Оказывается переведена на английский язык книга Табакат аль-Умам шейха Саида аль-Андалуси - средневековый андалузский трактат, посвященный вкладу девяти наций в человеческое знание. The tabaqat that cultivated science is comprised of eight nations: the Indians, the Persians, the Chaldeans, the Greeks, the Romans, the people of Egypt, the Arabs, and the Hebrews. The tabaqat that showed no interest in science is comprised of all the remaining umam [nations] that were not previously mentioned. This includes the Chinese, Hajfij and Majuj [Gog and Magog], the Turks, the Burtas, the Sarirs, the Khazars, the Gilans, the Tilsans, the Murqans, the Kazakhs, the Alains, the Slavonians, the Bulgarians, the Russians, the Burjans, the Berbers, and the various people of Sudan [or black people], including the Ethiopians, the Nubians, the Zinj, and the Ghanaians, as well as others. Of the nations who have shown no interest in science, the most advanced are the Chinese and the Turks. The Chinese are the most numerous of all nations. They have the richest kingdom and occupy the largest territory. They inhabit the eastern sector of the populated world between the equinoctial line and the farthest of the seven regions to the north. They surpassed other nations in industrial technology and graphic arts. They excelled in their endurance while performing arduous labor and in improving their work and perfecting their products. The Turks are also a nation having a large population and a rich kingdom. They inhabit the region between the eastern regions of Khorasan of the Islamic kingdom, the western regions of China, and the northern parts of India to the end of the populated world to the north. They distinguished themselves by their ability to wage wars and by the construction of arms, and by being the ablest horsemen and tacticians. They have the sharpest eyes when it comes to throwing lances, striking with swords, or shooting arrows. The rest of this tabaqat, which showed no interest in science, resembles animals more than human beings. Those among them who live in the extreme North, between the last of the seven regions and the end of the populated world to the north, suffered from being too far from the sun; their air is cold and their skies are cloudy. As a result, their temperament is cool and their behavior is rude. Consequently, their bodies became enormous, their color turned white, and their hair drooped down. They have lost keenness of understanding and sharpness of perception. They were overcome by ignorance and laziness, and infested by fatigue and stupidity. Such are the Slavonians, the Bulgarians, and neighboring peoples. Also in this category are the people who lived close to the equinoctial line and behind it to the end of the populated world to the south. Because the sun remains close to their heads for long periods, their air and their climate have become hot: they are of hot temperament and fiery behavior. Their color turned black, and their hair turned kinky. As a result, they lost the value of patience and firmness of perception. They were overcome by foolishness and ignorance. These are the people of Sudan who inhabited the far reaches of Ethiopia, Nubia, the Zinj, and others. The Jalaliqah [Galicians, Austrians], the Berbers, and the rest of the populations of the western sector that belong to this tabaqat are nations that Allah, may He be glorified, has provided with despotism, ignorance, enmity, and violence. This is in spite of the fact that these peoples did not inhabit the far North or the far South to be punished by severe climates. In fact their domain is close to the temperate zones. The Galicians reside in the western parts of the fifth climatic region and some of the neighboring provinces of the sixth region. The Berbers inhabit the western parts of the second climatic region, and what borders it from the third and fourth regions. But Allah provides generously for whomever He chooses and diverts His grace away from whomever He chooses. All the other peoples of this tabaqat that I have not previously included are similar in their ignorance to those already mentioned. Although they have varied classifications and unequal shares [of ignorance], they belong to the same class and may be described by the same words. They have never searched for wisdom or practiced the study of philosophy. Most of them are an urban population, while their servants live in rural areas. No matter where they are, in the East, in the West, in the South, or in the North, they are governed by royal decrees and divine laws. The only peoples that reject these humane institutions and live outside these rational laws are a few of the inhabitants of the deserts and the wilderness such as the beggars of Bajah [Boga], the savages of Ghana, the misers of the Zinj, and those resembling them.
Posted on: Sat, 27 Dec 2014 13:26:14 +0000