2001 Reviews

Review of Abū 'Uthmān ibn Bahr al-Jāhiz, The Book of Misers, trans. R. B. Serjeant

Riedel, Dagmar A.

Until the publication of this translation there had been no English translation available. The British Arabist R. B. Serjeant (1915-1993) began his enterprise of a Buha-Zä'-translation, because al-Gahiz' text provides for the non-Arab "an introduction to how an Arab conducts himself, the proprieties, table manners etc. The sort of food they eat and their delight in the Arabic language" (p. xxvi). Consequently, Serjeant decided to write an annotated translation for "a Western reader, unacquainted with Arabic" (ibid.).