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ARABICA same section (pp. 97-129) and by ‘Umar Îamdan in the fol- lowing one (pp. 359-377), forming a fil rouge which goes ARAZI, A., J. SADAN, D.J. WASSERSTEIN (eds.) — Com- through the book and nudges the reader towards consider- pilation and Creation in Adab and Luga. Studies in Mem- ing the coexistence within one author of renowned Ìanbali ory of Naphtali Kinberg (1948-1997). (Israel Oriental or Âahiri austerity with what in our modern eyes would be Studies, XIX). Eisenbrauns, Winona Lake, 1999. (23 cm, frivolous works such as treaties on love and catalogues of 499). ISBN 1-57506-045-0. ISSN 0334-4401. $ 59,50 funny people. Examples abound (Ibn Îazm, al-Washsha’, Ibn al-Jawzi, al-Kha†ib al-Baghdadi) and several of the arti- Is compilation the opposite of creation? In their short pref- cles in this book contribute to the fascinating discussion of ace to this volume, which is the nineteenth of the Israel Ori- this phenomenon, joining the voices of, for example, Fedwa ental Studies series, the editors question such a narrow defi- Malti-Douglas and Abdelfattah Kilito. nition, stressing that these are two necessary and The third tone-setting piece of this section, by Albert Arazi complementary elements of a healthy cultural environment. (pp. 221-238), focuses on what the author calls “theoretical After reading this volume, which in fact covers much more adab”, i.e. literary critique and distinction between genres, ground than its title promises, one is left with the impression while remarking that all genres are similar in that they are that distinguishing compilation from creation (much as dis- inferior to the Qur’an. A first longer part is devoted to poetry, tinguishing fact from fiction!) in a classical Arabic context a second shorter one to adab which, however, the author does is less fruitful an exercise than comparing, contrasting and not define as a literary genre. analysing the interactions between these two elements, as The remaining seven articles in this section deal with top- many authors here do, without tracing a necessarily artificial ics that are very varied (Rachel Milstein on Islamic art; dividing line. How can one not agree? Gabriel M. Rosenbaum on Ibn al-Jawzi’s humour; Reuven However one may look at it, that of compilation and cre- Snir on a Òufi epistle; Sadan on war between cats and mice ation remains a fundamental dichotomy with which the stu- within different literary contexts; Dominique and Marie- dent of almost any aspect of the medieval Middle East has to Thérèse Urvoy on cases where adab works treat falsafa), grapple. It is, however, not the only di- or trichotomy to be while in different ways remaining within the premises posed found within the book: this is a large collection of articles by the title. Two papers in particular, Ulrich Marzolph’s on written in three different languages, divided into three JuÌa in the Arabic and Turkish, manuscript and printed tra- unevenly-sized sections and dedicated to the memory of a ditions (pp. 161-172) and David Wasserstein’s on three scholar. In it, some articles focus on a very narrow topic, oth- instances of a proverb in several languages and times (pp. ers seem to aim at being all-encompassing. Some are for the 233-259), seem particularly successful in discussing the specialist, some other for the layman. Some are addressed to book’s stated subject from an unusual and fascinating angle. the Arabist, some other to the Hebraist. Some are as short as Part II, on “Luga, its Creativity and Uses”, begins, as has less than five pages; others are extremely long and unjusti- been mentioned, with a biography of the scholar to whom the fiably so. Some have a separate bibliography, some do not. book is dedicated (pp. 263-265). Such a collocation does make Most, but not all, deal with pre-modern times. sense, given that Kinberg himself was a grammarian, and it is Less than two pages of introduction can hardly be expected enhanced by articles such as that by Kees Versteegh (pp. 272- to cover all this variety. And indeed, the preface (pp. 7-8) 286) on the merging of ∂/‰, which is related to the work of only explains the rationale behind one aspect of the title, that Kinberg before his death (Versteegh himself, in the meantime, of compilation and creation in adab, making no mention of has edited a posthumous volume together with Leah Kinberg: Naphtali Kinberg, to whose memory the book is dedicated. Studies in the linguistic structure of classical Arabic, Leiden: An obituary, however, is found at the beginning of part two Brill, 2001). Not all articles in this section, which is much (p. 263), which is devoted to Kinberg’s area of research. shorter than the previous one, seem to really belong here. For While such a structure may appear disjointed, the volume instance, MuÌammad Jabbarin (pp. 287-341) writes on seri- maintains an internal coherence in that the majority of indi- ousness and humour in anecdotes within grammarians’ biogra- vidual articles respect and elaborate on the topic proposed by phies. While one may debate whether this topic falls within the title. the realm of biography or adab (fact or fiction, which ulti- The first and longest section, consisting of ten papers, is mately is the focus of the paper), it seems out of place in an devoted to “Motifs in Adab and Fann”. Three articles set otherwise very technical section. On the other hand, humour the tone by dealing with large questions. Mohammed Ark- is another recurrent theme in this book, another fil rouge which oun (pp. 9-22) begins by briefly illustrating the characteris- keeps this volume together effectively. tics of classical Arabic humanism as studied by himself and Part III, on “Cultural and Literary History”, is concluded other scholars. Claude Gilliot (pp. 49-96) follows with an by a useful review by Camilla Adang of E. Wust’s recent cat- erudite discussion of the role of the khabar within adab and alogue of the Arabic manuscripts in the A.S. Yahuda Col- tafsir respectively, concluding that, despite the importance lection in Jerusalem (pp. 495-499). This last example of the of isnad criticism, exegetes are ready to accept imperfect book’s versatility introduces perfectly our summarising khabars if they make sense within their preferred theologi- remark: this is an uneven collection containing several excel- cal framework. Gilliot notes how traditionists transmit lent pieces. “right” khabars beside faulty ones, which they reject but which continue to be part of their material. Gilliot also Basel, December 2005 Letizia OSTI remarks on cases of strictly orthodox religious scholars who also composed works of adab, animated by “le même besoin du récit et le même plaisir du texte” (p. 87). Similar ** points are later discussed by Gabriel M. Rosenbaum in this * 8650_BIOR_06_1-2_01 11-04-2006 10:22 Pagina 95

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DIEM, W., and SCHÖLLER, M. — The Living and the Dead P. 27, l. 18: la stèle n’est pas de 344 mais de 348 H. in Islam. Studies in Arabic Epitaphs. I: Epitaphs as P. 32, l. 5: la stèle est A 449 et non 339. Texts. II: Epitaphs in Context. III: Indices. Verlag Otto P. 69. «Morts de la peste». Il faut ajouter à la liste donnée Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden, 2004. (24,5 cm, XXIV, 633; par W.D. les exemples tirés de L.I. LAVROV, Epigrafitcheskie XX, 681; VIII, 204). ISBN 3-447-05083-7. / 145,-. Pamiatniki Severnovo Kavkasa Na Arabskom, Persidkom i L’introduction générale, les remerciements et le glossaire Touretskom Iazykakh, Les Monuments épigraphiques du Cau- , t. I, Inscriptions arabe-anglais en fin de volume se retrouvent dans les deux case du Nord en arabe, en persan et en turc du Xe au XVIIe s., t. II, Inscriptions du XVIIIe au XXe s., t. ouvrages. III, Inscriptions du Xe au XXe s., Moscou, 1966, 1968 et 1980. La cause du décès, la peste, est notée dans t. I, 395 de 999 H., L’ouvrage de W. Diem t. II, 663 de 854 H., t. III, 754 de 903 ou 913 H., 799 de 1112 Le but de l’auteur est d’analyser de manière rigoureuse tout H., 809 de 1130 H., 855 de 1227 H. ce qu’une épitaphe nous apprend sur le vivant et tout ce P. 77 et n. 309: ‘Abd al-RaÌman n’est pas un artisan de qu’elle nous apporte concernant ses croyances, ses espoirs, Dahlak mais de la Mekke (v. Schneider, «Points com- ainsi que ceux de son entourage, au moment de son passage muns…», Aula Orientalis, XIX,(2001), 67-69. dans l’au-delà. Pour ce faire, W. D. n’a négligé aucune P. 77. Lieu du décès: les quatre stèles mentionnées (l. 2, source. Le matériel le plus important est fourni par les dix lire 588 et non 558 H.) sortent de l’atelier des Makki. Ces tomes du Catalogue des stèles funéraires d’Egypte, le RCEA artisans ne devaient pas manquer de commandes et pour la et les Corpus. Toutefois, d’autres publications, inscriptions région et pour l’étranger (v. Schneider, op.cit., p. 69, 6.4.6). d’un site, d’une région n’ont pas été laissées de côté. W.D. Le lieu du décès aurait-il été mentionné sur la stèle de ces n’utilise donc que du matériel déjà publié. Mais, pour le bien défunts, tous personnages qui sortaient du commun, pour des auteurs fautifs, et des épigraphistes à venir, les textes, si indiquer où la pierre devait être acheminée? besoin est, sont critiqués et améliorés (textes en vers en par- P. 150, n. 167: je rectifie mon erreur. Le numéro de la stèle ticulier). L’abondance du matériel a contraint l’auteur à tra- est 2156 et non 2150. vailler par tranches dans le temps ( il couvre du début de l’Is- P. 164, n. 203. Guidi, «Una preghiera musulmana», Isla- lam au XIIe s. H.) et à diviser l’espace géographique en orient mica, II, (1926-27), p. 234-5, donne une autre source. et occident. Toutefois, les formules n’obéissant pas toujours P. 194. subÌana …wa-l-fana’. Cette formule est récurrente à ces strictes divisions, il en résulte parfois une impression au Yémen. Amputée des noms al-baqa’ et al-fana’, elle est de répétition. Mais comment l’auteur pouvait-il éviter cet attestée en Haute-Egypte en 284 H. (Stèles Musée Caire, écueil? 3604). Dans une première partie (p. 10-111) tout ce que peut nous P. 201, l. 21. raÌaltu… karimi. Ces deux vers sont inscrits apprendre l’épitaphe sur la vie du défunt est traité: date de dans un fragment, la partie inférieure d’une stèle conservée naissance, généalogie, profession, circonstances, date et lieu au Musée du Louvre (Paris). Je gagerais que la stèle a été du décès. Dans une seconde (p. 115-207) W.D. étudie les exécutée dans l’atelier des Makki. Un second fragment, cette prières en faveur du défunt. Suit l’examen des textes concer- fois-ci la partie supérieure d’une stèle, comporte la signature nant les enfants et les jeunes défunts (p. 208-445) et ceux de ‘Abd al-RaÌman al-Makki, ainsi que les vers qui termi- concernant la rencontre, l’union avec le Prophète (p. 447- nent Stèles Dahlak 238 (v. aussi p. 450 du recueil). Ces vers 556). Un chapitre est réservé aux thèmes en vers dans les épi- faisaient probablement partie du catalogue de poésies pré- taphes de Kairouan (p. 559-574). L’ouvrage se termine par senté par l’artisan à son client avant sa mort ou à sa famille deux appendices: une sélection d’épitaphes choisies par l’au- après son décès. (Pour les fragments v. Th. Bittar, Musée du teur (p. 575-587), puis une série d’épitaphes-poésies (p. 587- Louvre, Département des arts de l’Islam. Pierres et stucs épi- 604). Suit une abondante bibliographie (p. 605-630) et un graphiés, Paris, 2003, p. 139 et 135). glossaire arabe-anglais (p. 631-633) qui se retrouve aussi dans P. 473, n. 92. Classer la stèle sous «Arabie» se justifie. Le l’ouvrage de Schöller (p. 679-681). décor de la stèle (lampe suspendue dans un arc quadrilobé), Tous les exemples choisis, et ils sont abondants, sont clas- sa graphie, plus encore, hada qabr en grands caractères plai- sés par régions, accompagnés de leurs références, scrupuleu- dent en faveur d’une origine du Îigaz (v. Schneider, «Points sement transcrits et présentés suivant l’ordre chronologique communs…», p. 18, 6.4.1 et p. 69-70). Cette stèle de 604 H. (ajoutons que W.D. n’hésite pas à faire des comparaisons pourrait avoir été exécutée dans l’atelier des Makki. avec les textes en hébreu et en turc). En outre, W.D. s’est P. 519, § 6. Lire Malta: E. Rossi et non G. Oman (corrigé appliqué à montrer que les humbles prières inscrites ont leurs p. 609). sources dans le Coran mais qu’elles s’appuient aussi sur les P. 556, § 6. Le début de la prière de udkur à dunubi ter- traditions. Tous les sunan, et bien d’autres ouvrages, ont été mine le manuscrit (bibliothèque du Musée copte du Vieux- exploités. Par ailleurs, W. D. maîtrisant de manière parfaite Caire) édité par G. Garitte, «Une vie arabe de Saint Grégoire la poésie, il est à même de retrouver les auteurs des vers ins- d’Arménie», Muséon, LXV, (1952), 1-2 p. 51-71. crits dans les épitaphes et de suivre les variantes que ces poé- P. 557 et n. 357. L’expression fi baÌri l-ha†aya est incluse sies présentent. Quant aux multiples formes offertes par les dans une poésie araka fi baÌri l-ha†aya sabiÌan, «je te vois formules pieuses, elles sont examinées avec une grande nageant dans une mer de péchés», qui précède deux textes rigueur. de construction, avec signature, de Routoul (Lavrov, op.cit., L’ouvrage de W.D. constitue une «première» dans l’étude I, 69 de 625 H. = RCEA, 3994, amputé de la poésie et III, des épitaphes. C’est un remarquable instrument de travail que 686 de 683 H. = RCEA, 4840 ter, ni texte, ni traduction. tout épigraphiste doit consulter. Schöller, p. 522 note la même expression dans une épitaphe J’aurais quelques compléments d’information et critiques de Ceuta de c. 605 H. à formuler. P. 610, entrée 11, remplacer ‘Ulayb par ‘Ulyab. 8650_BIOR_06_1-2_01 11-04-2006 10:22 Pagina 96

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L’ouvrage de M. Schöller des commentaires extrêmement intéressants (ils sont détaillés dans l’Index 3, p. 102, col. b). L’ouvrage est divisé en cinq parties suivies par un appen- L’abondante bibliographie (p. 627-678) est précédée du dice contenant les textes arabes des poésies étudiées au cha- texte en arabe des 236 épitaphes étudiées au chapitre 4 (à pitre 4, et d’une abondante bibliographie. l’exception de l’épitaphe 237 consacrée à un chien). La première partie (p. 11-168) traite de la visite des tombes L’ouvrage de M. S. est l’ouvrage d’un érudit. L’aborder — une attention particulière est accordée à celle du prophète n’est pas toujours facile, mais il est riche d’enseignements. à Médine —, des raisons qui poussent à accomplir cette démarche méritoire, et de la visite des cimetières. Ce sujet, Les indices depuis le Prophète a nourri d’abondants écrits et suscité bien des débats. M.S. s’est livré à un minutieux travail: il expose, Un volume de onze indices (p. 1-204) vient faciliter les en les illustrant de nombreux exemples, les opinions qu’il a recherches du lecteur. recueillies en dépouillant toutes les sources qu’il a pu exa- Je conclurai en disant que rigueur dans la méthode et miner (Coran, ‘ilm al-furu’, tafsir, fatwa, Ìadit), les écrits richesse dans la documentation caractérisent les ouvrages de des juristes sunnites (les quatre écoles de droit) ainsi que ceux W. D. et M. S. Ils vont occuper désormais une place impor- des shiites. Toutes les opinions ne concordant pas, il s’ensuit tante dans le domaine de l’épigraphie funéraire arabe. Tout des discussions au sujet de ce qui est légal ou non. Mais épigraphiste se doit de les fréquenter. qu’advient-il de cela dans la pratique? M.S. nous donne la réponse dans sa conclusion (p. 167): “ Different aspects of Palaiseau, France Madeleine SCHNEIDER the grave and the merit of visiting it stand in contrast with novembre 2005 each other, different discourses yield contradictory claims about the nature of death and the “life” of the dead in the ** hereafter; there is no single master narrative providing a com- * mon frame.”… (p. 168) “but the truly astonishing fact is that this continuous conflict of approaches, concepts and practices WIESEHÖFER, J., & S. CONERMANN (Hrsg.) — Carsten was in general accepted and, in its entirety, considered an Niebuhr (1733-1815) und seine Zeit. Beiträge eines integral part of Islamic culture.” interdisziplinären Symposium vom 7.-10. Oktober 1999 La seconde partie (p. 169-294) traite des monuments et des in Eutin. (Oriens et Occidens, Studien zur antiken Kul- stèles funéraires. Le plan adopté dans la première partie est turkontakten und ihrem Nachleben, band 5). Franz suivi ici. Pour chaque point, M.S. retourne aux propos du Steiner Verlag, Stuttgart, 2002. (24 cm, 453 pp.). ISBN Prophète au débat entre autorités et aux actes mis en pratique. 3-515-08073-2. / 99,-. Et M.S. de conclure (p. 294) “we can say that it was consi- dered permitted or even desirable to mark the grave by This rich and valuable volume attempts a complete view mounds and tombstones (or similar objects serving as such), of the life and work of Carsten Niebuhr (1733-1815), the though not a few scholars regarded their absence as prefe- sole survivor of the Danish Arabia Expedition (1761-67). rable and thus opted for the ‘levelling’ or ‘flattening’ of The book does not restrict itself to this expedition into graves.” Turkey, Egypt, the Sinai and Yemen, but follows Niebuhr Dans la troisième partie (p. 295-314) il est question des — after his fellow explorers had passed away in 1763-64 — guides de visites, une attention particulière est accordée au on his subsequent travels through India, Persia, Syria, Pales- fameux travail du sunnite al-Harari (m. 611 H.) et des guides tine, Cyprus, the Ottoman Empire and the Balkans, back to de cimetières qui ne s’intéressent qu’à des cimetières parti- Copenhagen. On this subject, Niebuhr wrote two books culiers. Ces ouvrages existent pour l’occident. Ils sont parti- (Beschreibung von Arabien, Copenhagen 1772; Reisebe- culièrement nombreux pour l’orient (Le Caire, La Mekke, schreibung nach Arabien, 3 vols. Copenhagen 1774-78, Médine, Damas, Bagdad). Celui consacré à la Perse res- Hamburg 1837) and seventeen essays. In addition, he edited semble davantage à un dictionnaire biographique qu’à un two books containing studies by the expedition’s naturalist guide de cimetière. Petrus Forsskal (Copenhagen 1775) and one volume with Puis vient le chapitre 4 (p. 315-573) avec les épitaphes illustrations of Forsskal’s collections drawn by the artist dans les sources littéraires (1er-XIIe s. H.). De certaines, lieu Georg Wilhelm Baurenfeind (1776). Niebuhr is renowned d‘origine, nom du défunt, date du décès sont connus. Les épi- for his cartographic and geographic work in (mainly) Ara- taphes dont on ne sait rien sont rejetées en fin de chapitre. bia, as well as for his descriptions of the antiquity, lan- Rien ne remplace un contrôle avec la pierre. Néanmoins, ces guages, inscriptions, and manners and customs of the peo- épitaphes contiennent des informations à ne pas négliger. ples he came across. Ainsi, les épitaphes 135 de 588 H. et 136 de 589 H. me per- The book is the result of an interdisciplinary symposium mettent, pour la première de compléter ma documentation sur held in Eutin, a research centre focusing on the history of des artisans (les Makki). Quant à la seconde, elle fournit le travelling (Reisekultur). It was organized by staff members nom d’un client de l’un des sultans de Dahlak. Ainsi, chacun of the Centre for Asian and African Studies (ZAAS) at the peut y trouver de quoi enrichir son domaine de travail. University of Kiel, Germany. Its aims were multidisciplinary Les recherches et commentaires consignés dans la cin- and international: to study the expedition and Niebuhr’s sub- quième partie (p. 574-597) ont pour point de départ des vers sequent travels in the Middle East, India, Iran and Turkey inclus dans l’épitaphe d’un enfant (stèle de 259 H., conser- by bringing together Danish and German specialists from vée au Musée arabe du Caire 989). L’antithèse petit various fields; to place Niebuhr’s work in an international enfant/grande peine, et surtout la comparaison de l’enfant perspective, relating it to the scholarly environment in which avec une plante odoriférante (basilic, myrte) donnent lieu à it was conceived and prepared, especially in Copenhagen, 8650_BIOR_06_1-2_01 11-04-2006 10:22 Pagina 97

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Göttingen and Paris; and to deal with the contemporary Dan- (Identitätsmuster) were formed in Denmark during the eigh- ish-German relationships that influenced its outcomes. teenth century; Michael Harbsmeier (Copenhagen/Odense) As the expedition included members from six disciplines provides background to the Arabia Expedition by analysing (philology, theology, natural history, geography, medicine, four earlier trips to the Orient (two to Indonesia) during the arts), the book assembles representatives from all these fields. seventeenth and eighteenth centuries; Gerrit Walther writes Historians, Orientalists (Islam and Iran specialists), theolo- an elegant essay on How the Son of the Explorer (Carsten gians, natural historians, geographers, and literary specialists Niebuhr) saw the Father of the Historian (Barthold Georg contributed in order to give credit to the scope of Niebuhr’s Niebuhr). work. The book consists of a preface by the editors, eighteen A second group of chapters deals with aspects of Niebuhr’s chapters, two of which were later commissioned, and an travels in: Egypt (by Lucian Reinfandt, based at Kiel), the index. One chapter has illustrations of the Sinai Peninsula and Sinai Peninsula (Detlev Kraak), in Yemen (Friedhelm a map of the Red Sea, another of Indian antiquities. Hartwig), India (Martin Brandtner, Kiel), Iran (Josef Wiese- The first five chapters set the stage. Dieter Lohmeier (Kiel) höfer, Kiel, and Birgitt Hoffmann, Bonn), and in Turkey and presents a detailed overview of the expedition, its prepara- the Ottoman Empire (Gottfried Hagen). This is a fascinating tion in Copenhagen, Göttingen and Paris, and of the itiner- part of the book, covering ground hardly ever touched upon. ary and problems encountered. He contextualizes the expe- A third group deals with how the expedition’s and dition, its members, their specializations, division of labour, Niebuhr’s results were received: Heide Hollmer and Albert the instructions from the Danish king (1760), a memoir of Meier trace Carsten Niebuhr’s steps in the work of the his- the French Academy of Sciences (1760), the research pro- torian and philosopher Johann Gottfried Herder; Martin gramme set up by the Orientalist Johann David Michaelis Krieger goes into Niebuhr’s correspondence with the orien- (University of Göttingen) and the one hundred questions talist Oluf Gerhard Tychsen; Philippe Provençal (Copen- posed by Michaelis (Fragen, 1762). hagen) studies ‘the cultural significance of the results in nat- The expedition members were: the philologist-cum-the- ural history made by the Arabic Travel’ and Forsskal’s ologian Frederik Christian von Haven (der Philologus), the contribution to Arabic lexicography; Ulrich Hübner (Kiel) botanist-cum-orientalist Petrus Forsskal (der Physiker), the pays attention to how Johann David Michaelis initiated, pre- geographer-cum-astronomer Carsten Niebuhr (der Mathe- pared and evaluated the Arabia expedition; Stephan Coner- maticus), the physician Christian Carl Cramer (der Medicus), mann (Kiel) investigates ‘the orientalist potential of the the artist Georg Wilhelm Baurenfeind (der Mahler), and a Enlightenment discourse’ in order to answer the question ‘Is dragoon called Berggren (oppasser). The nationalities were the Collection of Data Unsuspicious?’ (Ist das Sammeln von evenly distributed: two Danes (von Haven and Cramer), two Daten unverdächtig?) in the negative. The volume is con- Swedes (Forsskal and Berggren), and two Germans (Niebuhr cluded with an epilogue by Lothar Kuchenbuch (Hagen), and Baurenfeind). Two of them were sons of a vicar (von evaluating the symposium held at Eutin under the title Vor- Haven, Forsskal) and three had studied at Göttingen (von welt-Mitwelt-Nachwelt, which may be translated as: Prehis- Haven, Forsskal, Niebuhr). Von Haven and Forsskal were tory-Contemporaries-Posterity. Kuchenbuch summarizes the academically trained theologians, who received the title of book’s main themes and connects them to recurrent discus- Professor; Niebuhr was a ‘pragmatic surveyor’ who was sions on Orientalism, Enlightenment, proto-nationalism, and enlisted as Ingenieur-Lieutenant in the Danish engineering historiographical and field research in the second half of the corps shortly before the expedition took off. eighteenth century. The Danish Arabia Expedition is regarded as the ‘first Niebuhr’s ethnography is discussed in several papers modern scientific expedition’ with exclusively scientific aims (Hartwig on Niebuhr and Yemen; Hoffmann on Niebuhr’s (pp. 17, 24), that is, without political or commercial aims. stay in Iran; Hagen on Niebuhr and Turkey). This is only in This would make Niebuhr the ‘first modern explorer’ (erster a few paragraphs. The subject would merit a fuller study. moderner Forschungsreisender, p. 12), an evaluation also Most essays are well written, the analyses sound, the sub- made by the German geographer Hanno Beck in 1971. I have jects interesting and to the point. All are excellently docu- my doubts about both claims: Hübner refers to the example mented with hundreds of footnotes. Considering the size of of the First Orenburg Expedition (1734-37) that preceded it the book, and the huge number of primary and secondary (p. 398), and I see no reason to leave the ‘academic party’ of sources mentioned in the footnotes and appendices, the edi- the Second Kamchatka Expedition (1733-43) out of consid- tors have done an excellent job. However, few of the primary eration. But, as Hübner stated, the Danish Arabia Expedition references on p. 160 seem to be correct; the map of Arabia was at least the first scientific expedition to Arabia (die erste mentioned on p. 191 was made by Isaak Tirion [also spelled wissenschaftliche Forschungsreise nach Arabien, p. 398). Tyrion], rather than Zivion (Nieuwe kaart van Arabia, Ams- And there was at least one geopolitical dimension: the terdam 1731); discrepancies occur between the titles in the descriptions Niebuhr gave of the travel route through Arabia table of contents and those of the chapters by Wiesehöfer and gave the British, in Bombay, the idea to significantly shorten Hübner; there are two ways of spelling the name Forsskal the postal route from England to India by using the Arabian (going back, admittedly, to customs in Niebuhr’s days, but overland connection. this could have been remedied in the chapters in the present Lohmeier’s introductory essay is followed by four chap- edition); Baurenfeind is misspelled as Bauernfeind in the ters: Stig T. Rasmussen (Copenhagen), who organized an preface; the index is helpful but too limited; there are no international exposition in 1986 and who edited a magnifi- Notes on Contributors. cent volume in Danish with texts and illustrations in 1990, The index provides geographical names, personal names, lists the expedition’s results under the title ‘Niebuhriana in and an alphabetical list of primary works cited by the con- Kopenhagen’; Michael Brengsbo deals with political his- tributors. While this list is certainly a bonus, a subject index tory and the way in which Danish and German models is sorely missed: one would have wished to also study the 8650_BIOR_06_1-2_01 11-04-2006 10:22 Pagina 98

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book systematically by cross-referencing subjects such as was initiated and partly prepared. In such a cooperative and Orientalism, Enlightenment, Ethnography, Theology, Philol- comparative way, new discoveries may lie ahead. ogy, etc. The title of the volume is deliberately neutral and was Josef Wiesehöfer & Stephan Conermann (Hrsg.) Carsten Niebuhr (1733- probably selected to enable a broad treatment of subjects in 1815) und seine Zeit. Beiträge eines interdisziplinäres Symposium vom 7.- Niebuhr’s work. It is due to him that the results of the expe- 10. Oktober 1999 in Eutin. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag, 2002 (Oriens dition were salvaged. However, this is only one side of the et Occidens 5). 453 pp. ill. maps, index. story. There was much competition between the Danish and Ger- Inhaltsverzeichnis man members of the expedition, a subject discussed by Vorwort pp. 7-15. Dieter Lohmeier, Carsten Niebuhr. Ein Leben im Zeichen der Arabischen Lohmeier, Brengsbo and Walther. The editors present Reise pp. 17-41. Niebuhr as an europäischer Grenzgänger (p. 14), which is Stig T. Rasmussen, ‘Niebuhriana’ in Kopenhagen pp. 43-46. interesting. Hübner calls Niebuhr a ‘Friesen’ (from Frisia), Michael Bregnsbo, Einheitsstaat statt Konglomeratstaat. Dänische und deut- originating from the Land Hadeln, and the University of Göt- sche Identitätsmuster im Dänemark des 18. Jahrhunderts pp. 47-62. Michael Harbsmeier, Orientreisen im 18. Jahrhundert pp. 63-84. tingen registered him in April 1757 as Hadelensis (from Gerrit Walther, Wie der Sohn des Entdeckers den Vater des Forschers sah. Hadeln). Niebuhr’s mother tongue was Low-German and he Zum Verhältnis zwischen Carsten und Barthold Georg Niebuhr pp. published in German until the end of his life. He referred to 85-103. himself as Danish, and always travelled on a Danish pass- Lucian Reinfandt, Vierzig Jahrhunderte mit dem Astrolabium auf den Kopf gestellt. Carsten Niebuhr in Ägypten pp. 105-119. port, but he wrote High-German in his journals, books and Detlev Kraak, Der Abstecher von Suez auf die Sinaihalbinsel (6.-25. Sep- articles. That makes him a German-language scholar, work- tember 1762). Große Erwartungen und herbe Rückschläge für die ing in the service of the Danish state. Expedition: Die vergebliche Suche nach dem Tal der Inschriften, der This book is an important contribution to the history of fehlende Schlüssel zu den Schätzen des Katharinenklosters und die abgebrochene Besteigung des Mosesberges pp. 121-153. 6 ill. map travel. It makes accessible a large amount of scholarship and Mare Rubrum does so in a convincing manner. The volume is very helpful Friedhelm Hartwig, Carsten Niebuhrs Darstellung von Jemen in seiner in providing context and detail to an important episode in the ‘Beschreibung von Arabien’ (1772) und dem ersten Band seiner ‘Rei- history of science. Naturally, many subjects remain on which sebeschreibung nach Arabien’ (1774) pp. 155-202. Martin Brandtner, ‘Merkwürdig’ — Carsten Niebuhr begegnet dem indi- one would want to read more and certainly not all questions schen Altertum pp. 203-266. 27 ill. have been answered. The editors themselves outline several Josef Wiesehöfer, ‘… sie waren [für ihn] das Juwel von allem, was er gese- open spaces in their preface: historical cartography, the artis- hen.’ Niebuhr und die Ruinenstätten des Alten Iran pp. 267-285. tic work of Baurenfeind, Niebuhr’s travels in Mesopotamia Birgitt Hoffmann, Carsten Niebuhr und seine Beobachtungen im zeit- genössischen Iran pp. 287-299. (Iraq and Syria), the development of Oriental studies during Gottfried Hagen, Unter den ‘Tyrannen seiner Araber’ — Carsten Niebuhr the eighteenth century, the availability of Niebuhriana in über Konstantinopel, Türken und Osmanisches Reich pp. 301-324. Paris, etc. Heide Hollmer/Albert Meier, ‘Im Glauben an diese alte Asiatische Cultur The book on Niebuhr’s side of the Danish Arabia Expedi- Einig.’ Carsten Niebuhrs Spuren bei Johann Gottfried Herder pp. 325- 340. Transcripts of three letters by Niebuhr, Jan.-March 1788 tion leads to new questions. Even 244 years after its promis- Martin Krieger, Zwischen Meldorf und Bützow. Carsten Niebuhrs Korre- ing start, elementary materials from the expedition are not yet spondenz mit Oluf Gerhard Tychsen pp. 341-356. available for study, including: (1) the original journal of F.C. Philippe Provençal, The Cultural Significance of the Results in Natural von Haven, written in Danish (held at Copenhagen, in two History Made by the Arabic Travel 1761-1767: Peter Forsskal’s Con- tribution to Arabic Lexicography pp. 357-361. volumes); (2) an analysis of the 116 Oriental manuscripts he Ulrich Hübner, Johann David Michaelis und die Arabien-Expedition 1761- collected in Constantinople, Cairo and Yemen (a list of these 1767 pp. 363-402. 2 ill. manuscripts was published in Arabic in Copenhagen, 1995); Stephan Conermann, Carsten Niebuhr und das orientalistische Potential des (3) a translation of Forsskal’s journal (published in Swedish Aufklärungsdiskurses — oder: Ist das Sammeln von Daten unver- dächtig? pp. 403-432. in Uppsala, 1950). This could help settle the problem in how Lothar Kuchenbuch, Vorwelt-Mitwelt-Nachwelt. Epilogische Anmerkun- far the materials collected by von Haven and Forsskal pro- gen zum Eutiner Niebuhr-Kolloquium pp. 433-439. vided answers to the theological and oriental questions Index pp. 441-453. Michaelis was interested in. What was the cause of Michaelis’ ‘reservedness’ (Zurückhaltung, p. 160) towards Leiden, December 2005 Han F. VERMEULEN Niebuhr’s splendid but limited work? Was this because Michaelis was interested in the historical-critical interpreta- tion of the Holy Scriptures (philologia sacra) and Niebuhr was not? Why did Niebuhr only use Forsskal’s travel notes and why did he find von Haven’s notes ‘useless’ (unbrauch- bar, p. 166, n. 26)? What ethnographical information did von Haven’s and Forsskal’s notes contain? What do these notes say about religions and languages in the Middle East and Western Europe during the 1760s? The answers to such ques- tions lie in Denmark, Sweden and Germany. The German initiative of 1999, appropriately set up inter- nationally and multidisciplinary, is commendable and should be continued. A comparable symposium on the Danish Ara- bia Expedition as a whole could be organized, preferably in Copenhagen, where most of the primary collections are held, and in close cooperation with Göttingen, where the expedition