Benedictus Arias Montanus

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Benedictus Arias Montanus.

Benedictus Arias Montanus (Spanish Benito Arias Montano ; * 1527 in Fregenal de la Sierra , Extremadura , † 1598 in Seville ) was a Spanish theologian and orientalist .

life and work

Benedictus Arias was born the son of a notary in Fregenal in the Sierra Morena . ( sierra is the Spanish word for mountains, Latin mons , hence its Latin surname Montanus, which can be translated as "the one who comes from the mountains").

He studied in Seville and Alcalá de Henares , acquired an enormous knowledge of ten languages ​​and became an excellent expert, especially in the Semitic languages, and entered the Order of Santiago . In 1562 Arias accompanied the Bishop of Segovia to the Council of Trento (1545–1563) as theological advisor .

Two years later (1564) he withdrew to the solitude of his mountain home in Aracena in a hermitage to do research and write, but the Spanish King Philip II commissioned him to publish a multilingual Bible ( Biblia Políglota ), which he from 1568 to 1572 in Antwerp . This was published by the book printer Christoph Plantin in Antwerp and was printed in eight volumes between 1569 and 1572. It contains the Bible text in parallel in the five languages Latin , Greek , Hebrew , Old Syriac and Chaldean . The basis was the Biblia políglota complutense , the first polyglot Bible edition, published 1514–1517.

Since this Bible edition also contained Aramaic Targumim with a Latin translation, Arias was accused of heresy and reported to the Inquisition . He therefore had to travel to Rome several times, but was able to justify himself so that he was acquitted.

Philip II offered him a diocese , which he turned down in order to be able to withdraw to Aracena again; However, at the call of the king, he worked for a few years as a teacher of ancient languages ​​at the Escorial .

He spent his last years in Seville as Commander of the Order of Santiago . He died there in 1598. His book collection was incorporated into that of the Escorial.

Text editions and translations

  • Luis Gómez Canseco, Miguel Á. Márquez Guerrero (Ed.): Benito Arias Montano: Tractatus de figuris rhetoricis cum exemplis ex Sacra Scriptura petitis. Universidad de Huelva, Huelva 1995, ISBN 84-88751-07-9 (critical edition of the Latin text with Spanish translation and introduction)
  • Antonio Dávila Pérez (ed.): Benito Arias Montano: Correspondencia conservada en el Museo Plantin-Moretus de Amberes. 2 volumes. Instituto de Estudios Humanísticos, Alcañiz 2002, ISBN 84-8483-079-9 (critical edition with Spanish translation)

literature

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Arias Montanus, Benedictus
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Arias Montano, Benito; Arias, Benedito called Montanus
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Spanish orientalist
DATE OF BIRTH 1527
PLACE OF BIRTH Fregenal de la Sierra , Extremadura
DATE OF DEATH 1598
Place of death Seville