IMC 2023: Sessions
Session 1343: Chronicles of Africa, I: Issues of Translation and Transmission
Wednesday 5 July 2023, 16.30-18.00
| Organiser: | Iona McCleery, Institute for Medieval Studies / School of History, University of Leeds |
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| Moderator/Chair: | Hannah MacKenzie, Institute for Medieval Studies University of Leeds |
| Paper 1343-a | Between Egypt and Ethiopia: The Chronicle of John of Nikiu (Language: English) Index terms: Ecclesiastical History, Hagiography, Historiography - Medieval, Language and Literature - Other |
| Paper 1343-b | Peeling back the Layers of an Onion?: Diogo Gomes's First Discovery of Guinea in the Valentim Fernandes Manuscript in Munich (Language: English) Index terms: Historiography - Medieval, Language and Literature - Latin, Politics and Diplomacy, Social History |
| Paper 1343-c | Rethinking the Fall of Dotawo: A New Translation of the Texts and Archaeology (Language: English) Index terms: Archaeology - Sites, Historiography - Medieval, Language and Literature - Other, Politics and Diplomacy |
| Paper 1343-d | From the 19th-Century Tārīkh al-fattāsh to the 17th-Century Chronicle of Ibn al-Mukhtār (Language: English) Index terms: Historiography - Medieval, Islamic and Arabic Studies, Politics and Diplomacy |
| Abstract | Historical narratives written in and about Africa have fraught transmission and translation histories: they may not survive in their original format or language; manuscripts could be lost for centuries; texts might survive only in later compilations. 19th- and 20th-century editions, especially translations, are often riddled with errors. Although problems of this kind are relevant to all chronicles, those of Africa are particularly affected by imperial conflicts and colonial assumptions. Most chronicles continue to prompt questions about dating, genre, interpolation and reception. This session will explore these issues in detail via case studies from Ethiopia/Nubia and Portugal. |