Louis Maracci

Ludovico Marracci ( born October 6, 1612 Torcigliano di Camaiore ( Lucca in ); † February 5, 1700 in Rome) was a Catholic priest, theologian and translator, who from 1691 to 1698 one due to its accuracy in Europe for centuries authoritative translation and commentary of the Koran in Latin published.

Biography

Marracci joined at the age of 15 years in 1627 in Lucca in the Order of Clerks Regular of the Mother of God ( Ordo Clericorum Regularium Matris Dei - OMD ), and studied philosophy and theology in Rome, as well as Greek, Syriac, Chaldean and Hebrew. About his encounter with the Arab, he reports in Prodromus ad refutationem Alcorani in the preface as follows:

1645 he worked on the translation of the Bible into Arabic with. 1656 he received on direct arrangement of the pope the chair of Arabic at the University La Sapienza in Rome and worked as a consultant in various cardinal congregations, as confessor of Pope Innocent XI. and various member of the Roman Curia, he was just as we estimated influential. He also held important offices in his order, he was first novice master, later Superior General and Procurator General of his religious order. In 1699 he renounced on grounds of age to his chair and died shortly thereafter on February 5 of 1700.

Works

Marraccis major work, the Latin translation of the Qur'an was the third translation of this document into Latin (the first, in 1143, came from Robert of Ketton and Herman of Carinthia, followed by the translation of Mark of Toledo, 1209/10 ). The first volume, Prodromus ad refutationem Alcorani appeared in 1691 in the printing of the Propaganda Fide, and includes both a description of the life of the Prophet Mohammed a summary of the basic teachings of Islam with numerous source refer to Islamic theologians and scholars. Marracci represents in his presentation, inter alia, the strange for today's readers believe that the teachings of Muhammad and Luther are not too very different from each other. The second volume, Refutatio alcorani, appeared in 1698 in Padua, and Emperor Leopold I, the liberator of Vienna dedicated to the Turkish invasion. This volume contains the Arabic text of the Koran, his Latin translation, with textual notes and refutationes, so apologetic refutations of the Islamic teachings. This work has been repeatedly reprinted (eg, under the title Al- Coranus ex idiomate Arabico quo primum a Mohammede conscriptus est, versus Latine by Ludovicum Marraccium. Lipsiae, Sumtibus Lanckisianis 1721).

Furthermore Marracci worked with the Arab translation of the Bible and transferred the popular among the Christian people Officium Virginis Mariae Beatae (see Marientiden ) into Arabic. In addition, ( 1673 Vita del Ven. P. Giovanni Leonardi lucchese. ) Will find a variety of writings, the biography of his order's founder, the (1938 canonized ) John Leonardi.