“classical syriac and the syriac churches: a twentieth-century history,” in m. doerfler, e....

ClassiCal syriaC and the syriaC ChurChes: a twentieth-Century history

heleen Murre-van den Berg

IntroductIon

in october of 2008, i was invited to a conference in Mardin, in eastern turkey — the “Fourth syriac language Conference,” organized by Beth Mardutha in dehok, in the north of iraq. Most of the contributors and organizers lived in the Middle east and, in one way or another, were involved in the study and teaching of syriac.1 initially, i assumed that this group of scholars and activists was bound together mostly by an interest in the syriac language and its history. to my surprise, however, i learned that many among them advocated the use of what most academ-ics would call “Classical syriac” as the common literary and formal language of all syriac Christians. this was more than academic ideology: since 1992, syriac in its modern standardized form has played a crucial role in Christian primary and secondary schools in the semi-independent province of Kurdistan in north iraq. since then, several generations of young people have graduated from these programs, and thus, with the support of the Kurdish government, a new generation fluent in syriac has grown up.2

the congenial political context in Kurdistan has stimulated a wealth of activities in writing and printing, among which Simtha — a quarterly journal inaugurated in 2007 — is the most successful. Simtha publishes a variety of articles, mostly by local scholars, that address the syriac language and its literature, grammar, history, and heritage. the journal

1 For participants and conference proceedings, see r. Beth shamuel, ed., The Volume of the Fourth Syriac Language Conference (lumdā rbī`ā d-leššānā suryāyā) (duhok: Beth Mardutha, 2009).

2 For the political context in north iraq, see h. teule, Les Assyro-Chaldéens: Chrétiens d’Iraq, d’Iran et de Turquie. (turnhout: Brepols, 2008), 157-60. the Kurdish government supports syriac-taught programs, but plans for a corresponding program at university level have, so far, not materialized. in Baghdad university’s semitic program, syriac has been and still forms an important part of the curriculum and so contributed to the survival of syriac studies in iraq. For the schools, i base myself mostly on personal communication with dr. saadi al-Malih of the general directorate of syriac Culture and arts in erbil.

96830_Doerfler_ECS20_06_Murre.indd 119 16/04/15 07:32

120 h. Murre-van den Berg

reflects the multilingual context in which the syriac community finds itself: while the majority of articles are written in arabic, others are in Kurdish, english, Modern aramaic (nena, mostly iraqi Koine), and syriac. this is perhaps the most important contribution of this journal: in it, Classical syriac is propagated as an academic language. though the number of academic contributions in Classical syriac is small and has appeared to decline over the years, the contributions in Classical syriac are remarkable for one further aspect: they are sometimes printed in Serto, the script used by the syriac orthodox, and sometimes in the east-ern script, Madenḥaya, indicating authors from the assyrian Church of the east or the Chaldean Church.3 these two scripts reflect what appears to be the most important aspect of these attempts to use Classical syriac in this way: the belief of its propagators that using this language is the best way to unite Christians from the major syriac denominations, to overcome the linguistic differences among them, and to thus create a national language — a ‘unified and unifying national language’ (ḥad leššānā umtānāyā mḥaydā wa-mḥāydānā), as was the slogan of the conference in Mardin.4

it is the ‘unifying’ force attributed to Classical syriac that constitutes the starting point of this paper, leaving a discussion of the ‘unified’ language for another occasion.5 in the context of north iraq, the use of Classical syriac signifies the attempt to overcome differences among the

3 in the first volume (1/1, sept. 2007), two introductory pieces (also printed in english), four articles, and two poems are in Classical syriac, alongside eight pieces mostly in arabic; in the most recent volume available to me (5/15, March 2011), six articles are in arabic, one is in Classical syriac (in estrangelo script), whereas several poems (old and new) are printed in Classical syriac. the editorial is printed in arabic, Classical syriac, and english. in some of the issues in between, nothing except poetry is published in syriac. in general, so far more has been published in Classical syriac than in nena, though this may vary from issue to issue. notably, both Classical syriac and nena are used for academic and literary writing.

4 shamuel, The Volume of the Fourth Syriac Language Conference, 172-75. the slogan probably came from syriac scholar and activist abrohom nuro, cf. an article published in Simtha 2/3 (2008): 70-87, with the almost identical title “leššānā suryāyā umtānāyā mḥaydānā wa-mḥaydānā” (“the national syriac language, unified and unifying”). nuro was probably inspired by sati al-husry’s similar phrase on arabic; see y. suleiman, The Arabic Language and National Identity (washington, d.C.: georgetown university Press, 2003), 143. on nuro (born in urfa/edessa in 1923, died 2009, living most of his life in aleppo), see g. Kiraz, “in Memoriam abrohom nuro (1923–2009),” Hugoye 12.1 (2009): 3-4.

5 For some initial studies on the topic of the language itself, see s.P. Brock, “some observations on the use of Classical syriac in the late twentieth Century,” JSS 34 (1989): 363-75, and e. wardini, “Modern literary syriac: a Case of linguistic divorce,” in Symposium Syriacum VII, ed. r. lavenant (rome: Pontificio instituto orientale, 1998), 517-25.


ClassiCal syriaC and the syriaC ChurChes 121

various churches of the region that use Classical syriac in their liturgy, most importantly the assyrian Church of the east, the syriac orthodox Church, the Chaldean Church, and the syrian Catholic Church. or, to be more precise, Classical syriac is made to transcend the nationalist ideologies that set the members of these churches against each other: ‘aramaic,’ ‘assyrian,’ and ‘Chaldean.’ this paper seeks to investigate how Classical syriac came to occupy this role within the syriac communities of north iraq and how this unifying function is related to other roles the language has taken within the syriac churches in the course of the twen-tieth century.

however straightforward a twentieth-century history of Classical syriac may seem, the connection between ‘syriac’ as a language and the groups indicated as ‘syriac churches’ is a tenuous one, with a weak link to nam-ing practices in the communities themselves. there, the epithet ‘syriac’ (Sur(y)āyā or Suryoyo) is regularly used to refer to one’s own commu-nity, but not to the community as a whole.6 while modern attempts to use terms like ‘assyrian’ and ‘aramean’ for the group as a whole have enjoyed temporary and regional successes, in general these tend to be used for particular subgroups defined by ecclesial and regional bounda-ries. in this struggle over national identities, the term Chaldean, too, has acquired ethnic (in addition to ecclesial) connotations.7

despite the common heritage of the Classical syriac language, which remained mutually intelligible over the course of many centuries in the face of ecclesial, regional, and political separations — and despite aware-ness of this common heritage within all subgroups — the various com-munities never before attempted to construct a common identity for all churches based upon the syriac heritage. the ‘unifying’ claims for syriac at the end of the twentieth century, therefore, are quite extraordinary and deserve a closer look.

6 the use of the terms ‘westerners’ (m’arboyē) and ‘easterners’ (maddenḥāyē) in pre-twentieth-century sources (alongside the more common ‘Jacobites’ and ‘nestorians’), indi-cates the existence of a larger conceptual framework constituted by shared language, history, kinship, or geography, that never seems to have been very strong.

7 this seems to be the case since the late 1990s, in the iraqi as well as north american context. note, e.g., how patriarch Mar delly pleaded with Mahmoud Barazani (then the President of Kurdistan) for the use of ‘Chaldean’: “in the Chaldean bishops’ meeting held in ankawa on May 5, 2009, we insisted on our Chaldean national identity along with the rest of the ethnicities. we therefore remind your excellency of our equitable request to include the Chaldean ethnicity name, its identity, and legitimate rights as our own national one along with the other ethnicities” (www.aramaic-dem.org/english/politik/090701.htm [last seen 10/1/12]).



in this paper, i will work backwards. after adding a few more observa-tions on the most recent developments of the use of Classical syriac, i will turn to the period from the early 1970s to the late 1990s — a period characterized by diaspora, fierce nationalist rhetoric, and a wealth of syriac writing and publishing. From here, i will turn to the least-studied period of syriac writing, the years between 1950 and 1970. i will con-clude with a brief look at the foundational period of Classical syriac writing in the early twentieth century: the decades following the First world war during which syriac writing became one of the key elements of the modernization process accompanying the recovery from the shock of the massacres in 1915 and the ensuing expulsions and migrations. as students in the field will realize, the academic description and analysis of Classical syriac in the twentieth century is only in its initial phases. in addition to my attempt to survey but a small part of the huge number of syriac publications, i make good use of the work of rudolf Macuch (whose history of syriac literature covers most authors until about the 1970s), the work of Pera sarmas of tehran (more about him below), and a brief but important overview included in the third volume of The Hidden Pearl by sebastian Brock and david taylor.8

returning to the most recent developments that have triggered the main theme of this paper, that of the unifying potential of Classical syriac, it is important to note that the 2008 Mardin conference was not an isolated event. not only was it the fourth in a series of similar conferences organ-ized since the fall of saddam hussein in 2003, its activities took place against the background of wider interest in the production of syriac texts, first and foremost in north iraq. in a similar inter-communal vein, the directorate of syriac Culture and art in erbil (north iraq) produces books in both Classical and vernacular syriac alongside work in arabic and Kurdish. the directorate also features the only website i have been able to find that has a significant number of pages in Classical syriac.9 they use an estrangela typeface rather than serto or Madenḥaya, not, as i had initially thought, to avoid a choice between serto and Madenḥaya, but simply because estrangela type is the best developed for print and web publishing.

8 r. Macuch, Geschichte der spät- und neusyrischen Literatur (Berlin/new york: walter de gruyter, 1976); s. Brock and d. taylor, The Hidden Pearl: The Heirs of the Ancient Aramaic Heritage, vol. iii (rome: trans world Film italia, 2001), chs. 5, 6. on sarmas, see below.

9 seewww.syriacculture.org; its director is dr. saadi al Malih. several other sites fea-ture syriac text, but these usually reproduce existing Classical syriac texts.



alongside these common endeavors, it is the syriac orthodox espe-cially who have produced in recent years books that reflect a perspective that is somewhat different from earlier publications. two of these deserve a closer look. the first is a children’s Bible, translated by robert aydin under the supervision of his brother, the current syriac orthodox bishop of the netherlands, Mor Polycarpus augin aydin (in office since 2007). inspired by an english children’s Bible, but using the Peshitta as its base, it tells the biblical stories in simple Classical syriac, accompanied by a Cd with the same stories in both Kthobonoyo (the ‘language of writing,’ as Classical syriac is called among the syriac orthodox) and Turoyo, a name for the aramaic vernacular of tur abdin.10 while this production reflects a modern way of teaching the language and faith to younger generations, other publications suggest that Kthobonoyo, at least for the syriac ortho-dox, has emancipated itself from a solely clerical or academic context. one such publication, produced in tur abdin and published in istanbul in 2007, is a syriac translation of a modern turkish version of the stories of nasreddin hoja, a famous wise man whose sayings, stories, and para-bles are part of anatolian folklore. while the syriac translation of nasreddin hoja allows for a secular interpretation, the book’s genesis, however, as is clear from the introduction, is firmly rooted in the clerical world. it is not the product of secular activism, but began its life in the early 1980s as a project of clerical training in the monastery of Mor gabriel in eastern turkey.11

competIng dIscourses In the dIaspora: aramaIc versus assyrIan (1970s-1990s)

the scene of young scholars of syriac in Mor gabriel, translating these tragicomic stories into syriac, brings us directly into the middle of the earlier period: the years between 1970 and 2000. then, amidst a violent war between the turkish state and the PKK, the clergy of tur abdin put in much effort to continue the teaching of Classical syriac. while many

10 the cover illustration, repeated on the Cd, has a gospel illustration, taken from a syriac orthodox manuscript, of Jesus entering Jerusalem with the disciples depicted as children who greet him. the rest of the book features the illustrations of the english original.

11 according to the introduction, the book was sponsored by the metropolitan of swit-zerland and austria, dionysius isa gürbüz; the translation was supervised by malfono (teacher) isa gores.



syriac orthodox families left the region, the monks in the monastery of Mor gabriel, led by metropolitan timotheus samuel aktaş (in office since 1985), taught syriac to young boys from the surrounding area.12 these activities were viewed with deep suspicion by the turkish offi-cials of the region, being perceived as separatist and anti-turkish, rather similar to the Kurds attempting to break free from turkish control. these difficult circumstances may have kept syriac learning at a relatively low level, but certainly did not succeed in severing the lines of traditional edu-cation, up to the level at which aspiring young scholars actively mastered the language so as to produce a nice translation of a turkish classic.13

this was also the period during which the full extent of the syriac orthodox diaspora became visible. the early diasporas of the 1920s and 1930s, in syria, lebanon, Palestine, and the united states, were comple-mented by a growing community in europe, especially in its northwestern countries: sweden, germany, and the netherlands. in all of these coun-tries, teaching, writing, and publishing in syriac was easier than in tur abdin, especially since the late 1980s, when computers and accompanying software made small-scale syriac publishing easier and cheaper than it ever had been. this generated an explosion of syriac publications whose fruits have so far been collected and studied only superficially. among these, the publishing house established by Mor Julius Çiçek, the first archbishop of europe, with its see in glanerbrug, netherlands, played a pioneering role. notably, Çiçek played a major role in the revival of Classical syriac at Mor gabriel in the 1960s.14

the majority of these publications, as in most periods of syriac writing, was in the religious domain. editions and re-editions of liturgical books, of earlier syriac authors such as narsai and Bar ebroyo, and of poems and Lives of the saints dominate the scene.15 in connection to this, there

12 Mor timotheus samuel aktaş, born in 1945 in tur abdin, was appointed abbot of Mor gabriel in 1972; he was involved in the development of the monastery’s seminary under his predecessor, the abbot yeshu Çiçek.

13 the difficulties of this period were movingly recorded by w. dalrymple, From the Holy Mountain: A Journey in the Shadow of Byzantium (london: harperCollins Publishers, 1997); cf. further h. anschütz, Die Syrischen Christen vom Tur ‘Abdin (würzburg: augu-stinus verlag, 1985), and h. hollerweger, Turabdin: Lebendiges Kulturerbe/Living Cultural Heritage (linz: Freunde des turabdin, 1999).

14 on Mor Julius Çiçek, metropolitan of europe from 1979 to 2005, see Malankara Syriac Christian Resources (www.syrianchurch.org/bio/syriacorthodox/bio_juliuscecek.htm; d.d. 11.1.12) and the website of the Mor ephrem Monastery in glanerbrug (www.morephrem.com; d.d. 11.1.12).

15 For the current backlist of the Barhebreaus verlag, see www;morephrem.com/ bookshop/index.php; many of the older publications are still available. Probably the best



is the ongoing use of Classical syriac in clerical letters and formal encyc-licals, some of which are published in journals edited by the clergy.16 in this respect, formal inscriptions, mostly building inscriptions in churches, should also be mentioned.17 Much more rarely does one come across books that move away from the purely religious, addressing other than clerical audiences. one of these is the syriac translation of Machiavelli’s The Prince, by the prolific author gabriel afrem from sweden, one of a small but interesting list of translations from european literature.18 Fur-ther pieces directed at a lay audience can be found in the Classical syriac sections of the wide variety of magazines that flourished in this period, especially those which were published in the diaspora.19 together, these journals probably constitute the most extensive source for non-religious texts in Classical syriac. sometimes these pieces translate a piece in another language in the same magazine, sometimes the pieces in syriac complement what is found in the rest of the journal. the pieces in syriac most often concern topics directly related to syriac identity, history, and language.20 though the number of people that could easily read these

and most complete collection of contemporary syriac publications (both Classical and vernacular) can be found at the widener library of harvard university. smaller collections are being kept in libraries of monasteries and cultural organizations. some of the early publications include a collection of Sughyotho edited by sebastian Brock in 1982, a History of the Mor Gabriel Monastery in 1983, an edition of Memre by Barhebreaus in 1985, and his Chronography in 1987. these early books were produced from copies written by Mor Julius Çiçek.

16 good examples of these can be found in Al-Hikma, published by Mor Markos in Jerusalem. in most of its issues the journal includes both the syriac and arabic version of messages of Patriarch Mor ignatius Zakka i iwas and of the local bishop, Mor severios Malke Mourad. see further Margonitho: Syriac Orthodox Resources (www.sor.cua.edu/ > patriarchate; d.d. 11.1.12, for patriarchal encyclicals in english and syriac).

17 a. harrak, Syriac and Garshuni Inscriptions of Iraq, Vol. 1: Text, Vol 2: Plates, recueil des inscriptions syriaques (Paris: diffusion de Boccard, 2010), includes many inscriptions produced in the twentieth century, though from the 1960s their numbers are declining considerably. Most twentieth-century syriac inscriptions, however, await publication.

18 Amīrā (‘the Prince’, translated from Macchiavelli’s Il principo; Jönköping: assur-banipal assyrian Press, 1995); the publications uses serto script, described as ‘assyrian.’ see Brock and taylor, The Hidden Pearl iii, Ch. 5 for a few more titles.

19 g. yonan, Journalismus bei den Assyrern (Berlin: Zentralverband der assyrischen vereinigungen in deutschland und Mitteleuropa, 1985) is a helpful starter, but its list of one hundred and thirty-five journals (starting with Zahrira d-Bahra in 1849) is outdated in view of the many new publications of the last twenty-five years.

20 Cf. a piece on naum Fayik, the syriac nationalist, journalist and teacher (1868-1930), in the dutch magazine Shemsho (Federatie tur abdin), in its issue of March 1988 (3/5), opening the syriac as well as in the dutch section. the syriac section includes five further pieces, not translated into dutch. the first discusses the importance of the syriac language (anonymous, leššono suryoyo), a short poem entitled šemšo (‘the sun’) by Farid



pieces must have been limited, they appear to have formed an essential element of the journals — something to be easily explained with the important role these journals played in the creation and further develop-ment of a communal identity adapted to the new context.21

in yet another way these pieces were part of a major discussion in the syriac community in northwestern europe: which language should be taught to the children born outside the homeland? was it the mother tongue of most, the local vernacular of tur abdin, or was it Kthobonoyo, the written standard language? several initiatives, developed by linguists of syriac and non-syriac extraction and supported by governmental sub-sidies, encouraged the use of the vernacular. however, none of these attempts seems to have had much backing in the wider community, though a considerable amount of texts was published in various forms of standardized vernacular, using both latin alphabets and syriac.22 though time and again new initiatives are put forward, 23 in general Classical syriac won the day. this was the one and only language that most syriac orthodox, in the european and american diasporas as well as in various locations in the Middle east, recognized as crucial to the heritage they wanted their children to share. this renewed status of syriac was made possible by defining Kthobonoyo as a modern literary language rather than an ancient ritual tongue, and by reinterpreting the different forms of the vernacular as dialects of the larger ‘syriac language.’ this pattern

yawsuf, an anonymous short story ṣanī `ē tloto w-qurīyo buro (‘three crooks and a simple man’), a poem by shimon atto entitled ‘ammo ṭlīmo (‘the oppressed people’), a poem by hanna gawriye (Bassut), ‘al ḥsomo w-bīšut mertēh (‘about envy and the evil of bitterness’). the syriac section in this issue ends with a couple of sayings and a wordlist with dutch/syriac transcription and Classical syriac.

21 this generalization, based on my cursory reading of many of these journals, needs further study, e.g. with regard to periodization, differences among the various countries and journals, and the extent of the influence of these journals.

22 an important and early attempt of latinization was made with support from the swedish government, by the linguist yusuf ishaq, resulting in a series called Toxu Qorena (‘Come, let us read’) published first in 1983 (cf. o. Jastrow, Laut- und Formenlehre des neuaramäischen Dialekts von Mīdin im Ṭur `Abdīn (wiesbaden: harrassowitz, 1985), xvii. here also the extensive linguistic work of otto Jastrow himself should be mentioned. his groundbreaking descriptions of a number of aramaic vernaculars from tur abdin made use of a relative straightforward latin transcription that he hoped would also inspire local users of the language. in addition to the scholarly grammar referred to above, his teaching grammar was influential among syriac and non-syriac students of the language. see Lehr-buch der Ṭuroyo-Sprache (wiesbaden: harrassowitz, 1992). later writing in a slightly adapted serto became more popular.

23 note, e.g., the recent gospel translation by a. saadi, Selected Chapters from the Gospel of Mark in Suryoyo (winfield: aramaic Bible translation, 2001), in three scripts: serto, a latin-based alphabet (inspired by that of Jastrow) and arabic.



reminds one of that of Modern standard arabic and its regional dialects, and, as in the case of arabic, this pattern intends to relegate regional linguistic identities to a secondary status vis-à-vis the unified linguistic standard. that, unlike arabic, the formal literary language is actively used by a small ecclesiastical, and even smaller scholarly, elite does not seem to affect the concept as such.

the reason for the success of this unifying concept is the fact that syriac as a language became increasingly important in discussions of communal identity. the harshest debates within the syriac orthodox com-munity of this period were those over the name for the community in the larger public domain, that is, whether ‘syriac,’ ‘aramaic,’ or ‘assyrian’ (or their dutch, german, French, and swedish equivalents) was to be preferred. these names reflect different opinions on the historic origins of the people, but they also reflect different opinions on today’s communal centers, boundaries, and identities. in somewhat loose definitions to be further elaborated below, the term ‘assyrian’ usually refers to a center in northern iraq and a full inclusion of syriac Catholics, the Church of the east, Chaldeans, and Protestants, whereas the term ‘aramaic’ emphasizes a center in southeast turkey and northern syria, with possible extensions to the west, including the Maronites, as much as or even more than to the east. the term ‘syriac,’ finally, equates the communal boundaries to those of the syriac orthodox Church, prioritizing ecclesial rather than ethnic boundaries.

the origins of this debate within the syriac orthodox Church are to be sought in the early twentieth century, when many syriac orthodox communities, especially in the new diasporas (in the americas as much as in Palestine and lebanon), had started to use the epithet ‘assyrian.’ over the century, this became less and less acceptable, especially when it was used in connection to the church (as in ‘assyrian orthodox Church’), or, for example, in a street sign in Jerusalem referring to Mor Markos as the ‘assyrian Convent’ in hebrew and english. recently, the ideo-logical victory of the syriac position was expressed in a new sign that speaks of the ‘syriac Convent.’24 in clerical contexts the epithet ‘syriac’

24 i have not been able to establish when the first sign was put up; the fact that the original sign consisted only of english, arabic, and arabic transcription (deyr as-siryān) suggests that the sign was made during British Mandate or Jordanian rule over the old City (thus between 1917 and 1967). the hebrew, which, like the english, reflected the assyrian identification (minzār ha-ašsurīm), must have been added after 1967. at an unknown date, the english and the transcription of the arabic were made to read ‘syrian’ by blackening As- (hyper-correcting the arabic). the new sign (put up between summer



is preferred to ‘aramaic,’ but the latter term derives much of its force from the syriac language: the fact that Classical syriac belongs to the larger aramaic linguistic family provides the ultimate argument to see the community’s ethnic or national belonging as being aramaic rather than assyrian. while this ethno-linguistic argument was already part of the dis-cussion in the early twentieth century (and predates it), it became increas-ingly important in the diaspora context of the 1980s and 1990s, when discussions within the syriac orthodox Church between ‘assyrians’ and ‘arameans’ reached a high point.25

traces of the aramaic ideology can be found in many places, in the encyclicals and catechisms of the clergy, in the beautiful series The Hidden Pearl: The Syrian Orthodox Church and its Ancient Aramaic Heritage,26 and in the syriac dictionaries of these years. one of these is a work that is firmly part of the attempt to reinterpret Classical syriac as Modern standard syriac, the syriac-dutch and dutch-syriac dictionary by aziz Bulut (known in syriac as gallo garibo). Bulut made good use of the work of western scholars such as Payne smith, but also built upon the late nineteenth- and twentieth-century founding fathers of the moderniza-tion of syriac: thomas audo, yaqub eugin Manna, and abrohom nuro.27 Bulut’s dictionary, using early work by shimon atto,28 was published

2010 and easter 2011) remained the same in arabic but in hebrew changed to ha-minzār ha-siryānī. this new form is derived from the original arabic, and the hebrew and arabic now neatly parallel the english ‘syriac Convent’.

25 there is still much work to do in describing the development and interpretations of the nationalist discourse of these decades; for a study dealing with these discussions in the syriac orthodox context, see n. atto, Hostages in the Homeland, Orphans in the Diaspora: Identity Discourses among the Assyrian/Syriac Elites in the European Diaspora (leiden: leiden university Press, 2011); for similar discussions in the syriac community in syria, see s. altug, “sectarianism in the syrian Jazira: Community, land and violence in the Memories of world war i and the French Mandate (1915-1939),” (Ph.d. diss., utrecht, 2011).

26 note, however, that in The Hidden Pearl’s introduction, it is explicitly stated that the aramaic cultural heritage is connected first and foremost with the aramaic language rather than with something as elusive as aramaic ethnicity. this distinction is lost in cur-rent debates in which ethnicity is considered much more important than language, and which makes it easy to interpret The Hidden Pearl as a scholarly support of the ‘arameanist’ position.

27 a. Bulut, Woordenboek Nederlands-Syrisch, Syrisch-Nederlands / spar mell ē suryoyo- holandoyo, holandoyo-suryoyo. (enschede: Federatie turabdin nederland, 1993).

28 see his dutch-syriac and syriac-dutch wordlist (1986) and his Süryanice – Türkçe sözlük / spar mellē suryoyo – turkoyo (enschede, 1989). one year earlier, in 1985, a wordlist had been produced by samuel elma, Thematisch Woordenboek Nederlands/Assyrisch (enschede), which, as in sweden, was supported by a governmental organization (volwassen educatie Culturele Minderheden).



in 1993, for use in both public and syriac schools. in the introduction, Bulut emphasizes that because of its religious and cultural status “every syriac person should learn this language,” explaining that aramaic is the language of Jesus, and syriac is the language that by churches in both the east and the west has been seen as equal to greek and latin. the current importance of syriac, furthermore, according to Bulut is demon-strated by its instruction in universities in the netherlands and elsewhere, and in its long history culminating in a twentieth-century revival, despite temporary decline between the thirteenth and nineteenth centuries.29

it is in this period, too, that the syriac orthodox community began to reflect publicly on the painful history of the First world war. the mem-ories of massacres and expulsion had long remained within the commu-nity, mostly confined to the inner circles of the family. little was written about it, even less published. this began to change in the 1980s, and the development accelerated in the years when negotiations over turkey’s entrance to the european union began to yield concrete results (from 1987 onwards, but especially in the early 2000s). alongside campaigns for the recognition of the armenian genocide, activists from the syriac communities started to fight for recognition of the ‘seyfo,’ the ‘sword.’ scholars such as david gaunt and Jan Bet sawo’e contributed to this process by collecting and analyzing much of the available materials.30 Most of these discussions, scholarly as well as political, were conducted in whatever languages were viable, in dutch, german, english, arabic, turkish, and turoyo. little was done in Kthobonoyo. in the 1980s and 1990s two accounts were published for the first time: that of the eye-witness Malfono abed Mschiho na’man of Qarabash, who took his notes during and immediately after the war,31 and that of the archpriest sleman henno from arkah, who completed his book based on eyewitness accounts probably sometime in the 1970s.32 For these two writers, syriac

29 Cf. Bulut’s dutch introduction (‘inleiding’); in the syriac introduction a similar message is given via a quote of toma audo: “every one of the syriac race (gensā) ought to find opportunity to learn fully and to duly teach this language.”

30 d. gaunt, Massacres, Resistance, Protectors: Muslim-Christian Relations in East-ern Anatolia during World War I. (Piscataway: gorgias Press, 2006).

31 Dmo zlīho: gunḥē w-šarbē maḥšonē d-mšīḥoyē d-ba-tḥumē d-bēyt nahrīn da-šnay 1895 – 1915 – 1918 (Bar hebraeus uitgeverij, 1999). in his introduction (p. 17 of the dutch edition, Bar hebraeus uitgeverij, 2002), abed Mschiho na’man refers to 1915 to 1918, when he was a young student in the seminary of the der az-Zaaferan monastery in Mardin.

32 the exact date is uncertain but must be before 1977, the date of the oldest foreword in the dutch translation. according to gabriel rabo in the news section of suryoyo-online (www.suryoyo-online.org, d.d. 12.1.12) in his obituary for sleman henno (d. 16 February



was the most suitable language to write their stories, but they had to wait a long time for readers — who, even today, are found mainly because the authors’ books have been translated from syriac into a host of other languages, including german, dutch, arabic, and turkish.

‘non-polItIcal and non-trIbal’? (1950s-1960s)

so far, the attention has been mostly on the syriac orthodox. they were the ones who produced considerable amounts of Classical syriac texts, and, in so doing, distinguished themselves from the other syriac communities that mostly edited or reprinted liturgical texts. the syriac orthodox, too, were the ones who developed an ideology to counter the dominance of the assyrian rhetoric, based on the centrality of syriac as an aramaic language and the language of Jesus, their ancestors, and the church.33

all this seems to be rather different from the developments in the Church of the east, let alone in the Chaldean Church. in both, Classical syriac remained the highly venerated language of the liturgy, leading to new editions or reprints and ensuring a constant but small group of clergy and scholars who learned and studied the language and its history, espe-cially in iraq and iran. however, the incentives that pushed the syriac orthodox to conceptualize Classical syriac as a modern literary language that could function alongside other such languages were practically absent among the Chaldeans and the assyrians. From the beginning of the century, the Chaldeans of iraq had put their stakes in arabic, having been part of the majority arabic culture since the eighteenth century, taking up patterns of accommodation that dated back to the heydey of the syriac-arabic symbiosis during the abbasids. the Church of the east,

2006), the book was written in 1977, and first published in syriac in the netherlands in 1987 (the date of the introduction by Mor Julius Çiçek). the syriac title is Gunḥe d-suryoye d-ṭur `abdīn; the volume was translated in several languages, in turkish, swedish, german, arabic, english and dutch. see J. Jonk, De vervolging en de uitroeiing van de Syro-Arameeërs in Tur Abdin 1915 (glanerbrug: Bar hebraeus verlag 2005). notably, Mor Julius Çiçek’s introduction has a strong arameanist tendency, speaking about “Christian arameans,” the aramaic background of the people of tur abdin, and of aramaic being the language of both Jesus and adam.

33 though arameanism has ancient roots especially among syriac orthodox authors, in its modern form it emerged and functions as a countermovement to the assyrian movement. one of today’s prominent activists for the aramean cause is the dutch Johnny Messo, president of the syriac universal alliance, see www.sua-ngo.org (d.d. 11.1.12). More extreme versions of anti-assyrianism can be found on www.aramnahrin.org (d.d. 11.1.12).



on the other hand, re-invented itself in the same period in opposition to such symbiosis with arabic culture. For the members of this community, however, it was not Classical syriac but a standardized modern vernacular that became the carrier of their specific religious-cultural position in the Middle east.34 rather different from the unsuccessful attempts to transform the tur abdin vernacular into a literary language, the various forms of the spoken vernacular in iran and north iraq by the middle of the twentieth century could look back on a tradition of teaching, writing, and publishing of about a hundred years if not more.35 while the status and acceptance of standardized swādāyā (‘vernacular’) or leššānā ḥadtā (‘modern language’) does not measure up to that of arabic or other standard languages of the region, it certainly had (and has) a much stronger position as a written formal language than Classical syriac has among the syriac orthodox. especially in iran, iraq, and eastern syria, many assyrians were and are able to read and write this language, due to ongoing language teaching in public and private schools, including church-related language classes. as such, it functions similarly to Classical syriac among the syriac orthodox, in being the first language of clerical correspondence in, e.g., patriarchal and synodical messages, alongside arabic and english.36

Much of this was consolidated in the crucial lull of the early decades following the second world war, in the decolonized Middle east, where an optimistic nationalism set the tone, even if it was fraught with uncer-tainty for many of the region’s Christians. in syria, iraq, and iran, syriac Christians were looking for ways to participate in society, while making the most of opportunities to strengthen their communal identities.

somewhat surprisingly, however, two major characteristics of the syriac-orthodox activities of the 1980s and 1990s, that of the importance of the Classical syriac heritage and the link with aramaic, were also prominent in the Church of the east’s attempts to redefine their position in the Middle east.

34 h.l. Murre-van den Berg, “Classical syriac, neo-aramaic and arabic in the Church of the east and the Chaldean Church between 1500 and 1800,” in Aramaic in its Historical and Linguistic Setting, ed. h. gzella and M.l. Folmer, veröffentlichungen der orien-talischen Kommission 50 (wiesbaden: harrassowitz, 2008), 335-52.

35 h.l. Murre-van den Berg, From a Spoken to a Written Language. The Introduction and Development of Literary Urmia Aramaic in the Nineteenth Century, Publication of the “de goeje Fund” no. XXviii (leiden: nino, 1999). notably, like is the case with Classical syriac, its twentieth-century history has been very superficially described.

36 see the news site of the Church of the east, www.news.assyrianchurch.org, which is mostly in english and arabic, but has a few clerical publications and sermons in modern aramaic, like the Christmas homily of the patriarch (dec. 2012).



the first aspect, that of the Classical syriac heritage, surfaces in an interesting three-volume study that was published between 1962 and 1970 in tehran. dr. Pera sarmas (1901-1972), a physician who was one of iran’s foremost scholars of syriac, wrote what he called a History of Assyr-ian Literature, in the modern language, Taš`īta d-seprāyutā Āturāytā.37 while the third and last volume is dedicated to the modern literature starting in the nineteenth century, conceptualizing the modern language (swādāyā) as a mixture of akkadian and aramaic,38 in the first two vol-umes Classical syriac literature takes an important position. not only is it presented as a crucial link between the akkadian and modern periods in support of the assyrian ideology of sarmas, but the syriac language is also attributed an inherent importance. this lies in its being the lan-guage of the syriac churches (in his overview sarmas includes syriac orthodox authors such as Jacob of sarugh and Philoxenus of Mabbug), as much as in its relevance for the modern nationalist discourse — the work of authors such as ashur bet yusuf and na’um Fayiq is cited.39 in the second volume, sarmas mentions, among others, abrohom nuro and dawid r. nissan toma from lebanon, and he includes some specimens of their syriac writing.40

sarmas’s primary source for such modern authors and specimens of their prose and poetry was the journal Gilgamesh: A Literary Magazine in the Assyrian Language (or, in syriac: Majjaltā seprāyutā b-leššānā (As)Surāytā), which was published in tehran by the brothers adday and John alkhas between 1952 and 1961.41 while the contribution of sarmas and the alkhas brothers deserves a more detailed study, my initial prob-ing indicates that, contrary to what one may expect, Classical syriac, in its modern standard form, was also appreciated by scholars and readers from the Church of the east. in iran as perhaps also in iraq and syria, these readers of syriac included scholars from the Chaldean Church, such as nimrod simono and Zaya Bet Zaya, in line with the editors’ aim to

37 tehran: assyrian youth Cultural society Press: 1962, 1969, 1970. in the third volume, the title is translated into english as Literary History of Assyrians (Modern Assyrian).

38 sarmas, iii, 19; see also the scheme on p. 3939 i: 129-132, 224, 233.40 ii: 284, notably dawid r. nissan toma’s ulītā `al leššānā suryāyā (‘lament over

the syriac language’). this volume also includes an expansion of the earlier overview of earlier Classical syriac authors, again including syriac orthodox ones, like dionysius of telmahre and Michael the great (ii, 220, 226-7).

41 a full set of the journal (in four volumes) has been made available by david Malick, via lulu Press (reprint undated.)



make the magazine into a “non-political and non-tribal” magazine.42 in this context, the heritage of the Chaldean-born Paul Bedjan, one of the earlier authors in both the classical and modern languages, was stud-ied and cherished.43 one may perhaps assume that for these assyrian students of syriac the regard for Classical syriac also implied interest in a larger unity including the syriac orthodox, even if so far no explicit references to such a unifying concept were encountered.

this high regard for Supraya, as the literary language is called among the easterners, can be interpreted as a way for assyrian scholars to incor-porate the rich heritage of syriac into a nationalist narrative that starts with the ancient assyrians and via syriac literature reaches the current times. Perhaps more remarkable is the fact that the aramaic ideology had its supporters among the easterners, though in a somewhat different form. evidence for this comes from the journal Nuhrā men Madnḥā, or Light from the East, which was published in the united states between 1948 and 1954 by the patriarchal office of the assyrian Church of the east.44 though ‘assyrian’ as name of the people goes unchallenged, the magazine espouses the learning of the Classical syriac language, mostly called aramaic. it further uses the aramaic identification to stress the uniqueness of the Church of the east’s heritage among other, especially western churches, with its bible in the original aramaic of Jesus, and with it being close to islam because it originated in the same semitic milieu. in this way, a decidedly post-colonial and indigenous interpreta-tion of ‘aramaic’ is put forth. this interpretation functions to re-integrate the Church of the east into the Middle east of the day, which was one of the major concerns of its leader, Patriarch Mar eshai shimun (1920-1975). his first concern was to regain the trust of Middle eastern leaders, by positing the assyrian Church of the east as one of the Middle eastern churches with no particular interest in national or tribal independence. Clearly a rapprochement to the syriac orthodox was not his immediate concern: nowhere is the term aramaic or syriac used to underline a

42 a.B. alhas, “introduction,” Gilgamesh 1 (1952): 6. notably, the issue of Catholic (Chaldean) versus Church of the east does not seem to have been an issue, at least not for those involved with this magazine that in general seems to have had a rather secular outlook.

43 n. simono, Paul Bedjan, 1838-1920 (tehran, 1984). 44 h.l. Murre-van den Berg, “light from the east (1948-1954) and the de-territorialization

of the assyrian Church of the east,” in Religion beyond its Private Role in Modern Society, ed. w. hofstee and a. van der Kooij (leiden: Brill, 2013), 115-34. the ratio between english and modern aramaic varies, from no aramaic at all in the early issues, up to about two-thirds in english and one-third in the vernacular in the last issue.



common heritage between the two syriac traditions. and, notably, nowhere in this journal is the emphasis on the aramaic heritage portrayed as con-tradicting the assyrian interpretation, even if for some (like its main ideo-logue george lamsa), this may have been implied.45

this high regard for Classical syriac, as testified to by the assyrian Church of the east’s patriarch as well as by the mostly educational activ-ities on the ground in syria, iraq, and iran, produced only limited amounts of syriac texts. Most of these were hymns in the ecclesial tradition, in addition to small numbers of syriac inscriptions, mostly funerary and dedicatory, marking the renovation or building of churches.46 For syriac writing, as in most of the twentieth century, it was the syriac orthodox community that remained the most fertile environment, even if dependent upon a relatively small circle of clergy and scholars. Much of the pro-duction of these years remains difficult to access, published as it was on local printing presses that had a limited distribution range, in journals that are not easily obtained in the west. however, the wide range of titles that features in abrohom nuro’s catalogue, recently published by george Kiraz, indicates something of the breadth of this movement, with active centers in Beirut, aleppo, Qamishli, Mosul, and Baghdad.47 in this period, traces of an emphasis on the aramaic heritage of the syriac ortho-dox Church can be detected, as, for example, in Mor aphrem i Barsoum’s (1933-1957) History of Tur Abdin, which was written in syriac in the 1950s, but was published only in 1964, in lebanon, in a combined syriac/ arabic edition.48 though most of the history is concerned with other

45 Cf. LE 1/2/10-11 (dec 1949), 1/2/7, 9-11 (Jan 1949), 1/5/8-9 (april/May 1949), 4/6/5-6 (Convention issue 1951). in LE 1/1/5 (nov 1948) the patriarch follows lamsa, conflating semitic with syriac, aramaic with syriac, and syriac with the Church of the east. these formulations suggest that the patriarch was influenced by the rising tides of arab nationalism, whose Christian supporters used similar formulations to describe the relationship between arab culture, islam, and Christianity. Cf. further a publication by isaac rehana (one of the advisors of the patriarch and also contributor to le), Ktābā d-sīmtā d-haymānutā d-`Edtā qaddištā wa-šlīḥāytā qātolīqī d-madnḥā. tehran, 1964, including a poem that reflects ideas very similar to those expressed in le.

46 harrak, Syriac and Garshuni Inscriptions; the current Patriarch Mar dinkha iv (in office since 1976) has composed many hymns, but all, as far as i am aware, in the modern language. For a few poems, see a 1990 publication in san Jose by Q. emmanuel rehana yusep, who at the end of his Kronīqon z`orā (‘little Chronicle’) published a number of religious poems in Classical syriac (dated to 1989; 111-143).

47 g. Kiraz, Catalogue of the Malphono Abrohom Nuro Collection (Piscataway: gorgias Press, 2009).

48 i used the original edition in arabic and Classical syriac, introduced by the metro-politan of Baghdad and Basra, grigorius Paulus Behnam: ignatius aphrem i Barsoum,



matters, in the second chapter aphrem i describes the origins of the people of tur abdin as being ‘aramaic.’49 he also includes the term in his foreword where he explains why he wrote this book in ‘aramaic-syriac’: “we preferred this book to be in our beloved syriac language [b-leššon nahhīro awkēt Oromoyo Suryoyo] which is the language of the sons (of the church) who inhabit this region.”50 similarly, Patriarch ignatius yacoub iii (1957-1980), in his arabic work History of the Syrian Church of Antioch, speaks of martyrs from ‘aramaic’ lands when referring to Mesopotamia. in this vein, he sees the history of Christian lebanon as part of the history of the syriac orthodox Church, stressing the syriac roots of the Maronites.51

in both circles, however, the term aramaic was used mostly to under-line the ancient historic and linguistic credentials of a specific community, that of the Church of the east and the syriac orthodox, respectively. it is in the political context, however, that ‘aramaic’ and ‘syriac’ explicitly refer to a larger unity that unites both ‘west’ and ‘east’ syriac traditions. this emerges from documents published by the political organizations that were established under the name ‘assyrian’: the assyrian demo-cratic organization that was established in Qamishli (syria) in 195752 and

Maktbonuto d-`al atro d-Ṭur `Abdīn (lebanon, 1964), alongside the english translation by Matti Moossa: ignatius aphrem i Barsoum: History of Tur Abdin (Piscataway: gorgias, 2008).

49 Behnam, 14; Moosa, 3. Moosa in his 2008 introduction emphasizes the aramaic ideology of patriarch aphrem.

50 Behnam, 9; Moosa, ix. note that in the 1964 edition, aphrem’s preface is dated to 1954, and erroneously to 1924 in Moossa. harrak, Syriac and Garshuni Inscriptions, includes an inscription dated to 1931 (aB.02.05), commemorating one of aphrem’s teachers, the priest and poet yaqub saka, who was buried in syriac orthodox Church of virgin Mary (Bartilla); the inscription refers to leššono d-oromoyē (‘language of the arameans’), suryoyuṭo (‘syriacness’ or Classical syriac language?), and l-l’azzo oromoyo (‘the aramaic tongue’).

51 History of the Syrian Church of Antioch i, 340, 352-4 (with a reference to one of the early bishops as “syriac in race [gensā] and in language”). i used an edition that was published in göteborg, sweden, in 2009, and was translated from the arabic into Classical (Maktbonuṭo d-‘Ēdto Suryoyto d-Antīuk) by Mardin’s bishop saliba Özmen, and funded by gabriel yalgin, a well-known activist; the date of its first publication is uncertain; it was published under the patriarch’s metropolitan name severius, thus suggesting a date before 1957.

52 ado (Makastā Āturaytā Demokrāṭāyā) has no early documents online, so further investigation has to learn to what extent the language issue was part of the rhetoric of these years. in general, ado had and has considerable support among syriac orthodox, so it is to be expected that syriac as a literary language would enjoin some sympathy. its origins and continued relevance in syria, however, have made arabic into the primary language of the organization. during its fiftieth anniversary in 2007, the then chair Bachir saadi referred to the important aims of “Constitutional recognition of the national existence of



the assyrian universal alliance established in Paris in 1966. the latter, with both political and cultural aims enforced by the early diaspora con-text, summarizes its mission as “one name for one nation, one language for one nation, one leadership for one nation, a homeland for our nation,” an emphasis already dating to its first resolutions in 1968, when after the “one name,” two languages are mentioned: “it was recommended that there be two officially recognized assyrian languages; the Modern assyrian (swadaya) and literary assyrian (supraya)”, the latter of course referring to Classical syriac.53

the modernIzatIon of the syrIac churches (1920s-1940s)

with the mention of the syriac orthodox patriarch aphrem Barsoum, we retrace our steps to the foundational period of the syriac revival of the twentieth century, that of the 1920s until the early 1940s. in these decades, the clergy of this church invested much effort in rebuilding the community from the ashes of the First world war. in this process, they awarded a central position to the study of syriac. it was the monks of the former seat of the patriarchate, the monastery of deir al-Zaaferan near Mardin, who led this revival, though with the refugees from turkey it quickly spread to other regions where syriac Christians found a home. this revival included the introduction of local syriac printing which had started before the war, in the 1910s, and in which monks such as the later metropolitan of Mardin, Mor Filoxenos yuhannan dolabani (1947-1969), and the future patriarch, aphrem Barsoum, played major roles.54 after 1923, when the new republican turkish government put increasing restrictions on publishing in languages other than turkish, printing was moved to Jerusalem, which under British Mandate rule provided more

assyrians, as an indigenous people, and the syriac culture and language as a national one that should be revived and protected.” (Beth suryoyo: www.bethsuryoyo.com/currentevents/ado50anniversary/ado50day1.html; d.d. 12.1.12)

53 assyrian universal alliance (website: www.aua.net/aua.html > resolutions (april 10- 13, 1968); d.d. 12.1.12); compare also resolution (3) “to establish an academy to con-struct a uniform alphabet to simplify the structure of each assyrian letter for the common use of all”.

54 government firmans sanctioning printing were issued in 1876, 1911 and 1922, see P. gabriel akyüz, Osmanlı devletinde süryani kilisesi (Mardin, 2002), texts no. 127 (1876/7), 129 (1911) and 130 (1922). an edition, translation and commentary of these ottoman turkish texts is currently being prepared by emrullah akgunduz (leiden univer-sity). on dolabani, see gregorios yuhanna ibrahim, Dolabani: The Ascetic Metropolitan of Mardin (Piscataway: gorgias Press, 2009).



favorable conditions.55 another center of syriac learning and writing developed in north iraq, mostly among the longstanding syriac orthodox community centered around the monastery of Mar Mattai, which also housed a seminary. in addition, two other diaspora communities became active in writing and printing, Beirut and north america.56 some of these early printings have been recovered, some were lost, but much of what was written then was not published until much later.

one major aspect of the syriac revival of the post-war period was an intense interest in syriac history, perhaps not so surprising in view of the huge losses incurred by the war. Most of these were produced by the clerical leaders, most prominently among them patriarch aphrem i Barsoum. while much of his work remains unpublished, a major work appeared in parts in the journal of the syriac patriarchate in Jerusalem between 1938 and 1941, the History of the Syriac Dioceses. in this work, aphrem Barsoum brings together a number of little known sources, con-tributing in particular to the history of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, when the syriac orthodox Church underwent major changes — the challenge of the Catholic schism on the one hand, and the incor-poration of the indian communities on the other.57 this choice of subjects was hardly coincidental, since both the relationship to the Catholics and to the syriac Christians in india were hot topics during the post-war period of aphrem’s writing. his most famous work, The Scattered Pearls: A History of Syriac Literature and Sciences, was first published in homs in 1943. it stands as the first modern interpretation of the history of syriac literature by a syriac orthodox scholar. For the first time since Bar ebroyo in the thirteenth century, a high-ranking cleric appropriated this heritage

55 one of the witnesses to that move was the patriarchal magazine Al-Hikma, which in the 1920s was continued in Jerusalem. Further evidence of printing in Jerusalem is provided by several notes in Kiraz, Catalogue of the Malphono Abrohom Nuro Collection, e.g., numbers a9 (1929); a33 (1946) a27 (1937), a34-6 (1939-1945). the war had brought a sizable number of syriac Christians to Jerusalem and Bethlehem and Patriarch eliyas iii shaker (1917-1932) visited Jerusalem in 1925. he and his advisors may even have considered moving the patriarchate there, but nothing came of it, and in 1933 his successor Mor ignatius aphrem Barsoum (1933-1957), who was bishop of syria and maintained good relations with the French Mandate government, moved the patriarchate to homs. in 1959, his successor Mor yaqub iii moved it to the capital of the new arab syrian state, damascus.

56 Kiraz, Catalogue of the Malphono Abrohom Nuro Collection, a5 (america 1917), a2 (Beirut 1926), a6 (Beirut 1930).

57 Mğaltā d-fatrīyarkuto d-suryoyē/ al-Majallā al-Batrīyarkīyyā al-Suryāniyyā; pub-lished at st. Mark’s in Jerusalem, in 1938, 1939, 1940 and 1941. this probably is the same journal that otherwise is called Al-Hikma.



in a modern way, taking account of what western scholars had written about it, but not letting their opinions take away his own evaluations, which were, first and foremost, informed by the syriac tradition.58

remarkably, many of the works by aphrem i Barsoum, yacoub iii and dolabani, all concerned with bringing the syriac tradition up to date, were first written in arabic. at the time, this was the common language within the learned community and was thus used also for theological and historical studies. this central role of arabic did not, however, remain uncontested, as surfaces from some notes on what is called the ‘third Council of st. Matthew’s Monastery,’ a synod that was held in Mar Mattai near Mosul in 1930, under the responsibility of Patriarch ignatius eliyas iii (1917-1932). in the report, it is mentioned that much of the Council’s proceedings took place in arabic, though during the opening some addresses were delivered in syriac. More importantly, among the Council’s decisions as reported by Mor yacoub iii, are several that stress the need for the furtherance of syriac in the printing of liturgies (see resolution 6 — arabic, but not Malayalam, is permitted in an explanatory column), in the teaching of crucial theological subjects (resolution 16), and, perhaps most importantly, in “the correspondence between the members of the clergy ... in order to preserve this precious heritage” (resolution 10). interestingly, instead of syriac, garshuni, the writing of arabic in syriac script, is allowed — a rather common practice in the ottoman period.59

despite this deference to earlier custom, the use of garshuni was in decline in this period in favor of both Classical syriac and arabic in arabic script. this is confirmed by the many inscriptions in Classical syr-iac in iraq which were documented by amir harrak that testify to consid-erable building and renovation activities, especially among the Chaldeans and the syriac orthodox. while these churches may have preferred arabic in many informal and formal contexts, the inscriptions suggest that syriac remained a cherished language that was particularly suitable in public contexts. one wonders whether the increasing importance of arabic in

58 Kitab al-lulu al-manthur fi tarikh al-ulum wa al-adab al-Suryaniyya (trans. and ed. by Matti Moosa; with foreword by Cyril aphrem Karim). homs-1943, aleppo-1956 (Piscataway: gorgias Press, 2000/2003, 2nd rev. ed.), arabic trans.: Matti Moosa.

59 ignatius yacoub iii, History of the Monastery of Saint Matthew in Mosul, 155-6, 158-160. this work was originally published as Dufaqat al-Tib fi Tarkh Dayr al-Qiddis Mar Matta al-`Ajib (1961?) before it was translated to english by Matti Moosa (gorgias Press, 2008; originally 1961?). note that yacoub iii explicitly connects defection to Catholicism with insufficient knowledge of syriac (110), something also noted for the syriac communities in india.



all domains of church life made it more acceptable to keep Classical syriac pure in language and script in the limited domain of the inscrip-tions, thus causing the gradual disappearance of garshuni.60

a further look at the decisions of this council helps to contextualize its interest in syriac: it was part of an important transformation of the syriac orthodox Church. this transformation was an adaptation to the context of the new states in the Middle east where language was emerging as an important nationalist tool, but it also directly reflected the changes among its membership. the resolutions talk about the admittance of girls to the singing of hymns “outside the altar” (resolution 8), the standard-izing and printing of the liturgies and the melodies of its hymns (resolu-tion 4-6), the establishment of a “clerical branch” in Beirut and a new bishopric in hassakeh in northeast syria (resolution 1, 3), the institution of sunday schools to “teach youngsters religious principles and church chorals following one uniform standard” (resolution 2), overall scrutiny by the patriarch of all materials written or printed for the church (resolu-tion 9), and further development of “denominational councils” in which laymen participated (resolution 12). Much more can be said about these resolutions, but the gist of it is clear: the modernization of Classical syriac was part of a wider reform movement that included a conscious re-appropriation of the church’s heritage, a rethinking of how non-clergy (such as children, young women, and laymen) could be included in its dealings, and how clergy and lay people alike could be made to under-stand the church’s teachings in addition to participating in its rituals.61 this interest in modernizing the syriac people and language is also reflected in the poetry of one the young poets of the time, ghattas eliyas (1918-2008). Most of his poems were published only much later, though a few may have been published locally in Beirut or damascus, where he spent most of his adult life. For him, there is a clear connection between

60 harrak, Syriac and Garshuni Inscriptions; his lists of dated inscriptions reveal the highest number of syriac inscriptions in the 1920s and 1930s, with slow decrease in the 1940s and 1950s. a similar decline of garshuni inscriptions in favor of proper syriac ones can be observed in st. Mark’s in Jerusalem, cf. a. Palmer and g.J. van gelder, “syriac and arabic inscriptions at the Monastery of st. Mark’s in Jerusalem,” OC 78 (1994), 33-63.

61 this modernization process built upon nineteenth and early twentieth-century attempts; cf. the catechism written by aphrem i Barsoum in 1912, Yulfono mšīhoyo. i consulted this in a dutch (abridged) translation of 2002: Catechismus van de Syrisch-Orthodoxe Kerk van Antiochië (losser: Bar-hebraeus uitgeverij, 2002). For the late nineteenth century, see o.h. Parry, Six Months in a Syrian Monastery (london: horace Cox, 1895; reprint Piscataway: gorgias Press, 2001).



serving the nation (umṭo), contributing to its m’alyuto (‘elevation’), and learning and using the syriac language.62

similar modernizing tendencies can be detected in the Church of the east, especially in the post-war years under British government, when north iraq was a center of schools that carried the ‘assyrian’ name. these taught both the classical and the modern language, though the bulk of writing was done in the modern language. a central figure in this combi-nation of religious and literary revival was deacon yosep Kellayta, who was strongly committed to education. he established a successful school in Mosul, with a curriculum that included Classical syriac alongside eng-lish and modern aramaic, as is testified by studies of the curriculum and school photographs that include signs with syriac texts.63 though the forced migration of part of the assyrians to syria in the aftermath of the semele event cut short some of these developments, the assyrians who remained in iraq continued to use both Classical syriac and Modern ara-maic. the latter language, however, dominated the scene, and, in its iraqi form (styled ‘iraqi Koine’ by edward odisho), is still today the standard language of most assyrians and many Chaldeans in iraq, based as it is on the mixture of dialects produced in British army bases such as habaniyyah and in the major cities of iraq, Baghdad and Basra.64

conclusIons

the above overview merely scratches the surface of the varied devel-opment of Classical syriac literature in the twentieth century, let alone that of the wider context of the history of the syriac churches. a wealth of sources are available for those willing to conduct extensive searches in europe, the americas, and the Middle east. and, of these, so far only a minority has been taken into account. the current overview, however,

62 t. Baarda, “enkele gedichten uit de bundel Tawgōnē van ghattas Maqdisi elyas” (B.a. thesis, leiden university, 2010); the thesis is based on the 1988-edition produced in the netherlands by the Bar-hebraeus verlag by Mor Julius Cicek: g.M, Tāwgonē: nebhē w-re`yonē (‘reflections: emotions and thoughts’); it includes prose and poetry from the ‘20s through ‘40s, and from the ‘80s.

63 r. shamuel, “the Private asssyrian schools in iraq in the 20th Century,” (M.a. diss., leiden university, 2008); in the same period, activists and teachers such as Benyamin arsanis espoused a more secular regime, in his writings and in his school in Baghdad, but his school too paid attention to syriac.

64 e.y. odisho, The Sound System of Modern Assyrian (Neo-Aramaic), semitica viva 2 (wiesbaden: harrassowitz, 1988), 21-23.



warrants a few initial conclusions about the role of Classical syriac in the contemporary period that i hope will form the starting point of more detailed investigations.

the first of these is that there is much reason to see the twentieth century as a period of revival of the classical language. rather than losing ground to arabic, to the modern aramaic vernaculars, or to the languages of the adopted countries, the ever-rising number of publications in Classical syriac suggests that the language has not lost its central position in the syriac churches. though this growth of publications does not necessarily imply increasing numbers of people who speak, read, or write the lan-guage, it certainly indicates a growing interest in the language as such, as well as a growing interest in learning and teaching it. the above overview suggests three major factors that explain this renewed interest in syriac: 1) the re-definition of communal identities as ethnic-nationalist as well as religious; 2) the active linguistic modernization of the language itself; and 3) the diasporic fragmentation of the second half of the century that under-lined the need for a common language as much as creating much more favorable circumstances for writing, printing, and teaching syriac.

important steps towards the redefinition of Classical syriac as more than the ritual language of a religious community were made before the First world war, but the near decimation of the syriac communities during the war, as much as the ensuing political redrawing of the Middle east, necessitated new perceptions of the syriac communities, the syriac orthodox, the Church of the east, and their Catholic counterparts. despite different political contexts, despite different choices as to the concrete redefinitions of the communities, clerical and lay elites shared the idea that the community was held together by more than religion alone. this extra, whether defined as culture, ethnicity, or nation, was best expressed in the syriac language. Perhaps with an eye to the examples of religious languages like arabic and hebrew, which were successfully being re-interpreted as ‘modern’ and ‘secular,’ Classical syriac, too, began to be perceived in that way. while arabic remained the most suitable language for intra-communal correspondence in most of the Middle eastern syriac communities, from the 1920s onwards a conscious effort to propagate the use of syriac can be detected. over time, this effort was supported by, and expressed through, a conscious modernization of the language as such, most explicitly in the works of abrohom nuro. while this process needs further study in its own right, the mere fact of its existence indicates that Classical syriac was seen, much more than in the preceding centuries, as a modern language that could be adapted to the demands of the time.



this renewed emphasis on Classical syriac started in the Middle east — initially in turkey, but mostly in Jerusalem, Beirut, aleppo, and north iraq — first and foremost by clerical scholars. after the second world war, additional centers arose in Baghdad and tehran, while more lay scholars became involved. in some of these places, publishing was rela-tively unrestricted, though all centers of syriac writing had to deal with governmental restrictions from time to time. while a further study of these centers is needed to better assess their contribution to the development of syriac, it was the growing diasporas in europe and the united states that took over the first position in syriac writing and publishing beginning in the 1980s. this was not merely a matter of favorable circumstances with new technical possibilities and freedom of press. syriac publishing was also a conscious answer to the communal fragmentation that threatened the syriac churches in the decades of their worldwide dispersion. this fragmentation was also one of language, with languages such as english, French, and german pushing arabic from its position of primary lingua franca. Classical syriac profited from this multilingualism, transform-ing it into the one and only language that was familiar to all — even if “familiar” in this context might have meant anything from recognizing the script and knowing a few words in the liturgy to being able to speak and write it. notably, publishing in the syriac communities (first mostly in journals, and later on in numerous websites) was, from the beginning, a decidedly multilingual affair in which all the languages that were spoken and written in the community were represented. however, it was exactly the presence of Classical syriac, in names, logos, and token pieces of text, that constituted a common characteristic of this transnational literary culture.

the second major conclusion of this overview should be that despite the continuing and increased importance of Classical syriac in all syriac churches, its function and relative importance differ considerably among them. undoubtedly, the syriac orthodox Church may pride itself in hav-ing been the most consistent in using and propagating Classical syriac. while ignoring for the moment the position of syriac vis-à-vis arabic in the syriac Catholic and Chaldean Church (something that requires a separate study), the difference between the syriac orthodox Church and the Church of the east with regard to Classical syriac is striking. in both, language was considered a crucial element of the communal redefinitions of the twentieth century, and, in both, this was to be syriac rather than arabic (or anything else). in the Church of the east, however, Classical syriac in its potential nationalist and secular functions had been ousted



by the written form of the modern vernacular. this was a full-fledged literary language that from its emergence in the nineteenth century had been strongly connected to societal modernization and secularization of the Church of the east, in iran as well as in iraq. in the post-war period, when under British Mandate rule communal modernization became ever more pressing, the standardized vernacular consolidated its posi-tion. even if Classical syriac continued to be highly valued and taught in the schools, it remained the language of the church more than of the nation.

in the syriac orthodox Church, the position of Classical syriac was further strengthened by the intra-communal struggles over the ‘aramean’ versus ‘assyrian’ position. in the accompanying debates, language played a crucial role. if Classical syriac was part of the aramaic family of lan-guages, then the syriac orthodox were to be considered arameans rather than assyrians. after all, ‘assyrian’ was not an aramaic language (at least not in the scholarly definitions of assyrian), even if the ancient assyrians at some point spoke aramaic. while this battle may not have significantly increased the actual numbers of those who knew Classical syriac, the growing popularity of the ‘aramean’ option among the syriac orthodox once again underlined Classical syriac as a national as well as religious language. at the background of these identity-fights, however, it was the ever-fragmenting diaspora itself that caused the language, together with the church and the homeland, to emerge as one of the most powerful sym-bols of communal unity.

while the diaspora encouraged Classical syriac as the symbolic lan-guage of national unity mostly for the syriac orthodox, it was in Kurdish north iraq that Classical syriac acquired new meanings, bringing into practice the ideology of some of the older nationalist parties. in the Chris-tian schools of the region, Classical syriac became a language that was taught to all children at all levels — whether syriac orthodox, syriac Catholic, Chaldean, or Church of the east. this reflected not only a practi-cal need for a common curriculum, but also the need for increased mutual cooperation, first mostly in autonomous Kurdistan and then, after 2003, throughout iraq. though much of the early hopes have been crushed by the devastating effects of the civil war upon Christians, north iraq has become the place where syriac Christians of different churches began to see Classical syriac as the most potent symbol of their common identity, whether they call themselves syriacs, Chaldeans, or assyrians. this inter-pretation profited from the modern literary variety of Classical syriac that had developed mostly in syriac orthodox circles, from the unsatisfactory



nature of the struggles between ‘arameans’ and ‘assyrians’ in syriac orthodox circles, and from the limited successes of assyrians of the Church of the east to include syriac orthodox and Chaldean in a com-mon vision of ‘assyrian’ ethnic identity.

the future of Classical syriac as a common project of the syriac churches in north iraq depends upon a host of conflicting ecclesial, socio-political, geopolitical, and economic forces. if, as one hopes, north iraq remains a relatively safe and prosperous place, it may develop into a major center of syriac writing and publishing, a center that would be able to support and energize the study of syriac in the wider Middle east, especially in lebanon and turkey. such a center would also contribute to the further acceptance of Classical syriac as the combined religious and national language of syriac Christians everywhere, even when it would not contribute to raising the number of actual speakers. indeed, even if north iraq remains stable, it is unlikely that all dreams of the iraqi activists will come true. the major symbolic, ‘unifying’ function of Classical syriac is well served with teaching it extensively in iraq, and perhaps will contribute to a certain political convergence of the Christians of the region. it is not to be expected, though, that this will be enough to make syriac into the preferred language of communication among syriac Christians, neither regionally nor globally. For that to occur, one needs a strong state and a strong language policy. until this happens, syriac Christians will use whatever languages are available to discuss the concerns of church, language, nation, and homeland. For the time being, however, Classical syriac constitutes the strong and uncontested kernel of the shared identity of syriac Christians, providing a metaphoric homeland accessible to any-one anywhere — and unfettered by social, political, or denominational constraints.

bIblIography

Primary Sourcesafrem, g. Amīrā (‘the Prince’, translated from Macchiavelli’s Il principo).

assurbanipal assyrian Press, Jönköping, 1995.atto, s. Süryanice — Türkçe sözlük / Spar mellē Suryoyo — Turkoyo. enschede,

1989.aydin, r., trans. Ktobo qaddīšo meṭṭul ṭalyē (the holy scriptures for Children),

with preface by Mor Polycarpus augin aydin. glanerbrug: Bar ebroyo verlag, losser, in cooperation with gorgias Press, 2008; english original standard Publishing, 2009.



Barsoum, Mor aphrem i. Maktbonuto d-àl atro d-Ṭur Àbdīn. Beirut, 1964; trans. M. Moossa. History of Tur Abdin. Piscataway: gorgias Press, 2008.

Barsoum, Mor aphrem i. Mğaltā d-fatrīyarkuto d-Suryoyē/ al-Majallā al- Batrīyarkīyyā al-Suryāniyyā (History of the Syriac Dioceses), trans. M. Moosa (vol. 1), edition, george Kiraz (vol. 2). Piscataway: gorgias Press, 2009 (originally published in st. Mark, Jerusalem; journal articles from 1938-41).

Barsoum, Mor aphrem i. Kitab al-lulu al-manthur fi tarikh al-ulum wa al-adab al-Suryaniyya. homs, 1943; aleppo, 1956. trans. and ed. M. Moosa. The Scattered Pearls: A History of Syriac Literature and Sciences. Piscataway: gorgias Press 2000/2003 (2nd rev. ed.).

Barsoum, aphrem i. Yulfono Mšīhoyo (n.p. 1912). dutch (abridged) translation of 2002: Catechismus van de Syrisch-Orthodoxe Kerk van Antiochië. los-ser: Bar-hebraeus uitgeverij, 2002.

Bulut, a. Woordenboek Nederlands-Syrisch, Syrisch-Nederlands / Spar mell ē Suryoyo-Holandoyo, Holandoyo-Suryoyo. enschede, 1993.

elma, s. Thematisch Woordenboek Nederlands/Assyrisch. enschede, 1985.elyas, ghattas Maqdisi, Tāwgonē: nebhē w-re`yonē (Reflections: Emotions and

Thoughts), ed. Mor Julius Çiçek. losser: Bar-hebraeus verlag, 1988. gores, i., et al. Tunoyē d-mafga`ē d-Naṣrdīn Koja. Mkannšīn wa-mappqīn b-yad

yalofe d-bēt kahnoyo d-umro d-Mary Gabriel, 10 Tammuz 1982 (stories that happened to nasreddin hoja. Collected and translated by the pupils of the seminary of Mar gabriel, 10 July 1982). Midyat: Mor gabriel Manastırı / anadolo ofset istanbul, 2008.

henno, archpriest sleman. Gunḥe d-Suryoye d-Tur Àbdīn, netherlands in 1987; translation in turkish, swedish, german, arabic, english and dutch: Jan Jonk, De vervolging en de uitroeiing van de Syro-Arameeërs in Tur Abdin 1915, glanerbrug, Bar hebraeus verlag, 2005.

Qarabash, n.a.M. Dmo zlīho: gunḥē w-šarbē maḥšonē d-Mšīḥoyē d-ba-tḥumē d-Bēyt Nahrīn da-šnay 1895 – 1915 – 1918. losser: Bar hebraeus uitgeve-rij, 1999; Vergoten Bloed: Verhalen over de gruweldaden jegens Christenen in Turkije, en over het leed dat hun in 1895 en 1914/1918 is aangedaan (dutch translation). losser, Bar hebraeus uitgeverij, 2002.

rehana, i. Ktābā d-sīmtā d-haymānutā d-Èdtā qaddištā wa-šlīḥāytā qātolīqī d-Madnḥā. tehran, 1964.

simono, n. Paul Bedjan, 1838-1920. tehran, 1984.saadi, a. Selected Chapters from the Gospel of Mark in Suryoyo. aramaic Bible

translation, inc., 2001.sarmas, P. Taš`īta d-seprāyutā Āturāytā (History of Assyrian Literature). tehran:

assyrian youth Cultural society Press: 1962, 1969, 1970.suleiman, y. The Arabic Language and National Identity. washington, d.C.:

georgetown university Press, 2003.yacoub iii, Patriarch ignatius. Maktbonuto d-`Ēdto Suryoyto d-Antīuk (History of

the Syrian Church of Antioch). syriac trans. Mor saliba Özmen. göteborg: 2009. arabic original pre-1957.

yacoub iii, ignatius. History of the Monastery of Saint Matthew in Mosul, trans. M. Moosa. gorgias Press, 2008; original Dufaqat al-Tib fi Tarkh Dayr al-Qiddis Mar Matta al-Àjib. damascus, 1961?

yusep, Q.e.r. Kronīqon zòrā (‘little Chronicle’). n.p., 1989.



Secondary Sourcesakyüz, P.g. Osmanlı devletinde süryani kilisesi. Mardin, 2002.altug, s. “sectarianism in the syrian Jazira: Community, land and violence

in the Memories of world war i and the French Mandate (1915-1939)”. Ph.d. diss. utrecht, 2011.

anschütz, h. Die Syrischen Christen vom Tur ‘Abdin. würzburg: augustinus verlag, 1985.

atto, n. Hostages in the Homeland, Orphans in the Diaspora: Identity Discourses among the Assyrian/Syriac Elites in the European Diaspora. leiden: leiden university Press, 2011.

Baarda, t. “enkele gedichten uit de bundel Tawgōnē van ghattas Maqdisi elyas.” B.a. thesis, leiden university, 2010.

Brock, s.P. “some observations on the use of Classical syriac in the late twentieth Century.” JSS 34 (1989): 363-75.

Brock, s. and d. taylor. The Hidden Pearl: The Heirs of the Ancient Aramaic Heritage. rome: trans world Film italia, 2001.

dalrymple, wm. From the Holy Mountain: A Journey in the Shadow of Byzan-tium. london: harperCollinsPublishers, 1997.

gaunt, d. Massacres, Resistance, Protectors: Muslim-Christian Relations in Eastern Anatolia during World War I. gorgias Press, 2006.

harrak, a. Syriac and Garshuni Inscriptions of Iraq, Vol. 1: Text, Vol 2: Plates [recueil des inscriptions syriaques]. Paris: diffusion de Boccard, 2010.

hollerweger, h. Turabdin: Lebendiges Kulturerbe/ Living Cultural Heritage. linz, austria: Freunde des turabdin, 1999.

ibrahim, g.y. Dolabani: The Ascetic Metropolitan of Mardin. gorgias Press, 2009.

Jastrow, otto. Laut- und Formenlehre des neuaramäischen Dialekts von Mīdin im Ṭur `Abdīn. wiesbaden: otto harrowitz verlag, 1985.

Kiraz, g. Catalogue of the Malphono Abrohom Nuro Collection. gorgias Press, 2009.

—. “in Memoriam abrohom nuro (1923–2009).” Hugoye 12.1 (2009): 3-4.Macuch, r. Geschichte der spät- und neusyrischen Literatur. Berlin/new york:

walter de gruyter, 1976.Murre-van den Berg, h.l. From a Spoken to a Written Language. The Introduc-

tion and Development of Literary Urmia Aramaic in the Nineteenth Century [Publication of the “de goeje Fund” no. XXviii]. leiden: nino, 1999.

—. “Classical syriac, neo-aramaic and arabic in the Church of the east and the Chaldean Church between 1500 and 1800.” Pp. 335-52 in Aramaic in its Historical and Linguistic Setting [veröffentlichungen der orientalischen Kommission 50], ed. h. gzella, M.l. Folmer. wiesbaden: harrassowitz, 2008.

—. “light from the east (1948-1954) and the de-territorialization of the assyr-ian Church of the east.” Pp. 115-34 in Religion beyond its Private Role in Modern Society, ed. w. hofstee and a. van der Kooij. leiden: Brill, 2013.

odisho, e.y. The Sound System of Modern Assyrian (Neo-Aramaic), semitica viva 2. wiesbaden, harrassowitz: 1988.



Palmer a. and g.J. van gelder. “syriac and arabic inscriptions at the Monastery of st. Mark’s in Jerusalem.” OC 78 (1994): 33-63.

Parry, o.h. Six Months in a Syrian Monastery. london: horace Cox, 1895; reprint gorgias Press, 2001.

shamuel, r. “the Private asssyrian schools in iraq in the 20th Century.” M.a. diss., leiden university, 2008.

shamuel, r.B. et al. The Volume of the Fourth Syriac Language Conference (lumdā rbī`ā d-leššānā suryāyā). duhok: Beth Marduta, 2009.

teule, h. Les Assyro-Chaldéens: Chrétiens d’Iraq, d’Iran et de Turquie. turn-hout: Brepols, 2008.

wardini, e. “Modern literary syriac: a Case of linguistic divorce.” Pp. 517-25 in Symposium Syriacum VII, ed. r. lavenant. rome: Pontificio instituto orientale, 1998.

yonan, g. Journalismus bei den Assyrern. Berlin, 1985.

JournalsAl-Hikma, deir az-Zaferan: 19013-1914?, Jerusalem: 1927-1931; turkey: 1950s?,

Jerusalem: 1990-today.Majjaltā seprāyutā b-leššānā (As)Surāytā (Gilgamesh: Literary Magazine in the

Assyrian Language). tehran: 1952-1961 (david Malick, via lulu Press; reprint undated.)

Majjaltā d-fatrīyarkuto d-suryoyē/ al-Majallā al-Batrīyarkīyyā al-Suryāniyyā; pub-lished in st. Mark in Jerusalem, in 1938, 1939, 1940 and 1941 (=Al-Hikma?).

Nuhrā men Madnḥā / Light from the East, united states: 1948-1954 (david Malick, via lulu Press; reprint undated.)

Shemsho, Federatie tur abdin, enschede (nederland): 1986-?.Simtha: Quarterly Journal Dealing with the Syriac Language, its Literature and

Heritage. dehok: 2007-today.

Websitesaramean democratic organization: www.aramaic-dem.org arameans of aram-naharaim organization: www.aramnahrin.orgassyrian democratic organization: www.en.ado-world.org assyrian universal alliance: www.aua.net/aua.htmlBeth suryoyo: www.bethsuryoyo.com/currentevents/ado50anniversary/

ado50day1.htmlgeneral directorate of syriac Culture and art (Kurdistan regional-iraq; Ministry

of Culture and youth): www.syriacculture.orgnews assyrian Church: www.news.assyrianchurch.orgsuryoyo online: www.suryoyo-online.orgsyriac universal alliance: www.sua-ngo.orgst. ephrem de syriër klooster (glanerbrug, netherlands): www.morephrem.com Margonitho: syriac orthodox resources: www.sor.cua.edu


“classical syriac and the syriac churches: a twentieth-century history,” in m. doerfler, e....

Documents