Ethiopic_Alexander_Romance
Ethiopic Alexander Romance
The Ethiopic Alexander Romance, also known as the Ethiopic Pseudo-Callisthenes or the Zēnā Eskender ("History of Alexander the Great"), is the work of an anonymous Christian and is the most important version of the Alexander Romance in the Geʽez language and the Ethiopian tradition. It was translated in the fourteenth century from an Arabic version of the Romance, which itself was translated from the earlier Syriac Alexander Romance. Although it originates from these sources, it does not follow their three-book structure.[1] The text retains the essential plot from earlier romances,[2] and is a witness to common motifs of Alexander such as his horns.[3]
Alexander the Great was first introduced into Ethiopic translation from the translations of the Bible into Ge'ez in the fifth and sixth centuries, as Alexander is indirectly alluded to in the Book of Daniel. Furthermore, Alexander is explicitly mentioned in a deuterocanonical text known as the Books of the Maccabees. The Ethiopic Alexander tradition would continue to grow after the creation of the Ethiopic Alexander Romance, such as with the continued translation of the Arabic works on Alexander Al-Makīn and Abū Shākir. In total, eight such works, including the Romance, are known. Kotar divides them into two main clases of texts: one where legend surrounds a historical stratum, and one that is purely fabulous. Kotar places the Ethiopic Alexander Romance into the former category.[4]