Armand-Pierre Caussin de Perceval (1795–1871) was a French orientalist. He was born in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

on 13 January 1795. His father, Jean-Jacques-Antoine Caussin de Perceval (1759–1835), was professor of

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

in the

Collège de France The Collège de France (), formerly known as the ''Collège Royal'' or as the ''Collège impérial'' founded in 1530 by François I, is a higher education and research establishment ('' grand établissement'') in France. It is located in Paris n ...

. In 1814 he went to

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...

as a

student interpreter Student interpreter was, historically, an entry-level position in the British and American diplomatic and consular service, principally in China, Japan, Siam and, in the case of the United States, Turkey. It is no longer used as a title. A number o ...

, and afterwards travelled in Asiatic

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...

, spending a year with the

Maronite The Maronites ( ar, الموارنة; syr, ܡܖ̈ܘܢܝܐ) are a Christian ethnoreligious group native to the Eastern Mediterranean and Levant region of the Middle East, whose members traditionally belong to the Maronite Church, with the lar ...

s in the

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus lie ...

, and finally becoming dragoman at

Aleppo )), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black". , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , image_map1 = ...

. Returning to Paris, he became professor of modern Arabic in the School of Living Oriental Languages in 1821, and also professor of Arabic in the Collège de France in 1833. In 1849 he was elected to the

Academy of Inscriptions An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, f ...

. He died on 15 January 1871 at the Siege of Paris. Caussin de Perceval published (1828) a useful ''Grammaire arabe vulgaire'', which passed through several editions (4th ed., 1858), and edited and enlarged Ellious Bocthor's ''Dictionnaire français-arabe'' (2 vols., 1828; 3rd ed., 1864); but his great reputation rests almost entirely on one book, the ''Essai sur l'histoire des Arabes avant l'Islamisme, pendant l'époque de Mahomet'' (3 vols., 1847–1849), in which the native traditions as to the early history of the Arabs, down to the death of

Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the mon ...

and the complete subjection of all the tribes to

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...

, are brought together with wonderful industry and set forth with much learning and lucidity. One of the principal manuscript sources used is the great ''

Kitab al-Aghani ''Kitab al-Aghani'' ( ar, كتاب الأغاني, kitāb al-‘aghānī, The Book of Songs), is an encyclopedic collection of poems and songs that runs to over 20 volumes in modern editions, attributed to the 10th-century Arabic writer Abu al- ...

'' of Abu al-Faraj, which has since been published (20 vols., Boulak, 1868) in

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...

; but no publication of texts can deprive the ''Essai'' of its value as a trustworthy guide through a tangled mass of tradition.

References

External links

*''Essai sur l'histoire des Arabes avant l'Islamisme, pendant l'époque de Mahomet'
Vol. 1Vol.2Vol. 3
(at

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

) {{DEFAULTSORT:Perceval, Armand-Pierre Caussin de Writers from Paris 1795 births 1871 deaths French orientalists Arabic–French translators French Arabists French lexicographers Dragomans Academic staff of the Collège de France Members of the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres 19th-century translators 19th-century lexicographers