German Orientalism and the Persian Literature in the Islamic Period: Josef von Hammer-Purgstall (1774–1856) as an Example of Literary Interlacing
The interest in Persian language, culture and literature in the Islamic period in Europe dates back to a very old tradition. From the point of view of the translation activities, it can be said that the textual contact with the Persian literature in the Islamic Europe began in the 17th century. Due to their strong interest in geography and culture, travelers began to concern themselves with language and literature. During this period, many Germans travelled to the lands of the Safavids. They gathered extensive knowledge about history, culture, language and Persian literature in the Islamic period, and transferred it to the West. In 1634, the French orientalist André du Ryer (1580-1660) translated into French Sheikh Saadi’s Gulistan/The Rose Garden, which is considered to be one of the classics of Persian literature. In 1636, Friedrich Ochsenbach (1606–1658) translated this work from French into German under the title of Gulistan, das ist, Königlicher Rosengarten/Gulistan, Royal Rose Garden. Adam Olearius (Ölschläger 1600-1671), who learned Persian in the Safavid madrasas, became acquainted with the works of Saadi. After his return to Germany, he enlisted the help of the Persian ambassador, and in the year 1654, translated Gulistan into German under the title Persianisches Rosenthal/Valley of the Persian Roses. During the latter part of the 18th century, the increase of translation activities of literary texts of the Persian poets from the Islamic period, such as Hafez Shirazi and Sheikh Saadi-i Shirazi into Western languages in Europe had an impact on German-speaking orientalists and poets. This period can be considered as a turning point in the relationship between Orient and Occident. The early years of the 19th century, literary Orientalism, which began and developed with the translation of diplomats, travelers, traders and orientalists, left a corpus of Persian poetry to the German-speaking world. The Austrian Orientalist Josef von HammerPurgstall (1774-1856) occupies an important place in the formation of this corpus. Hammer-Purgstall’s translations made Persian poetry available to classical and romantic thinkers, poets and orientalists. This article has two aims; to show that Hammer-Purgstall created a literal network with his translations from Persian poetry in the Islamic period, and to determine how great a role his translations played in the construction and institutionalization of German literary orientalism.
Alman Oryantalizmi ve İslami Dönem Fars Edebiyatı: Bir Literal Geçişkenlik Örneği Olarak Josef von Hammer-Purgstall (1774–1856)
Avrupa‘da İslami dönem Fars dili, kültür ve edebiyatına duyulan ilginin tarihi oldukça eski bir geleneğe dayanmaktadır. Çeviri hareketleri bağlamında düşünüldüğünde İslami dönem Fars edebiyatının Avrupa ile metinsel temasının 17. yüzyılda başladığı söylenebilir. Coğrafya ve kültüre duyulan yakın ilgi seyyahların dil ve edebiyata ilgisini de beraberinde getirmiştir. Bu dönemde birçok Alman seyyah Safevi ülkesine seyahat etmiş ve tarih, kültür, dil ve İslami dönem Fars edebiyat üzerine geniş bilgiler toplayarak bunları Batı’ya aktarmıştır. 1634 yılında Fars edebiyatı klasiklerinden olan Şeyh Sa‘dî-i Şîrâzî’nin Gülistan adlı eseri Fransız oryantalist André du Ryer (1580-1660) tarafından Fransızcaya çevrilmiştir. Friedrich Ochsenbach (1606–1658), söz konusu çeviriyi 1636 yılında Fransızcadan Gulistan, das ist, Königlicher Rosengarten/Gülistan, Kraliyet Gül Bahçesi başlığı ile Almancaya çevirmiştir. Safevi ülkesinde medreselerde Farsça öğrenerek Sa‘dî’nin eserleri ile tanışmış olan Adam Olearius/Ölschläger (1600–1671), Almanya’ya döndükten sonra Safevi elçisinin yardımıyla Gülistan’ı 1654 yılında Persianische Rosenthal/Fars Güller Vadisi adıyla Almancaya çevirmiştir. 18. yüzyılın sonlarına doğru Avrupa’da Hâfız-ı Şîrâzî ve Şeyh Sa‘dî-i Şîrâzî gibi İslami dönem Fars şairlerinden Batı dillerine yapılan edebi metin çevirilerdeki artış oryantalistlerden şairlere kadar Almanca konuşulan dünyada da etkisini göstermiştir. Bu zaman dilimi Doğu ve Batı arasında ilişkide bir dönüm noktası olarak düşünülebilir. 19. yüzyılın ise ilk yıllarında diplomat, seyyah, tüccar ve oryantalistlerin yaptıkları çeviriler ile başlayan ve gelişen edebî oryantalizm Almanca konuşulan dünyada Doğu’dan Batı’ya bir Fars şiiri çeviri külliyatı bırakmıştır. Söz konusu külliyatın oluşumunda oldukça önemli bir yerde duran Avusturyalı oryantalist Josef von Hammer-Purgstall (1774-1856), Vinzenz Rosenzweig von Schwannau (1791-1865), Valentin von Huszár (1788-1850), Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832), Friedrich Rückert (1788-1866) ve August von Platen (1796-1835) gibi aydınlanmacı, klasik ve romantik akımdan ve birçok düşünür şair ve oryantalistin Fars dili ve şiirine ilgi duymalarında önemli bir etki bırakmıştır. Hammer-Purgstall’ın İslami dönem Fars şiiri çevirilerinden literal bir ağ yarattığını iddia eden bu çalışma, onun çevirilerinin Alman edebi oryantalizminin inşa ve kurumsallaşmasında nasıl bir rol oynadığını incelemektedir.
All throughout the human history, language, culture and literature have created an intense interaction between civilizations, by crossing the borders of different nations. Therefore, it is possible to see similar cultural elements, which were processed, enriched, and refined in the literary texts of different periods and cultures. From antiquity to the present, the translation activities enabled the transfer of literary texts and served as an intermediary in cultural interaction and transitivity. Philology, more specifically translations from Oriental languages into European languages, can be regarded as one of the important tools that allowed the birth and development of orientalism. Translation, as an intellectual and linguistic activity, constitutes an intercultural interaction and a literary recreation. In the 17th century, the lands of Iran aroused the curiosity of the German-speaking world and caused it to investigate the Persian language and literature. Many Germans traveled to the Safavid dynasty during this period. They gathered extensive knowledge about history, culture, language and the Persian literature in the Islamic period, and transferred it to the West. In 1634, French orientalist André du Ryer (1580-1660) translated Sheikh Saadi’s Gulistan/The Rose Garden into French, which is to be one of the classics of Persian literature. In 1636, Friedrich Ochsenbach (1606–1658) translated this work from French into German under the title of Gulistan, das ist, Königlicher Rosengarten/Gulistan, Royal Rose Garden. Adam Olearius (Ölschläger 1600-1671), who learned Persian in the Safavid madrasas, became acquainted with the works of Saadi. During the latter part of the 18th century, the increase of translation activities of literary texts of the Persian poets from the Islamic period, such as Hafez Shirazi and Sheikh Saadi-i Shirazi into Western languages in Europe had an impact on German-speaking orientalists and poets. In the 18th century, England and France had the institutionalized colonial administration and trade networks with India, Africa and the Ottoman territories and consequently, a large financial and organizational infrastructure. These potentiality factors made it easier for their citizens to have access to Sanskrit, Persian, Arabic and Hindi manuscripts from Orient, and transfer them to European research centers, libraries and individual scholars. Over time, the philological and literally interest in the Oriental texts increased among scholars and poets. The early years of the 19th century, literary Orientalism, which began and developed with the translation of diplomats, travelers, traders and orientalists, left a corpus of Persian poetry to the German-speaking world. The Austrian Orientalist Josef von Hammer-Purgstall (1774-1856) occupies an important place in the formation of this corpus. Hammer-Purgstall was born in 1774 in the Austrian city of Graz, and studied at the Kaiserlich-königliche Akademie für Orientalische Sprachen/ Imperial Royal Academy for Oriental Languages, a school that educated diplomats in the service of the Habsburg dynasty. After this education, Hammer-Purgstall learned oriental languages such as Persian, Arabic and Turkish, and was sent to Ottoman lands as a diplomat, serving in different units. Between 1809 and 1818, Hammer-Purgstall published a magazine entitled Fundgruben des Orients/The Mines of the Orient in Vienna, which was a pioneering work in the German-speaking world since it differed from the prevailing theological tradition of the time. In 1809, Hammer-Purgstall translated Khosrow and Shirin into German, entitled Schirin, ein morgenlaendisches Gedicht nach morgenländischen Quellen/Shirin, an oriental poem based on oriental sources, which had an important place in Persian literature. He then translated the Divan of Hafez Shirazi into German in its entirety in 1812–1813. Besides his own translation efforts, he contributed to the literal Persian translations by Valentin von Huszár (1788-1850) and Vinzenz Rosenzweig von Schwannau (1791-1865), and published them in his magazine. Although HammerPurgstall’s translations of Hafez Shirazi and other Persian texts were pedestrian and not very poetic, they had a significant impact on many German poets and orientalists such as Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832), Friedrich Rückert (1788-1866) and August von Platen (1796-1835). Rückert, an Orientialist and scholar of oriental languages, introduced the medieval Islamic poetic form known as the ghazel to German poetry. Under the influence of the spirit of Persian poetry, Rückert created a work called Östliche Rosen, and translated from Persian literature in the Islamic period including Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi, Sheikh Saadi Shirazi and Hafez Shirazi. Hammer-Purgstall’s translation of Hafez inspired Goethe as well. He began to write poetry imitating the primary lyrical form, the ghazal of Hafez. For example, Goethe’s west-östlicher Divan was influenced by his translations.
