Abstract
Ms. 45, kept in the Cluj branch of the Romanian Academy Library, contains the oldest complete Romanian translation of the Septuagint version of the Old Testament preserved until today, carried out by Nicolae Milescu Spătarul in the second half of the 17th century. The history of this text is only partially deciphered; it is known that the manuscript does not contain the translation as such, but a revised version of it. Both the identity of the reviser, and the trajectory followed by the text after this first processing are still subject of debate. This paper aims to study the inventory of marginal notes in two biblical books of the manuscript, namely the Book of Genesis and the Book of Job, trying to establish a typology. This is a first step towards a highly necessary approach, the study of the whole inventory of notes, which could contribute to clarifying aspects of the history of the text that are still insufficiently explored.
Highlights
Testament preserved until today, carried out by Nicolae Milescu Spătarul in the second half of the 17th century
Given the existence of a hiatus in regards to the inquiry of the Greek sources during the revision process, we stopped at the marginal notes present in two biblical books: the Book of Genesis and the Book of Job
The present study started from two premises: the confusing textual history of the first Romanian translation of the Old Testament in the version of the Septuagint, and the fact that the marginal notes of this text, which have not been studied exhaustively so far, could provide information of the stages involved in constituting the text
Summary
Placed at the end of the manuscript, on four unnumbered pages, this Foreword is intended as a preface, containing ideas on the importance of translating the sacred text and the history of its translations As far as the original of Milescu’s translation is concerned, the Foreword to readers mentions that the main source would be “un izvod carele-i mai ales decît toate altele, tipărit în Frangofort și ales foarte bine pre limba elinească, și dedesupt cu multe arătări și cuvinte puse cum le-au tălmăcit alții” [a most valuable source printed in Frankfurt and in a very accurate Greek language, containing many notes and words from other translations], identified as the Bible printed in Frankfurt in 1597 We will focus on the marginal notes of ms
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