Yahya of Antioch
Encyclopedia
Yahya of Antioch, full name Yaḥya ibn Saʿīd al-Anṭākī (Ar. يحيى بن سعيد الأنطاكي), was a Melkite
Christian physician and historian of the 11th century.
He was born in Fatimid
Egypt
, and was related to the Melkite Patriarch Eutychius of Alexandria, but was not his son, as has been variously claimed. He became a physician, but the anti-Christian pogroms of Caliph Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah
forced him to flee to Byzantine
-held Antioch
.
His chief work is a continuation of Eutychius' Annals
, stretching from 938 to 1034. Drawing on a variety of sources, his history deals with events in the Byzantine Empire
, Egypt, as well as Bulgaria
and the Kievan Rus'
. Whilst in Antioch, he also wrote theological works in defence of Christianity and refutations of Islam and Judaism. He died ca. 1066.
His history was published, edited and translated into French
, in Volume 18 of the Patrologia Orientalis
in 1928, and in English (The Byzantine-Arab Chronicle (938-1034) of Yahya b. Sa’id Al-Antaki) as a PhD thesis by John Harper Forsyth in 1977.
Melkite
The term Melkite, also written Melchite, refers to various Byzantine Rite Christian churches and their members originating in the Middle East. The word comes from the Syriac word malkāyā , and the Arabic word Malakī...
Christian physician and historian of the 11th century.
He was born in Fatimid
Fatimid
The Fatimid Islamic Caliphate or al-Fāṭimiyyūn was a Berber Shia Muslim caliphate first centered in Tunisia and later in Egypt that ruled over varying areas of the Maghreb, Sudan, Sicily, the Levant, and Hijaz from 5 January 909 to 1171.The caliphate was ruled by the Fatimids, who established the...
Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, and was related to the Melkite Patriarch Eutychius of Alexandria, but was not his son, as has been variously claimed. He became a physician, but the anti-Christian pogroms of Caliph Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah
Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah
Abu ‘Ali Mansur Tāriqu l-Ḥākim, called Al-Hakim bi Amr al-Lāh , was the sixth Fatimid caliph and 16th Ismaili imam .- History :...
forced him to flee to Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
-held Antioch
Antioch
Antioch on the Orontes was an ancient city on the eastern side of the Orontes River. It is near the modern city of Antakya, Turkey.Founded near the end of the 4th century BC by Seleucus I Nicator, one of Alexander the Great's generals, Antioch eventually rivaled Alexandria as the chief city of the...
.
His chief work is a continuation of Eutychius' Annals
Annals
Annals are a concise form of historical representation which record events chronologically, year by year. The Oxford English Dictionary defines annals as "a narrative of events written year by year"...
, stretching from 938 to 1034. Drawing on a variety of sources, his history deals with events in the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
, Egypt, as well as Bulgaria
First Bulgarian Empire
The First Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state founded in the north-eastern Balkans in c. 680 by the Bulgars, uniting with seven South Slavic tribes...
and the Kievan Rus'
Kievan Rus'
Kievan Rus was a medieval polity in Eastern Europe, from the late 9th to the mid 13th century, when it disintegrated under the pressure of the Mongol invasion of 1237–1240....
. Whilst in Antioch, he also wrote theological works in defence of Christianity and refutations of Islam and Judaism. He died ca. 1066.
His history was published, edited and translated into French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, in Volume 18 of the Patrologia Orientalis
Patrologia Orientalis
The Patrologia Orientalis is an attempt to create a comprehensive collection of the writings by eastern Church Fathers in Syriac, Armenian, Arabic, Coptic, Ge'ez, Georgian, and Slavonic. It is designed to complement the comprehensive, influential, and monumental Latin and Greek patrologies...
in 1928, and in English (The Byzantine-Arab Chronicle (938-1034) of Yahya b. Sa’id Al-Antaki) as a PhD thesis by John Harper Forsyth in 1977.