Asceticism and society in crisis: John of Ephesus and the Lives of the Eastern Saints
Syriac began as a dialect of Aramaic, spoken in the region of Edessa early in the first century of the Christian Era. It grew quickly as both the primary vernacular and literary language of the Syrian Orient: the Roman provinces of Mesopotamia, Syria, Osrhoene, and their neighboring Persian province...
| Summary: | Syriac began as a dialect of Aramaic, spoken in the region of Edessa early in the first century of the Christian Era. It grew quickly as both the primary vernacular and literary language of the Syrian Orient: the Roman provinces of Mesopotamia, Syria, Osrhoene, and their neighboring Persian provinces. But it became, too, the lingua franca over a much wider area of the eastern Roman frontier. It was used by traders throughout the East, in Persia and into India, and as far into the Latin West as Gaul. Over time, Syriac built an impressive cultural and literary strength in its own right. Its survival to this day in southeastern Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and parts of India has been largely due to its hold as a religious force in the liturgies of the Syriac-speaking churches. |
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| Item Description: | A digital reproduction is available from E-Editions, a collaboration of the University of California Press and the California Digital Library's eScholarship program |
| ISBN: | 0520065239 |