Division of Istria according to Herman’s comments from his translation of Abu Ma’shar’s Introductiorum maius in astronomy.
However, the Renaissance did not happen “overnight”, it started long before through the works of people who, with their fighting spirit, broke the dogmatic image of the world in which they lived and thus, consciously or unconsciously, paved the way for future generations. One of those people was certainly Herman Dalmatin, who, with the breadth of his spirit, contributed to the change of the European medieval image of the world in the 12th century, when the period of developed Middle Ages or Middle Ages Renaissance begins (development of cities, trade and economy, construction of cathedrals, monasteries, the founding of the first universities, the increasing number of literate and educated people…).
Chartres, Herbert Menzies Marshall
Map showing part of Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East around 1135.
The Cathedral in Cordoba, formerly an Arab mosque, which was built by Caliph Abd-ar-Rahman in 785. A Well-Known Biography
Herman’s translation and philosophical work is largely known to us as his contemporaries and later researchers have used his texts and translations. However, the same cannot be said for his biography. Little is known about his life. It is assumed that he was born at the turn of the 11th to the 12th century in Istria, which he confirms himself. In literature and historical sources, he is presented as Hermannus Dalmata. Why Dalmata? It is assumed that it is because of the proximity of his homeland to Dalmatia, as the eastern part of Istria was under the rule of Croatian rulers until the 11th century. He is also known as Sclavus, de Charintia, Secundus (to distinguish him from his predecessor, the Benedictine monk Hermanus Contractus – Hromog, a versatile poet and scholar). He most likely received primary education in one of the Istrian Benedictine monasteries. We also learn from him that during his studies in Chartres and Paris, his teacher was Thierry of Chartres, known for his collection of texts on the seven liberal arts. The Heptateuchon, also known as the septem artes liberales, was a work in Croatian. In his Heptateuchon, Thierry analyzed the seven liberal arts according to the writings of Greek and Roman authors. Later, Thierry dedicated his translation of Ptolemy’s work “Planisfere” to Herman, and the best reflection of this can be seen in a part of the introduction where Herman says: “To you, my diligent teacher Thierry, in whom, I have no doubt, Plato’s soul lives again, which descended from heaven for the happiness of mortal beings…”. When Thierry was appointed as the chancellor of the Cathedral School in Paris, which later developed into the University of Paris, Herman went to study under him and completed his studies around 1135. During this time, he became friends with an Englishman named Robert of Ketton, with whom he shared travels and adventures, as well as philosophical inspiration and translation work. They traveled together to the east, passing through France, Italy, Dalmatia, and Greece. Despite great hardships and life-threatening experiences, they reached Asia, spending most of their time in Syria, where they studied languages. , especially Arabic. The anonymous chronicler of the Second Crusade mentions Ketton and Dalmatin as having learned the Arabic language while staying among the Saracens, who were considered by the Christian world as “the most cruel kind of people”. At that time, hardly anyone dared to encounter the Arabs, let alone live among them and learn their language and script.
Afterwards, they return to Spain by sea, where both of them enthusiastically engage in the study of astrology/astronomy based on Arabic texts that synthesize Greek, Indian, Chaldean, and Egyptian wisdom, their knowledge and experiences. Along the Ebro river, they meet Peter the Venerable, who convinces them to translate some Islamic religious texts, including the Quran itself. Peter the Venerable, the ninth abbot of the reformed Benedictines with its mother abbey in Cluny, promotes and encourages the first Islamic studies on European soil. Christian Europe at that time trembles before the dizzying spread of Islam, which arouses feelings of discomfort, fear of the unknown, and confusion. St. Individuals like Peter the Devout choose a different approach, i.e. to familiarize themselves with Islam and bring it closer to Europe, and to convince the Muslim world of the superiority of the Christian worldview, as he himself says, with the pen and rational argument instead of the sword. It seems strange to me, which is actually maybe true, that a man who is spatially very distant from you and speaks a different language, separated from you by faith and foreign to you in his customs and way of life, addresses you from the most secluded West, to you people from the eastern and southern parts, and criticizes those whom he has never seen and probably never will. I fight with words, as I said, not with weapons, like many of us do, not with physical force but with the power of reason, not with hatred but with love. That’s how Peter the Devout addresses the Muslim world, even though his intention is to convert Muslims to Christianity, with one of his collaborators being Herman of Dalmatia. The knowledge of Islam available to the Christian world until then was superficial and inaccurate, and instead of invented stories about Muhammad, it now receives a thorough and accurate explanation of the Islamic beliefs and practices. It was necessary to introduce his fervent supporters to the real Muslim culture and customs. Eastern Christians, forced to fight for living space with the Prophet’s followers, believed that they would best protect their Christian identity by degrading the messages of Islam and vilifying Muhammad himself as an ignorant camel driver.
Herman believes that the relative distances to the Sun and the Moon can be determined using eclipses.
Islamic philosopher Ibn Sina (Avicenna) (980 – 1037)
Astrolabe
Toledo – translation center
The period of the Cordoba Caliphate (from 756 AD) was very fruitful, both economically and culturally, and Cordoba in the 10th century was almost the strongest cultural center. Europe. Schools, libraries were established, architecture and literature flourished, hospitals, observatories, chemical laboratories, etc. were built. Many scholars, doctors, pharmacists, mathematicians, astronomers, astrologers lived here… Historical sources indicate that young men from Western Europe prioritized Islamic studies in Spain in their education.
However, the main channel for transmitting Arab cultural heritage to the West was Toledo, a brilliant center of Christian, Arab, and Jewish culture. Since 712, when the city was conquered by the most famous Muslim military commander in the Iberian Peninsula, Tariq ibn-Ziyad, Toledo has become a cultural hub and a place of vibrant translation activity. The official translation school was prompted by Alfonso X the Wise in the mid-13th century. As a result, Europe became acquainted with numerous works by Aristotle, Plato, and Galen, as well as the philosophy of Avicenna, al-Farabi, and ibn Tufail. Very quickly, all of this became essential literature at all major European universities. The transmission route Herman embarked on a journey from Toledo across the Pyrenees, Provence, and the Alps to the French province of Lorraine, Germany, Central Europe, and then across the Channel to England.
We can only imagine the treasures that were unveiled before the eyes of Herman and other translators who were familiar with the Arabic language and script. Before them, the treasure trove of both long-forgotten ancient cultures and unknown Muslim and Eastern civilizations opened up. The Arabs assimilated the achievements of developed neighboring civilizations, which they expanded and improved upon, and Europe adopted them through contact. They left the most significant mark in philosophy, science, medicine, and technology. Among them, there were many celebrated builders, doctors, physicists, astronomers, mathematicians, alchemists, geographers, poets, and philosophers.
Although during that time, the Christian world launched crusades against the “primitive Saracens,” not the entire Western world had hostile feelings towards the Arabs. The influence of Avicenna’s philosophy is evident in the work of the scholastic philosopher Albertus Magnus and Thomas. Aquinas, while Roger Bacon speaks of the merit of Avicenna in the revival of philosophy. Furthermore, Saracens were seen by some thinkers as the “nation of philosophers,” and Peter Abelard used the word “Muslim” as a synonym for the word “philosopher.”
Some of the most prolific translators from Arabic were Gerard of Cremona, who translated about a hundred books, including twenty-one in the field of medicine, as well as Dominic Gundisalvi, archdeacon of Segovia, John of Seville, and many others. Translating from Arabic was an extremely demanding and laborious task due to the impossibility of direct translation into Latin. Namely, Arabic was much richer than Latin at the time, which created significant difficulties, especially in the translation of philosophical texts. For example, in the translation of Avicenna’s Metaphysics, translators had only one Latin term – esse (being) – available for thirty-four different expressions from Arabic. The next enormous challenge for translators was how to adapt the translation Christian canon, especially because it comes from the unbelieving world. Toma Aquinas took on this task, but it took a lot of time to establish a conceptual structure that could meet this requirement. It can be concluded that translation caused a lot of headaches not only of a linguistic nature – the problem was also the cultural relationship between the Christian and Arab world.
Herman’s translation and philosophical work
Herman of Dalmatia was equally skilled in Arabic and Latin, and the fact that he was considered an excellent translator is evidenced by the fact that he was entrusted with the translation of the Quran. Sometimes at the expense of linguistic fidelity, he insists on meaningfulness and clarity, avoiding the extravagance of the Arabic language (unfortunately, sometimes a necessary evil), correcting his predecessors, explaining unclear sentences, which indicates his excellent knowledge of the subject matter he is translating.
and the work De uso astrolabi (On the Use of the Astrolabe).
Herman shows great interest in astronomy, mathematics, medicine, and technical sciences. Furthermore, he says: If a man succeeds in mastering astronomy, nothing will be hidden from him, neither the present things of this lower world, nor the past or future, for higher beings are the beginning and causes of lower ones. He first dealt with astrological problems that concerned global changes and the destinies of nations as a whole. In his most comprehensive work, De essentiis (On Essences), he presents his considerations of astrological-cosmological orientation, which he completed in 1143 in Béziers, southern France. Writing this drama of cosmogony, he was inspired by Plato’s teachings, the knowledge of Arabic philosophers and scholars, as well as Christian doctrine to which he adheres consistently. Herman melts all these great traditions into a unique inspiring force. In this often very complex work, there are numerous alchemical, geometric, astronomical, astrological, and detailed cosmological derivations. Herman to English:
Herman reconstructs God’s creation and original birth as a specific and inherent movement of God Himself. God is what always is and can only be named by His own name as essence. From Him, essences emerge and despite the multitude of their “species”, they can be grouped into five categories: cause, motion, location, time, and relation. They contain the existence of the entire nature, they make it complete, and they are the root of all diversity, expressing the essence. The function of shaping substances is carried out by simple elements, which, through their mixture and composition, give rise to all beings: minerals, plants, animals, and humans. Herman concludes his discussion of essences by presenting the creation of humans, whom God created with the help of seven celestial bodies (i.e. the Sun, Moon, Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Venus, and Mercury). After completing the natural cycle, that is, at the end of human life, which is influenced by the vibrations of Saturn, humans are brought closer to the divine. Like a thread connecting its beginning, man returns to his essence with that which is of divine nature within him and is recognized as such by the Law, while everything that is not descends to utter nothingness.
The 12th century thus opens the way to new concepts and worldviews, marking a turning point in the Middle Ages. The horizons of human knowledge are expanding, partly stimulated by the rediscovered ancient heritage preserved and enriched by Arab culture. Being a pioneer of this “new era” and contributing to the fusion of Eastern and Western spirits through his work was a life’s honor for Herman Dalmatin.