The PCMA Seminar series will host Dr. Dorota Dzierzbicka (PCMA UW) and Dr. Daria Elagina (Hiob Ludolf Centre for Ethiopian and Eritrean Studies, Universität Hamburg) with a talk entitled “Stranded in Dongola, Sudan. A 16th-century account of the Ethiopian monk Takla Alfa, reconsidered”.
Abstract: “Information on 16th-century Sudan is scarce, and first-hand accounts of travelers are all the more precious for their rarity. We will present a reconsideration of such an account, which has received little scholarly attention. It is a colophon of a text written in Ge’ez by Takla Alfa, an Ethiopian monk, during his stay at Dongola in 1596. The fragment of interest (Vat. Et. 44, 71v–76v) is preceded by hymns composed by the monk and includes a narrative on the circumstances of their creation. We will offer a re-edition and English translation of the passage and comment on a series of interesting linguistic and historic aspects of this unusual text. The references to ethnic and social groups at Dongola (Nubians, Muslims and Arab(ian) gelaba) are discussed, identifying the gelaba as long-distance merchants known from sources dated to later centuries. Lastly, we will discuss the possible interpretations of the light observed by the monk and inhabitants of Dongola on 23.08.1596.”
The seminar will be held in hybrid form, on Thursday, 4th May, at 2 pm CET. To receive a Zoom link, please write to pcma@uw.edu.pl .