Giuseppe Simone Assemani
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Giuseppe Simone Assemani ( Classical Syriac : ܝܵܘܣܸܦ ܒܲܪ ܫܸܡܥܘܿܢ , ( ''Yusuf ibn Siman as-Simani'', , ; July 27, 1687 – January 13, 1768) was a
librarian A librarian is a person who professionally works managing information. Librarians' common activities include providing access to information, conducting research, creating and managing information systems, creating, leading, and evaluating educat ...
, Lebanese
Maronite Maronites (; ) are a Syriac Christianity, Syriac Christian ethnoreligious group native to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant (particularly Lebanon) whose members belong to the Maronite Church. The largest concentration has traditionally re ...
orientalist, and
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bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...
. For his efforts, and his encyclopedic knowledge, he earned the nickname "The Great Assemani".


Life

Giuseppe Simone Assemani was born on 27 July 1687 in Hasroun,
Mount Lebanon Mount Lebanon (, ; , ; ) is a mountain range in Lebanon. It is about long and averages above in elevation, with its peak at . The range provides a typical alpine climate year-round. Mount Lebanon is well-known for its snow-covered mountains, ...
into the Assemani family. His surname is related to several distinguished Orientalists and clergy. " Assemani" is an Arabic
patronymic A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (more specifically an avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor. It is the male equivalent of a matronymic. Patronymics are used, b ...
which means son of Simeon, but this did not prevent him from being called Simon. When very young, in 1703, he was sent to the Maronite College in
Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
, and was transferred thence to the
Vatican library The Vatican Apostolic Library (, ), more commonly known as the Vatican Library or informally as the Vat, is the library of the Holy See, located in Vatican City, and is the city-state's national library. It was formally established in 1475, alth ...
. Assemani graduated in 1709. A talented graduate (at that time he had written three essays on the Syrian grammar and theology), he was spotted by
Pope Clement XI Pope Clement XI (; ; ; 23 July 1649 – 19 March 1721), born Giovanni Francesco Albani, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 23 November 1700 to his death in March 1721. Clement XI was a patron of the arts an ...
, who kept him in Rome and ordered him to catalogue early Christian manuscripts that were brought in 1707 from Egypt by his brother Elias. In 1710, Giuseppe worked as scribe of Oriental manuscripts (scriptor Orientalis), translator from Arabic and Syriac languages, and advisor to the Congregation for the review and reform of the liturgical books of the Eastern rites. He was ordained
priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...
on 21 September 1710. In 1711 Assemani received papal authorization to pass from the Maronite Church to the
Latin Church The Latin Church () is the largest autonomous () particular church within the Catholic Church, whose members constitute the vast majority of the 1.3 billion Catholics. The Latin Church is one of 24 Catholic particular churches and liturgical ...
. From 1715 to 1717 he was sent to
Wadi El Natrun Wadi El Natrun (Arabic: "Valley of Natron"; , "measure of the hearts") is a Depression (geology), depression in northern Egypt that is located below sea level and below the Nile River level. The valley contains several alkaline lakes, natron- ...
,
Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...
,
Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...
and
Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...
to search for valuable manuscripts, and returned with about 150, which formed a collection in the Vatican Library. In 1735
Pope Clement XII Pope Clement XII (; ; 7 April 16526 February 1740), born Lorenzo Corsini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 12 July 1730 to his death in February 1740. Clement presided over the growth of a surplus in the papal ...
sent him again to the East where he presided the Lebanese Council of 1736, which laid the foundations for the modern
Maronite Church The Maronite Church (; ) is an Eastern Catholic '' sui iuris'' particular church in full communion with the pope and the worldwide Catholic Church, with self-governance under the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches. The head of the Maronit ...
. He returned with a still more valuable collection, because he found the opportunity to collect even more ancient works. This time he brought about 2,000 works, and the most important of them was the Codex Assemanius, an evangeliary which he had brought from Jerusalem in 1736. He later played a significant role in mediating several crises in the Maronite Church hierarchy, by virtue of his influence in Rome and his knowledge of the Maronite Church. In 1738, Assemani was back in Lebanon, and a year later was made First Librarian of the
Vatican library The Vatican Apostolic Library (, ), more commonly known as the Vatican Library or informally as the Vat, is the library of the Holy See, located in Vatican City, and is the city-state's national library. It was formally established in 1475, alth ...
. He was also appointed by Carlo di Borbone as an official chronicler of the
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. In Rome he began elaborating plans to publish the most valuable of his collected works. His translation of
Ephrem the Syrian Ephrem the Syrian (; ), also known as Ephraem the Deacon, Ephrem of Edessa or Aprem of Nisibis, (Syriac: ܡܪܝ ܐܦܪܝܡ ܣܘܪܝܝܐ — ''Mâr Aphrêm Sûryâyâ)'' was a prominent Christian theology, Christian theologian and Christian literat ...
's writings, his bibliography of Syriac writers from the Clementino-Vaticana Library, and his classification of Byzantine writings, are all worthy of mention. In recognition of his achievements, he was appointed bishop on December 1, 1766 and consecrated
titular archbishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...
of Tyre on December 7, 1766 by
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Henry Benedict Stuart Henry Benedict Thomas Edward Maria Clement Francis Xavier Stuart, Cardinal Duke of York (6 March 1725 – 13 July 1807) was a Roman Catholic Cardinal (Catholic Church), cardinal, and was the third and final Jacobitism, Jacobite heir to pub ...
Duke of York and
Titular bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...
of Frascati; his co-consecrators were his nephew Stefano Evodio Assemani, Titular bishop of Apamea in Bithynia, and Nicholas-Xavier Santamarie, Titular bishop of Cyrene. He died in Rome on 13 January 1768. Part of his work was lost in his apartment during a fire on August 30, 1768. His
brother A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a family, familial relationship, it is sometimes used ende ...
and
nephew In the lineal kinship system used in the English-speaking world, a niece or nephew is a child of an individual's sibling or sibling-in-law. A niece is female and a nephew is male, and they would call their parents' siblings aunt or uncle ...
were also notable orientalists.


Works

When appointed librarian of the Vatican Library, he instantly began to carry into execution most extensive plans for editing and publishing the most valuable manuscript treasures of the Vatican. His main work wa
''Bibliotheca Orientalis Clementino-Vaticana in qua manuscriptos codices Syriacos, Arabicos, Persicos, Turcicos, Hebraicos, Samaritanos, Armenicos, Aethiopicos, Graecos, Aegyptiacos, Ibericos, et Malabaricos, jussu et munificentia Clementis XI Pontificis Maximi ex Oriente conquisitos, comparatos, et Bibliotecae Vaticanae addictos Recensuit, digessit, et genuina scripta a spuriis secrevit, addita singulorum auctorum vita, Joseph Simonius Assemanus, Syrus Maronita''
(Rome, 1719–1728), 9 vols folio. Of the ''Bibliotheca'' the first three vols only were completed. The work was to have been in four parts: #Syrian and allied manuscripts: Orthodox,
Church of the East The Church of the East ( ) or the East Syriac Church, also called the Church of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, the Persian Church, the Assyrian Church, the Babylonian Church, the Chaldean Church or the Nestorian Church, is one of three major branches o ...
, and
Syriac Orthodox Church The Syriac Orthodox Church (), also informally known as the Jacobite Church, is an Oriental Orthodox Christian denomination, denomination that originates from the Church of Antioch. The church currently has around 4-5 million followers. The ch ...
#Arabian manuscripts,
Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
and
Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...
# Coptic, Aethiopic, Persian and Turkish manuscripts #Syrian and Arabian manuscripts not distinctively theological Only the first part was completed, but extensive preparations were made for the others. There is a German abridgment by August Friedrich Pfeiffer (Erlangen 1770-77) and a Reprint (Hildesheim, New York: Olms o.J. ca. 1990). Other works are: *''Ephraemi Syri opera omnia quae extant, Gr., Syr., et Lat.'', 6 vols. folio (Rome, 1737–1746). He edited the first three volumes. Volumes 4 and 5 were edited by the Maronite Jesuit Mubarak/Benedictus, and the 6th by his nephew Stefano Evodio Assemani. * ''Italicae historiae scriptores ex bibliothecae Vaticanae aliarumque insignium Bibliothecarum manuscriptis codicibus collegit, e praefationibus, notisque illustravit Joseph Simonius Assemanus''. Romae, ex typographia Komarek apud Angelum Rotilium, 1751. * ''Codex canonum Ecclesiae graecae''. Romae, ex typographia Komarek, 1762. * ''De scriptoribus Syris orthodoxis''. Romae, typis Sacrae Congregationis de Propaganda Fide, 1719. * ''Bibliotheca juris orientalis canonici et civilis auctore Josepho Simonio Assemano''. (5 voll.) Romae, ex typographia Komarek, 1762-1766. * ''Italicae historiae scriptores ex Bibliothecae Vaticanae, aliarumque insignium bibliothecarum manuscriptis codicibus collegit & praefationibus, notisque illustravit Joseph Simonius Assemanus ... De rebus Neapolitanis et Siculis, ab anno Christi quingentesimo ad annum millesimum ducentesimum.'' (4 voll.) Romae, ex typographia Komarek, apud Angelum Rotilium, Linguarum Orientalium Typographum, 1751-1753. * ''Josephi Simoni Assemani De Syris monophysitis dissertatio''. Romae, ex typographia Sacrae Congregationis de propaganda fide, 1730. * ''Josephi Simonii Assemani Quae hactenus typis prodierunt opera omnia''. Romae, ex typographia Angeli Rotilii, & Philippi Bacchelli, e regione domus PP. Theatinorum S. Andreae de Valle, 1751. * ''De sacris imaginibus et reliquiis'', prévu en 5 volumes. Une partie des manuscrits fut sauvée et des extraits publiés par Bottarius (Rome, 1776). * ''Kalendaria Ecclesiae universae, in quibus tum ex vetustis marmoribus, tum ex codicibus, tabulis, parietinis, pictis, scriptis, scalptisve, sanctorum nomina,imaagines, et festi per annum dies Ecclesiarum Orientis, et Occidentis praemissis uniuscujusque Ecclesiae originibus recensentur, describuntur, notisque illustrantur'']. (6 vol.) Roma, sumptibus Fausti Amidei ..., 1755. Volume
123456
* ''Rudimenta linguae Arabicae cum catechesi christiana...''. Romae, typis Sacrae Congregationis de Propaganda Fide, 1732. * ''Nuova grammatica per apprendere agevolmente la lingua greca composta da monsignor Giuseppe Simonio Assemani''. (2 voll.) In Urbino, nella stamperia della Ven. Cap. del SS. Sagramento per lo stampator Camerale, 1737. * ''Oratio de eligendo summo Pontifice ad E. mos & R. mos Principes S.R.E. Cardinales habita in SS. Basilica Vaticana a Josepho Simonio Assemano, die 18 Februarii 1740''. Romae, ex tipographia Apostolica Vaticana, apud Joannem Mariam Salvioni, 1740. * ''Oratio habita in Basilica principis apostolorum de vrbe sie 22. februarii 1733. A Josepho Simonio Assemano ... dum a capitulo, et canonicis Benedicto XIII pontifici maximo solenne exequiae celebrarentur, antequam ejus corpus inde ad ecclesiam Santae Mariae supra Mineruam efferretur''. Romae, & Ferrariae, Typis Bernardini Pomatelli impressoris episcopalis, 1733. * Abraham Ecchellensis; Chronicon Orientale," publié dans "Scriptores Historiae Byzantinae," vol. XVII. * ''Scriptorum Veterum Nova Collectio'' (Rome, 1831). Plusieurs dissertations, sur les Églises Orientales, publiées par le cardinal Angelo Mai. * ''Bibliothecae apostolicae vaticanae codicum manuscriptorum catalogus in tres partes distributus in quarum prima orientales in altera graeci in tertia latini italici aliorumque europaeorum idiomatum codices Stephanus Evodius Assemanus archiepiscopus apamensis et Joseph Simonius Assemanus''. Paris, Maisonneuve, 1926.


Unpublished works

* "The ancient and the new Syria" (9 volumes); * "The history of the East" (9 volumes); * "Cathedrals of the Eastern Church" (6 volumes); * "Euchologia Eastern Church" (7 volumes).


Sources

* * Graf, Georg. 104. Joseph Simonius Assemani. .l.: s.n. 1960. *


Notes


References

* * * G. Levi Della Vida, «ASSEMANI, Giuseppe Simonio». In: ''Dizionario biografico degli Italiani''
on-line
* D.A.Morozov, E.S.Gerasimova, Carolus Rali Dadichi and the "Bibliotheca orientalis" by J.S.Assemani: A letter of the Oriental author on the popularization of Syriac literature in Europe (in Russian). In

ed. N.L.Muskhelishvili and N.N.Seleznyov. Paris-Moscow, 2012, pp. 357–370. * Golovnin NG, Kobischanov TY, http://www.pravenc.ru/text/76680.html, // Orthodox Encyclopedia. - M., 2001. - T. 3. - S. 619-620. - . * Assemani, Giuseppe Simone. In
Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary The ''Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopaedic Dictionary'' (35 volumes, small; 86 volumes, large) is a comprehensive multi-volume encyclopaedia in Russian. It contains 121,240 articles, 7,800 images, and 235 maps. It was published in the Russian Em ...
: to 86 m. (82 m. And 4 additional.). - SPb., 1890-1907. * Works by and about Giuseppe Simone Assemani in the catalog of the
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, https://portal.dnb.de/opac.htm?method=simpleSearch&query=117666947. {{DEFAULTSORT:Assemani, Giuseppe Simone 1687 births 1768 deaths 18th-century Maronite Catholic bishops Pontifical Maronite College alumni 18th-century Roman Catholic titular archbishops 18th-century writers from the Ottoman Empire Arabic–Latin translators Italian bibliographers Italian librarians Italian orientalists 18th-century writers in Latin Lebanese librarians Lebanese orientalists Prefects of the Vatican Library Syriac–Latin translators Syriacists Translators from Syriac