Whom Do We Trust to Translate? An Early Eighteenth-Century Muslim Translation of the Gospels into Persian

Abstract

Seventeenth-century Muslim scholar Khatun Abadi, commissioned by his shah, was the first native speaker to translate the Gospels into Persian. The goal was an accurate rendition, accompanied by notes intended to address contradictions and false claims of Christians. The translation was completed in 1703 but first published in 1995, in Iran. Understanding translation to be an act of interpretation, this study asks if we can trust a translation made by someone who does not accept the interpretation of the community that calls the text scripture. Based on analysis of translator notes, translation deviations from its Arabic base text, and the choice of key terms, the study concludes that the translator maintained the text’s integrity with few exceptions but that his notes are problematic from the perspective of the Christian community. Lessons are suggested for Christian translators who work with persons of other faiths or prepare renditions to be used by them.