About The Conquest of Knowledge: Translation and Civilization from Antiquity to the Renaissance
A survey of the history and impact of the transmission of ancient Greek thinking across the western world, through manuscript books and translation.
Lecture 1: The historical significance of the translation of Greek texts in the West from antiquity to the Renaissance
Mon 16 Nov
The historical and political significance of the translation of Greek texts, and the development of a Hellenic curriculum of higher learning.
Lecture 2: The conquest of knowledge, through translation, in the multilingual communities in the West
Thurs 19 Nov
The conquest of knowledge: during the period from Alexander the Great to the Renaissance, western cultures acquired a Hellenic scientific and philosophical curriculum. Texts were translated from Greek into Latin, Syriac, Middle Persian, and Arabic, and from Arabic into Latin, Hebrew, and Greek. Translation was encouraged by intellectual and political elites to serve their particular aims.
Lecture 3: The impact of one canonical book: Aristotle's Poetics
Mon 23 Nov
A case study illustrating the themes of the previous lectures, looking at multilingual transformations of one canonical book, Aristotle's Poetics.
The final lecture will be followed by a reception for in-person attendees.
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Dimitri Gutas
Prof. Gutas is an Arabist and Hellenist.
More
Dimitri Gutas serves as Professor Emeritus of Arabic and Islamic Studies in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at Yale University.
In his distinguished career his main research interests have been classical Arabic and the intellectual tradition of the Middle Ages in Islamic culture. He is a leading expert on the Graeco-Arabica translation movement (the reception, translation and tradition of Greek works on medicine, science and philosophy in the Arab-Islamic world).
Prof. Gutas’ seminal texts include Avicenna and the Aristotelian Tradition (2014) and Greek thought, Arabic culture (1998). Along with Professor Gerhard Endress of Ruhr University Bochum he created A Greek and Arabic lexicon: materials for a dictionary of the mediaeval translations from Greek into Arabic (Leiden, 1992 and ff; Second, Revised edition, 2020- ).
In Prof. Gutas’ career he has mentored and encouraged generations of students and colleagues, with the festschrift Islamic philosophy, science, culture, and religion: Studies in honor of Dimitri Gutas being published in 2012.
Venue and bar opening times
This event will take place in the British Library Knowledge Centre and is also available to watch online. Tickets may be booked to attend in person, or to watch online.
If you are attending in person, please note that the Knowledge Centre and the bar will be open in advance of your event.
Please arrive no later than 15 minutes before the start time of this event. If you have specific access requirements please email customer@bl.uk
Attending the event online
If you book an online ticket, you will receive the viewing link on the morning of the event. You can either watch the event live or during the next 14 days on catch up.
Concessions
There are a range of concessions available. These include discounts for British Library Members, Young Persons (16 – 25s), and visitors on Universal/Pension Credit and free entry for carers.
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