The Armenian Translation and the Greek Text of Philo’s De Abrahamo 1–16

Abstract

The aim of this article is to demonstrate the importance of the old Armenian translation of Philo’s De Abrahamo in establishing its correct Greek original. The work on a forthcoming critical edition of the Armenian text provides us with new information on the Greek text as well. It is argued that the Greek manuscript from which the treatise was translated into Armenian was independent of the archetype of the extant Greek manuscripts and free from certain errors contained in the archetype. Furthermore, the relations of the Armenian text with the two main recensions of the Greek manuscripts are described. It is also argued that the Greek manuscript from which the work was translated did not have its own specific errors.