Paper short abstract:

This paper uses marginalia and annotations in the Latin manuscripts of an originally Arabic astrological text as a case study for taking on the complexities and methodological concerns associated with knowledge transfer in the medieval Mediterranean.

Paper long abstract:

This paper presents a case study of the readership of an Arabic astrological text through an analysis of the marginalia and annotations of its Latin readers. The text, al Qabisi's (Alcabitius') Introduction to Astrology, was first written in Aleppo in about 960, and translated into Latin along with several other Arabic astronomical and astrological texts in the 1130s. According to the marginalia in several manuscripts at the Vatican library, ranging from the twelfth to the fifteenth centuries, the cross-references to other authors, exposition of technical doctrine, and careful attention to linguistic choices show that the Christian readership of the text was both enthusiastic and critical. Comparing the various manuscripts reveals subtle shifts in attitude towards Arabic astrology among Latin readers. The fact that this text was originally written in Arabic, however, raises interesting methodological questions which are seldom asked in studies of reception or appropriation. What is lost in our understanding of the text by not incorporating a thorough examination of its Islamic origins or its Arabic readership? What hidden assumptions are there in studying the reception of an Arabic text by beginning with its earliest Latin manuscripts? How might a philological analysis of the translation help or hinder our goals to broaden our epistemological scope? By posing these questions, the paper aims to identify and come to terms with the constraints that have thus far limited our historical understanding of the transmission and circulation of knowledge in the medieval Mediterranean.