In The Light of Debates on the First Modern Arab Theater Abraham Daniṅ os and Nazâhat Al-Mushtâq
Turgay GökgözSources on modern Arabic literature reveal that the first foray into the field of theater was made by Mārūn al-Naqqāsh. In Italy, he became acquainted with European theater and during his stay there, he learned the principles and procedures of the art of theater and adapted and staged the play L’Avare by Molière under the title al-Bahīl in Arabic in late 1847. However, on March 25, 1990, the newspaper al-Sharq al-Awsat was the first to report that the oldest modern theater play was written in 1847 by Abraham Daninos. In 1996, Dr. Philip Sadgrove and Dr. Shmuel Moreh, announced that the first Arabic stage play in the modern context was Nazāhat al-mushtāq wa-ghussat al-‘ushshāq fī Madīnat Tiryāq fî al-‘Irāq. by Abraham Daninos. Which of these two works was published first is still debated in the academic world. However, when we look at the basic works on Arabic theater, we see that Mārūn al-Naqqāsh highlighted, but it should be noted that this discovery had not yet been made when these works were written. This study aims to provide information about Abraham Daninos and his play Nazāhat al-mushtāq wa-ghussat al-‘ushshāq fī Madīnat Tiryāq fî al-‘Irāq.
İlk Modern Arap Tiyatrosu’na Dair Tartışmalar Işığında Abraham Daninos ve Nezâhatu’l-Muştâk
Turgay GökgözModern Arap edebiyatına dair kaynaklara bakıldığında tiyatro sahasındaki ilk adımların Lübnanlı tiyatrocu Mârûn en- Nakkâş tarafından atıldığı görülür. en-Nakkâş, 1846 yılında İskenderiye ve Kahire gibi şehirlerin ardından yolculuğuna İtalya’da devam etti ve Avrupa tiyatrolarıyla tanıştı. Burada tiyatro sanatının usul ve esaslarını iyi bir şekilde öğrenen en-Nakkâş, ülkesine döndüğünde 1847 yılının sonlarında Fransız tiyatrocu Molière’in L’Avare adlı oyununu Arapçaya el- Bahîl adıyla uyarladı ve sahneledi. Ancak ilk olarak 25 Mart 1990 tarihinde eş-Şarku’l-Evsat gazetesinde modern en eski tiyatro oyununun 1847 yılında Cezayirli bir Yahudi olan Abraham Daninos tarafından yazıldığı haberi yer aldı. Manchester Üniversitesi’nden İngiliz akademisyen Dr. Philip Sadgrove, 1990’lı yılların başında gerçekleştirdiği buluşunda modern bağlamda ilk Arapça tiyatro oyununun Abraham Daninos’a ait olan Nezâhatu’l-Muştâk ve Ğussati’l-‘Uşş âk fî Medîneti Tiryâk fi’l-‘Irâk adlı eser olduğunu Kudüs İbrani Üniversitesi’nde akademisyen olan Dr. Shmuel Moreh ile birlikte 1996yılında açıklamıştır. Söz konusu iki eserden hangisinin ilk olarak yayımlandığı hususu bilim dünyasında hâlâ bir tartışma konusudur. Ancak bu konuda Arap tiyatrosunu ele alan temel eserlere bakıldığında Mârûn en-Nakkâş’ın işaret edildiği görülürken söz konusu eserler telif edildiği esnada bu keşfin henüz olmadığına da dikkat çekilmelidir. Bu çalışmada Abraham Daninos ve Nezâhatu’l-Muştâk ve Ğussati’l-‘Uşş âk fî Medîneti Tiryâk fi’l-‘Irâk adlı tiyatro oyunu hakkında bilgi vermek amaçlanmıştır.
Sources on modern Arabic literature reveal that the first foray into the field of theater was made by Mārūn al-Naqqāsh. In Italy, he became acquainted with European theater and during his stay there, he learned the principles and procedures of the art of theater and adapted and staged the play L’Avare by Molière under the title al-Bahīl in Arabic in late 1847. However, on March 25, 1990, the newspaper al-Sharq al-Awsat was the first to report that the oldest modern theater play was written in 1847 by Abraham Daninos. In 1996, Dr. Philip Sadgrove and Dr. Shmuel Moreh, announced that the first Arabic stage play in the modern context was Nazāhat al-mushtāq wa-ghussat al-‘ushshāq fī Madīnat Tiryāq fī al-‘Irāq. by Abraham Daninos. Which of these two works was published first is still debated in the academic world. However, when we look at the basic works on Arabic theater, we see that Mārūn al-Naqqāsh highlighted, but it should be noted that this discovery had not yet been made when these works were written. This study aims to provide information about Abraham Daninos and his play Nazāhat al-mushtāq waghussat al-‘ushshāq fī Madīnat Tiryāq fī al-‘Irāq.
The most important finding here is Dr. Sadgrove’s discovery of what may prove to be the first printed Arabic play influenced by European theater and published in 1847. This play, Nazāhat al-mushtāq, lithographed in Algeria, is in the library of the Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales in Paris, with a dedication by its author, Abraham Daninos. As mentioned before, Nezāhat al-Mushtāq was printed as a lithograph, with no date or place of printing. The inventory number of this work was 2482. Printed on 62 pages, 14.5 cm x 20 cm, each page has 17-20 lines, about 7 cm long, excluding the names of the actors written on the right-hand side of the manuscript. It is written in a rough but legible naskh handwriting. The original Arabic version of the play was published in 1996 in Philip Sadgrove and Shmuel Moreh’s Jewish Contributions to Nineteenth Century Arabic Theater. In 2002, the play was edited by Algerian scholar Dr. Mahlouf Boukrouh and published in Algeria. Daninos contacted the Society in 1847 and sent several copies of the play in a letter to the society through Monsieur Guyon who was then chief surgeon of the French army in Africa. He probably also sent a library copy of the play along with a signed note to a member of the French Société Asiatique. As a result of this communication, Daninos was proposed and accepted as a member of the society at its meeting on November 12, 1847, and was still a member in July 1860. In a report published in the Journal Asiatique on August 17, 1848, Jules Mohl, the assistant secretary, briefly mentioned Daninos’s efforts to engender theatrical taste among the Arabs.
Abraham Daninos was born on April 7, 1797 in Algiers. His father was Isaac Daninos and his mother was Moni o Mouni Daninos. Daninos, a pioneer of Arabic theater, was a playwright. He grew up in Algeria in a Jewish merchant family from Livorno. In 1826, he moved to Paris as a jeweler. There, he compiled a small Algerian dialect French dictionary for the use by French artillery officers. According to historian Alain Messaoudi, this dictionary of Daninos’s dates from after 1831. Abraham Daninos was not involved as an interpreter during the occupation of Algeria; however, in 1833, he accompanied a commission of inquiry from Paris to Algiers and in 1837, he accompanied a delegation of Amir Abd al-Qadir to France. That same year, he returned permanently to Algiers, where he worked as an interpreter at the local court. A member of the Société Asiatique from 1847, he became a French citizen in 1849. In 1853, he married Rose Bûshara, a lady with three children, in Algiers. He died on February 6, 1872 in the capital, Algiers. Apart from his Algerian dialect-French dictionary, Daninos is known to have written a play entitled Nazāhat al-mushtāq wa-ghussat al-‘ushshāq fī Madīnat Tiryāq fī al-‘Irāq.This play seems to be his only published work. Daninos was awarded the Order of the Legion d’honneur for his service to France. There is not much information about Daninos’s life in the sources.
Although the sources differ on whether Mārūn al-Naqqāsh’s play al-Bahīl was staged in late 1847, the fact that his brother Nikūlā al-Naqqāsh indicated the end of 1847 clarifies this situation. The fact that Abraham Daninos was elected as a member of the Société Asiatique in France at its meeting on November 12, 1847 may indicate that he sent his play to the society earlier than this date and therefore, wrote it at an earlier date. In Algeria, which was subject to French occupation in the nineteenth century, it is noteworthy that there was no social milieu in which the art of theater could be performed. Even the French had difficulty in attracting interest in the theater. When we look at Beirut, the social milieu is not the same as in Algeria. It is understood that people there first showed interest in theater plays and welcomed them with curiosity. However, this was not enough for this art to survive in Beirut at that time. Due to the lack of actors to continue the art of theater and insufficient interest to follow it, al-Naqqāsh said goodbye to the art of theater and willed that the theater building be turned into a church. Thus, we can say that although theater was born in Lebanon, it found sustaining breath in cities such as Cairo and Alexandria. In addition, the Egyptian government’s encouragement of this art form at the time led to the most important artists flocking here. As a result, even though the work Nazāhat almushtāq written by Abraham Daninos is older in historical context, it was neither staged nor were the people of its time were aware of this work. However, it will indeed still have an important place in the history of both Arabic theater and modern Algerian theater.
