Translating the Oldest Surviving Gospel Harmony in the World
Presentation Type
Poster
Department
Religion
Major
Economics
Abstract
Tatian’s gospel harmony, called the Diatessaron, is a single, continuous narrative of the Gospels. It was composed in the second half of the second century, predating nearly all extant copies of the Gospels today. Unfortunately, his text did not survive intact in either Greek or Syriac, and only citations and translations remain. The oldest surviving translation is contained in Codex Fuldensis, commissioned between 541 and 546. The text has been “vulgatized,” meaning that it reads like a standard version of the Gospels at the time, which was the Latin Vulgate. The Diatessaron became the foundation of a Diatessaronic tradition in the West, giving rise to many vernacular harmonies. However, research has revealed that Codex Fuldensis is the only reliable parent document and should be considered the single independent witness in the Western tradition. Other vernacular harmonies are simply the products of a poor transmission process and contain significant changes. There is only one edition of Codex Fuldensis, published by Ernst Ranke in 1868. It contains errors and was produced prior to all of the major discoveries in the field of Diatessaronic studies. Reliance on this tradition has resulted in scholarly errors. The aim of this project is to provide this field with an updated, accurate edition and a translation into a modern language.
Faculty Mentor
Nicholas Zola
Funding Source or Research Program
Undergraduate Research Fellowship
Location
Waves Cafeteria
Start Date
29-3-2019 2:00 PM
End Date
29-3-2019 3:00 PM
Translating the Oldest Surviving Gospel Harmony in the World
Waves Cafeteria
Tatian’s gospel harmony, called the Diatessaron, is a single, continuous narrative of the Gospels. It was composed in the second half of the second century, predating nearly all extant copies of the Gospels today. Unfortunately, his text did not survive intact in either Greek or Syriac, and only citations and translations remain. The oldest surviving translation is contained in Codex Fuldensis, commissioned between 541 and 546. The text has been “vulgatized,” meaning that it reads like a standard version of the Gospels at the time, which was the Latin Vulgate. The Diatessaron became the foundation of a Diatessaronic tradition in the West, giving rise to many vernacular harmonies. However, research has revealed that Codex Fuldensis is the only reliable parent document and should be considered the single independent witness in the Western tradition. Other vernacular harmonies are simply the products of a poor transmission process and contain significant changes. There is only one edition of Codex Fuldensis, published by Ernst Ranke in 1868. It contains errors and was produced prior to all of the major discoveries in the field of Diatessaronic studies. Reliance on this tradition has resulted in scholarly errors. The aim of this project is to provide this field with an updated, accurate edition and a translation into a modern language.