William Wright (orientalist)
Encyclopedia
William Wright was a famous British Orientalist, and Professor of Arabic in the University of Cambridge
. Many of his works on Syriac literature are still in print and of considerable scholarly value, especially the catalogues of the holdings of the British Library
and Cambridge University Library
. A Grammar of The Arabic Language, often simply known as Wright's Grammar, continues to be a popular book with students of Arabic. Wright is also remembered for the Short history of Syriac literature.
and Leiden
. He was Professor of Arabic at University College London
from 1855 to 1856, and Professor of Arabic at Trinity College, Dublin
from 1856 to 1861. From 1861 to 1869 he was an Assistant in the Department of Manuscripts at the British Museum, and from 1869 to 1870 Assistant Keeper at the museum. In 1870 he was appointed Sir Thomas Adams's Professor of Arabic
at Cambridge University, and he held the chair there until his death in 1889.
discovered by Constantin von Tischendorf
was in fact a fake.
He then went on to publish texts and translations of various works listed below. He also translated and edited Caspari's Grammar of the Arabic Language (2 vols., London, 1859–62); collected and edited Opuscula Arabica (Leyden, 1859)
His main achievement was as a cataloguer of manuscript collections. The rich Syriac holdings of the British Museum (now in the British Library) were mainly obtained in the 1840s from the monastery of Deir al'Syriani in the Nitrian desert in Egypt and contained a large number of previously unknown texts. Wright's catalogue included excerpts from unpublished texts, and is still a valuable reference even today. He also compiled a similarly valuable catalogue of the Cambridge University Library collection. The manuscripts in this collection came mainly from Anglican Missionaries based at Urmiah.
His Short history of Syriac literature was written originally as an encyclopedia article, and so has no proper sub-divisions. It was republished after his death in book form, and has remained a basic handbook for the student of Syriac. The material in it comes from various sources, but much of it from the Chronicum Ecclesiasticum of Bar Hebraeus, of which no English translation exists.
A bibliography of his work can be found by R. L. Benaly, in Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, 1889, pp. 708 and following. There is also an entry in the Dictionary of National Biography
.
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
. Many of his works on Syriac literature are still in print and of considerable scholarly value, especially the catalogues of the holdings of the British Library
British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom, and is the world's largest library in terms of total number of items. The library is a major research library, holding over 150 million items from every country in the world, in virtually all known languages and in many formats,...
and Cambridge University Library
Cambridge University Library
The Cambridge University Library is the centrally-administered library of Cambridge University in England. It comprises five separate libraries:* the University Library main building * the Medical Library...
. A Grammar of The Arabic Language, often simply known as Wright's Grammar, continues to be a popular book with students of Arabic. Wright is also remembered for the Short history of Syriac literature.
Life
Wright was educated at St Andrew's University, HalleUniversity of Halle-Wittenberg
The Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg , also referred to as MLU, is a public, research-oriented university in the cities of Halle and Wittenberg within Saxony-Anhalt, Germany...
and Leiden
Leiden University
Leiden University , located in the city of Leiden, is the oldest university in the Netherlands. The university was founded in 1575 by William, Prince of Orange, leader of the Dutch Revolt in the Eighty Years' War. The royal Dutch House of Orange-Nassau and Leiden University still have a close...
. He was Professor of Arabic at University College London
University College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
from 1855 to 1856, and Professor of Arabic at Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...
from 1856 to 1861. From 1861 to 1869 he was an Assistant in the Department of Manuscripts at the British Museum, and from 1869 to 1870 Assistant Keeper at the museum. In 1870 he was appointed Sir Thomas Adams's Professor of Arabic
Sir Thomas Adams's Professor of Arabic
Sir Thomas Adams’ Professor of Arabic – the title is used at Cambridge University because Sir Thomas Adams, 1st Baronet , Lord Mayor of London in 1645, gave to Cambridge University the money needed to create the first Professorship of Arabic....
at Cambridge University, and he held the chair there until his death in 1889.
Works
His early publications of Syriac material appeared in the Journal of Sacred Literature in the 1860s. These included the publication of the Syriac text of An ancient Syrian martyrology in the October 1865 issue. He also took part in the debates about the allegations by the forger Simonides that the Codex SinaiticusCodex Sinaiticus
Codex Sinaiticus is one of the four great uncial codices, an ancient, handwritten copy of the Greek Bible. It is an Alexandrian text-type manuscript written in the 4th century in uncial letters on parchment. Current scholarship considers the Codex Sinaiticus to be one of the best Greek texts of...
discovered by Constantin von Tischendorf
Constantin von Tischendorf
Lobegott Friedrich Constantin Tischendorf was a noted German Biblical scholar. He deciphered the Codex Ephraemi Rescriptus, a 5th century Greek manuscript of the New Testament, in the 1840s, and rediscovered the Codex Sinaiticus, a 4th century New Testament manuscript, in 1859.Tischendorf...
was in fact a fake.
He then went on to publish texts and translations of various works listed below. He also translated and edited Caspari's Grammar of the Arabic Language (2 vols., London, 1859–62); collected and edited Opuscula Arabica (Leyden, 1859)
His main achievement was as a cataloguer of manuscript collections. The rich Syriac holdings of the British Museum (now in the British Library) were mainly obtained in the 1840s from the monastery of Deir al'Syriani in the Nitrian desert in Egypt and contained a large number of previously unknown texts. Wright's catalogue included excerpts from unpublished texts, and is still a valuable reference even today. He also compiled a similarly valuable catalogue of the Cambridge University Library collection. The manuscripts in this collection came mainly from Anglican Missionaries based at Urmiah.
His Short history of Syriac literature was written originally as an encyclopedia article, and so has no proper sub-divisions. It was republished after his death in book form, and has remained a basic handbook for the student of Syriac. The material in it comes from various sources, but much of it from the Chronicum Ecclesiasticum of Bar Hebraeus, of which no English translation exists.
A bibliography of his work can be found by R. L. Benaly, in Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, 1889, pp. 708 and following. There is also an entry in the Dictionary of National Biography
Dictionary of National Biography
The Dictionary of National Biography is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published from 1885...
.
Publications
- The book of Jonah in four semitic versions : Chaldee, Syriac, Aethiopic and Arabic. London, (1857).
- Contributions to the apocryphal literature of the New Testament / collected and edited from Syriac manuscripts in the British Museum, with an English translation and notes, by W. Wright. (1865)
- The departure of my Lady Mary from this world / edited from two Syriac MSS. in the British Museum, and translated by W. Wright. (1865) (Journal of sacred literature and Biblical record for January and April, 1865)
- The homilies of Aphraates, the Persian sage / [by] Aphraates, the Persian sage. (1869) Syriac text only.
- A Grammar of The Arabic Language. (London), Simon Wallenberg Press, Vol-1 & Vol-2 ISBN 1843560283
- Catalogue of Syriac Manuscripts in The British Museum acquired since the year 1838 (1870), 3 vols: vol. 1, vol. 2, vol. 3.
- Apocryphal Acts of the Apostles / edited from Syriac manuscripts in the British Museum and other libraries by William Wright. (1871). In 2 vols, Syriac and English.
- Fragments of the Turras mamlla nahraya or Syriac grammar / of Jacob of Edessa : edited from mss. in the British Museum and the Bodleian Library by W. Wright. (1871)
- Fragments of the Curetonian Gospels [in Syriac] / ed. by W. Wright. (1872)
- Fragments of the Homilies of Cyril of Alexandria on the Gospel of S. Luke (1874)
- The chronicle of Joshua the stylite : composed in Syriac A.D. 507. With a translation into English and notes by W. Wright. (1882)
- S. Ignatius. Revised texts with introductions, notes, dissertations, and translations. Gr., Lat., Eng.-Syriac remains of S. Ignatius. (1885)
- Some apocryphal Psalms in Syriac. Proceedings of the Society of Biblical Archaeology, June 1887
- The book of Kalilah and Dimnah / translated from Arabic into Syriac (1884) Syriac only.
- Lectures on the Comparative Grammar of the Semitic Languages (Cambridge, 1890)* A short history of Syriac literature. (1894)
- Epistolae Pilati et Herodis graece. (W. Wright's translation of the Syriac version.) Gr. & Eng. (1897)
- Ecclesiastical history of Eusebius in Syriac / edited from the manuscripts by William Wright and Norman McLean, with a collation of the ancient Armenian version by Adalbert Merx ; translated from the Greek by C.F.Crusé. (1898) Syriac text only.
- A Catalogue of the Syriac manuscripts preserved in the library of the University of Cambridge. By William Wright & Stanley Arthur Cook. (1901)
Literature
- Bernhard MaierBernhard MaierBernhard Maier is a German professor of religious studies, who publishes mainly on Celtic culture and religion....
: Semitic Studies in Victorian Britain. A portrait of William Wright and his world through his letters. Würzburg 2011.