NéolatinLyon 2018: Tristan Vigliano, Coran 12-21 et l’islam dans la langue de Cicéron.

Value of the Information & Strength of the Argument

The talk provides valuable insight into a concrete digital humanities project on Islamic-Christian history. Vigliano clearly explains the historical significance of the first Latin translation, the context of the Corpus of Cluny, and the practical challenges of aligning different versions of the Qur’an. His argumentation is solid, based on his own research and archival work, and he addresses both scholarly value and technical difficulties. He convincingly criticizes the Hamidullah translation for its flaws, although his judgment is somewhat subjective. The demonstration of the tool and the discussion of encoding and text alignment demonstrate a well-thought-out methodology. The claim that the project fosters a more nuanced understanding of Islam beyond the Qur’an is persuasive, and his humorous tone makes the presentation engaging.

Scientific Rigor, Source Quality, Title Accuracy

The speaker exhibits strong scholarly rigor, drawing on well-documented historical sources like the Corpus of Cluny, the Bibliander edition, and various early translations. He accurately describes the historical facts, such as the date of the first translation and the involvement of Pierre le Vénérable. The sources are clearly identified, though no formal citations or URLs are given in the talk itself. The title is perfectly matched to the content: the Qur’an 12-21 project and its focus on Latin and vernacular translations, explicitly linking to the language of Cicero. The talk is a presentation of an ongoing project, so while not a peer-reviewed publication, it is based on primary research. The internal coherence is high, and the speaker is transparent about the anticipated timeline and the collaborative nature of the work.

The title accurately reflects the talk: the speaker discusses the Qur'an 12-21 project and its focus on translations of the Qur'an into Latin and vernacular languages.

8/10

The talk presents an ongoing digital humanities project based on primary sources and historical documents, delivered by a academic researcher. The content is specialized and well-informed, though it includes subjective opinions about translations and project choices.

Markers derived by PSI from the transcript: the creator did not define chapters.

• 00:30Introduction to the Coran 12-21 project and context of the first Latin translation of the Qur'an in 1143.
• 03:00Description of the Corpus of Cluny and the caricature of Muhammad as a chimera in the manuscript.
• 07:00Explanation of the project's aim: presenting multiple translations synchronically, starting with the Cairo edition, Hamidullah's French translation, the Bibliander Latin edition, and du Ryer's French translation.
• 10:00Discussion of the problems with Hamidullah's translation and the need for corrections.
• 13:00Demonstration of the alignment tool and the challenges of verse division and translation lengths.
• 18:00Presentation of the technical tools (T-Pen, Versioning Machine) used for the project.
• 23:00Future plans: adding commentaries and other texts, and the potential for expanding the project.

• Robert of Ketton's Latin translation of the Qur'an (1143) — First Latin translation of the Qur'an, made under the supervision of Pierre le Vénérable.
• Corpus of Cluny — A collection of manuscripts including the Qur'an translation and related texts, with a caricature of Muhammad.
• Theodore Bibliander's 1543 Latin edition of the Qur'an — Printed edition of the Latin translation by Robert of Ketton, based on the manuscript.
• André du Ryer's 1647 French translation — First major French translation of the Qur'an.
• Muhammad Hamidullah's French translation — Widely used modern French translation, criticized for its revisions by the Islamic World League.