UHLIG (Wiesbaden: Harrasso-witz, 1998–2011); 74–75, ed. by A. BAUSI and S. UHLIG (ibid., 2011f.); 76ff. ed. by A. BAUSI (ibid., 2012ff.). AION  Annali del’Università degli studi di Napoli ‘L’Orientale’, Napoli: Università di Napoli ‘L’Orientale’ (former Istituto Universitario Orientale di Napoli), 1929f. CSCO  Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium, 1903f. EAe S.  U HLIG, ed., Encyclopaedia Aethiopica, I: A–C; II: D–Ha; III: He–N; in cooperation with A. BAUSI, eds, IV: O–X (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2010);  A. BAUSI in cooperation with S. UHLIG, eds, V: Y–Z, Supplementa, Addenda et Corrigenda, Maps, Index (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2010, 2014). EI² Encyclopaedia of Islam, I–XII (Leiden: E.J. Bril, 1960–2005). EMML  Ethiopian Manuscript Microfilm Library, Addis Ababa. JES Journal of Ethiopian Studies, Addis Ababa 1963f. JSS Journal of Semitic Studies, Manchester 1956f. NEASt Northeast African Studies, East Lansing, MI 1979f. OrChr Oriens Christianus, Leipzig–Roma–Wiesbaden 1901f. PICES 9 A.A. GROMYKO, ed., 1988, Proceedings of the Ninth International Congres of Ethiopian Studies, Moscow, 26–29 August 1986, I–VI (Moscow: Nauka Publishers, Central Department of Oriental Literature, 1988). RSE  Rasegna di Studi Etiopici, Roma, 1941–1981, Roma–Napoli 1983f. ZDMG  Zeitschrift der Deutschen Morgenländischen Geselschaft, Leipzig–Wiesbaden–Stutgart 1847f. Reviews Aethiopica 19 (2016) 273(1) In catalogue entry no. 3, Ms. or. fol. 1350 (p. 95), a reader may be surprised to find that although the entry is designated as ‘Evangelia’, the contents are in fact Vita Pachomi and Transitus Mariae. Moreover, while it is stated in the main description of the entry that Ms. or. fol. 1350 is in fact three leaves from three diferent codices, footnote 1 refers to ‘the problematic dating of the codex’ in singular. There is, as it turns out, a natural explanation for al this. The statement on p. 95, ‘Evangelia, 10th–11th centuries c.’ and its footnote are in fact exactly the same as that found in catalogue entry no. 2 (Ms. or. fol. 1349, a fragment of the Gospel of Mathew) on p. 92, which thus seems to have been inadvertently copied over to p. 94 as wel. (2) On p. 108, in the description of catalogue entry no. 4, fol. 5, we find in the bibliographical entry a reference to ‘Schmitz-Mink 1986–1991, I, 322, 328–29 (sa 121)’. For some reason this bibliographical entry also has a footnote stating ‘For diferent opinions about the date see also Schmitz-Mink 1986–1989, I, 322’. In addition to being slightly puzzled by this superfluous footnote, the reader is thus also left wondering who else it is, apart from Schmitz-Mink, who discusses the date of this manuscript, as no other study is in fact mentioned. While it is dificult to escape the conclusion that most such mistakes could easily have been weeded out with proper proofreading, these minor criticisms in no way diminish the fact that this is an important work which should be included in any self-respecting Coptological library. Hugo Lundhaug, University of Oslo DENIS NOSNITSIN, ed., Veneration of Saints in Christian Ethiopia. Proceedings of the International Workshop Saints in Christian Ethiopia: Literary Sources and Veneration, Hamburg, April 28–29, 2012, Supplement to AETHIOPICA: International Journal of Ethiopian and Eritrean Studies, 3 (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, 2015). xxxix, 274 pp., 84 ils, 4 tables. Price: € 36.00. ISBN: 978-3-447-10399-2. The study of Ethiopian saints has a long and venerable history. It began over a century ago with the publication and editing of the relatively smal number of manuscripts available in European libraries. During the second half of the twentieth century, it expanded to include more texts and began to identify and microfilm the large number of manuscripts found in the country’s numerous monasteries. In recent years, digitalization has further expanded the availability of texts.  450 Egyptian pound’ (p. 183); simple speling mistakes (e.g. ‘Douple’ for ‘Double’, and ‘shor’ for ‘short’ (p. 182); or even words inadvertently left in another language, such as ‘und’ for ‘and’ (p. 177). Reviews Aethiopica 19 (2016) 274The present volume contains a selection of the papers presented at an In-International Workshop on ‘Saints in Christian Ethiopia: Literary Sources and Veneration’ which was held in Hamburg on April 28–29, 2012. It is alsothe third volume in the Supplements to AETHIOPICA, al of which to date have been edited by Denis Nosnitsin. This volume, like its two predecessors contains some of the fruits of the project Ethio-SPaRe: Cultural Heritage of Christian Ethiopia, Salvation, Preservation and Research, which was supported by a grant from the European Research Council (7th Research Framework Programme IDEAS). The previous volumes were devoted to descriptions of eighty-four ecclesiastic sites and their colections,1 and to case studies of individual ecclesiastic sites in the same region.2 Taken to-gether this trilogy testifies to the groundbreaking work which is being car-ried out in northern Ethiopia today and which furthers Nosnitsin’s reputa-tion as the most active and productive scholar of his generation. As is typical of such colected volumes, the articles vary in their focus and purpose. In his article ‘Ascetic Suicides in the Vita of St Paul of Tamma: an Egyptian Drama and its Ethiopian Continuation’ (pp. 1–13), Dmitrij Bumazhnov considers the manner in which narratives of extreme asceticism are dealt with both in the original Arabic traditions and their Ethiopian variants. He discusses both the textual issues involved with the interpolation of the stories from the Vita of Saint Paul of Tamma into the accounts of Saint Latṣun and the theological issues inherent in such ‘dangerous’ behaviour. Abba Latṣun also figures prominently in Susanne Hummel’s discussion of a treatise on Sabbath observance which is presented in both a text-critical edition and a translation (pp. 67–93, esp. 78–90). While her presentation is clear and enlightening it is peculiar that almost none of the vast literature on the Ethiopian Sabbath is cited in her article, most notably Ernst Hammerschmidt, Stelung und Bedeutung des Sabbats in Äthiopien, Studia delitzschiana, 7 (Stutgart: Kohlhammer, 1963). Like these two essays, most of the chapters in this volume focus on non-Ethiopian holy men whose traditions were imported to Ethiopia. Witold Witakowski’s ‘Antony the First Monk in Ethiopian Tradition’ (pp. 201–220), considers not only the sources on the archetypal Christian monk, but also many of those atributed to this widely venerated figure. When one  1 D. Nosnitsin, Churches and Monasteries of Tgray: A Survey of Manuscript Colec-tions, Supplement to AETHIOPICA, 1 (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2013). 2  D. Nosnitsin, ed., Ecclesiastic Landscapes of North Ethiopia: Proceedings of the Interna-tional Workshop, Ecclesiastic Landscape of North Ethiopia: History, Change and Cultur-al Heritage, Hamburg, July 15–16, 2011, Supplement to AETHIOPICA, 2 (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2013). Reviews Aethiopica 19 (2016) 275compares this survey to the single column of information found in EAe I, one can only marvel at the depth provided. Vitagrazi Pisani’s article (pp. 162–199) considers the rich evidence for the veneration of the popular saint Cyricus (Quiricus), known in Ethiopia as Qirqos. This infant martyr is commemorated in almost thirty diferent manuscripts, the earliest of which date to the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. Links to the Syriac, Arabic and Latin traditions about this saint are evident. This abundance of material can be contrasted with ‘The Ethiopian Short Life of John of Scetis (Seventh Century)’ which according to Ugo Zaneti (pp. 221–232) appears to have survived in a single manuscript found in Berlin. Magdalena Krzyżanowska’s contribution ‘The Gädlä Kiros in Ethiopian Religious Practices: A Study of Eighteen Manuscripts from Eastern Tegray’ is notable for its length (pp. 95–136) and comprehensiveness. The article reads like an introduction to a critical edition and covers such topics as the age and dating of the manuscripts, palaeography, rubrication and ornamentation. Perhaps most interestingly, the author examines the transformation of Kiros from a model of renunciation and piety, to the role of patron saint for infertile women and for those troubled by difficult and dangerous births. It is in this context particularly that the issues of (public versus private) ownership and special devotion to this particular saint come to the fore. One can only hope that Krzyżanowska wil turn her atention to other texts in a similar manner. While the chapters which I have discussed up to this point focus on ‘foreign’ saints whose hagiographies have been transmited to and transformed in Ethiopia, several articles consider indigenous holy men and their traditions. Iosif Fridman’s ‘The Aksumite Kingdom in Ethiopic Hagiographical Sources’ (pp. 51–65) focuses on two unpublished gädlat: Gädlä Abrha wä-Abha and Gädlä abunä Sälama, both of which were composed centuries after the events they purport to recount. He posits that given the inevitable scarcity of reliable sources the authors of both works used similar techniques to compose Lives which are if not ‘true’ in any modern historical sense, are ‘true’ in an eternal spiritual sense. Denis Nosnitsin, the aforementioned editor, ofers a ‘preliminary study’ of the ‘Vita and Miracles of the Ṣadǝqan of ʿAddiqäḥarsi äraqliṭos’, a previously unknown group of monks who are aleged to have been among the first wave of evangelists active in northern Ethiopia. He discusses one (of seven) recently found manuscript about this group and presents the entirety of its colophon. In closing I would be remiss if I did not make note of the contribution of the late Gianfranco Fiaccadori, who passed away at the comparatively young age of 57, when this volume was in the final stages of preparation. Anyone who reads his contribution, ‘Between Hagiography and History: Reviews Aethiopica 19 (2016) 276the Zagwe Dynasty and King Yǝmrǝḥannä Krǝstos’, must do so with mixed feelings. On the one hand it displays a typical example of Fiaccadori’s unrivaled mastery of the sources and of his elegant presentation. Given the uncertainty that governs so much of what we think we know about the Zagwe, his decisiveness and breathe of knowledge can be said to be almost too clear. No one interested in this period in Ethiopian history or the legendary figure of Prester John can ignore his erudition. As is so often the case with the greatest of scholars, brief comments in notes (cf. 7, 64 and esp. 47 and 111) are as interesting as the longer discussions in the main text. And yet, as one reads, it is dificult to ignore the fact that there wil be no further works from this distinguished author. Taken as a whole the articles in this volume are of the highest quality. Their variety and breadth means that this volume wil appeal to a varied audience. The authors and particularly the editor are to be congratulated. Steven Kaplan, Hebrew University of Jerusalem GETATCHEW HAILE, A History of the First sifanosite Monks, CSCO, 635, 636, Sae, 112, 113 (Lovani: in aedibus Peeters, 2011). vi, 109 pp., xi, 81 pp. Price: € 60.00, € 55.00. ISBN: 978-90-429-2512-0, 978-90-429-2513-7. After publishing the Vita of Ǝsṭifanos of Gundä Gunde (or Däbrä Garzen) for the same series, Getatchew Haile has now made available the text of a codex unicus, MS Schneider 63, paleographicaly dated to the late fifteenth century. The manuscript, briefly described in the introduction, was digitized in 2008 by the Hil Museum and Manuscript Library as HMML 17 (olim C-IV-152 according to the shelfmark of the Ethiopian Ministry of Culture). Editorial criteria are clearly assessed: the text is faithfuly reproduced as it appears in the manuscript; scribal errors are minimaly emended and recorded in the apparatus. The narrative provides historical information on the dissident Stephanite (Ǝsṭifanosite) movement during the life of their spiritual leader Ǝsṭifanos (1397/1398–1444 CE) and folowing his death. A reasonable dating for the text is the mid-fifteenth century: the text was undoubtedly writen after the composition of the Gädlä sifanos, to which the author of our History frequently refers, and possibly when Ǝsṭifanos’ successor abba Abäkäräzun (1394/1395–1476 CE) was stil alive. Some clues indicate a short interval between the events recorded and the composition of the text, e.g. which the almost systematic employment of the evasive formulas gäle ‘so and so’ and 

Denis Nosnitsin, ed., Veneration of Saints in Christian Ethiopia. Proceedings of the International Workshop Saints in Christian Ethiopia: Literary Sources and Veneration, Hamburg, April 28–29, 2012

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Denis Nosnitsin, ed., Veneration of Saints in Christian Ethiopia. Proceedings of the International Workshop Saints in Christian Ethiopia: Literary Sources and Veneration, Hamburg, April 28–29, 2012

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