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The Syriac Bible in Central Asia

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THE SYRIAc BIBLE IN CENTRi AsIA*
Mx DIcIKEN5
Scl-iooL OF ORIENTAL AND AFRIcAN STuDIEs
BRIEF HISTORY OF CHRIsTIANrn IN CENTRAL AsIA
We hear of Christians in Central Asia as early as Bardaisan’s Book of
the Laws of Countries (Ca. 196), which refers to them amongst the
Beth Qashanaye, the Kushans who ruled in Bactria (modern-day
Northern Afghanistan).2 The Sjnodicon Orienta/e, the synod record
of the Church of the East, mentions Bishops of Merv (modern-day
Turkmenistan) and Herat (modern-day Afghanistan) in 424 and
Metropolitans for both cities in 554 and 585, respectively.3 Around
the same time, ca. 550, the East Svriac Biographj of Mar Aba
describes the appointment of a Bishop for the Hephthalite Runs in
This article is based on a talk given at the fifth C’hristiani’ in Iraq
*
conference (April 5, 2008). I would like to acknowledge the input I
received from Pier Giorgio Borbone (University of Pisa); Sam Lieu
(Macquarie University, Sydney); Alexei Savchenko (East Sogdian
Archaeological Expedition, Kiev); Nicholas Sims-Williams (SOAS) and
Peter Zieme (Turfanforschung, Berlin) in preparing this article.
I For a more in-depth treatment of the subject,
see I. Giliman
and H.-J. Klimkeit, christians in Asia before 1500 (Ann Arbor: 1999) 205-62.
Helpful summaries can be found in E. Hunter, ‘Christianity in Central
Asia and the Near East.’ Enclopedia ofLanguage and Linguistics, 2 ed., Vol.
2 (Oxford: 2006) 392-4 and N. Sims-Williams, Christianit, iii. In Central
Asia and Chinese Turkestan.’ Enclopaedia Imnica, Vol. 5 (1992) 530-4.
2 H.
J. W. Drijvers, ed./tr., The Book of the Laws of Countries:
Dialogue on Fate of Bardaisan of Edessa. Semitic Texts with Translations 3
(Assen: 1965) 61.
3 J.-B. Chabot, ed./tr., Sjnodicon
Or/en/ale on Rscueil de Sjnodes
Nestoriens. Notices et extraits des manuscrits de la Bibliotheque Nationale
et autres bibliotheques 27 (Paris: 1902) 285, 366-7, 423.
THE SYRIAC BIBLE IN CENTRAL ASIA 93
Bactria. Shortly after, Theophylact Simocatta (ca. 630) relates how
Christians (perhaps Sogdians or Hephthalites?) advised Central
Asian Turks to tattoo the foreheads of their children with crosses
in order to avoid the plague, a fact which was discovered when
these Turks were captured by the Romans in 591.
The most important cities in the region between the Oxus
and Jaxartes rivers (the Amu Darya and Syr Darya in Persian),
known as Transoxiana to the Greeks and Mawara’l-nahr to the
Arabs, were Bukhara and Samarkand (both in modern-day
Uzbekistan). Two so-called ‘Nestorian’6 writers, Ibn at-Tavyib (d.
1043) and ‘Abdisho bar Berikha (1290), recount different traditions
concerning the elevation of Samarkand to a Metropolitanate, which
apparently occurred sometime between the 6th and 8th centuries and
was certainly well established by the Patriarchate of Theodosius
(853-8), who mentions the city in a list of Metropolitans of the
Church of the East.
Coins with crosses from the 7tit and 8th centuries
discovered around Bukhara and Tashkent indicate the presence of
Christian rulers in the area at this time.8 From about the same
time, we read in the East Syriac Khuistan Chronicle (Ca. 660-80) of
the conversion of a Turkic minor ruler and his army ca. 644 by
Eliva, Metropolitan of Merv, involving a ‘power encounter’ with
4 A. Mingana, ‘The Early Spread of Christianity in Central Asia
and the Far East: A New Document.’ Bulletin of the John RjIands Libra 9/2
(1925) 304-5.
M. Whitb and M. Whitby, tr,, The Histoy of Theophj’lact
Sirnocatta (Oxford: 1986) 146-7.
6 This term is used merely to avoid the awkward adjectival use
of ‘Church of the East’ and has no connotations of heresy.
Ibn a-Tavvib, in W. Hoenerbach, and 0. Spies, tr., Ibn at
Taiyib, Fiqh an-Nasränya: (?Das Recht der Christenheit I Translatioti. CSCO
162, Arabic 17 (bouvain: 1956) 123, describes the creation of the
Metropolitanate of Samarkand as taking place during the Patriarchate of
Isho’yahb, referring either to Isho’yahb I (582-96), Isho’vahb 11(626-46)
or Isho’yahb III (650-58). ‘Abdisho bar Berikha, in A. Mai, ed./tr.,
Scrztorum reterum noza collectio e va/icanis codicibus edita ab AZI., Vol. X
(Rome: 1838) 141-2, 146, dates it to the Patriarchate of Saliba-Zakha (‘14-
28), and reproduces Theodosius’ list of Metropolitanates.
8 A. Naymark, ‘Christians in Pre-Islamic Bukhara. Numismatic
Evidence.’ In: Annual Central Eurasian Studies Conference. Abstracts of Papers
1994-1996, ed.J. Elverskog and A. Naymark (Bloomington: 1996) 11-13.
94 DICKENS
shamanistic weather magic.9 Alongside these ‘Nestorians,’ the Left
of the Me/kite Patriarch of Antioch Christopher (d. 967) relates that
Melkite (Greek Orthodox) Christians were transported to Tashkent
by Caliph al-Manur in 762, beginning a presence there that
continued on at least till the 14th century. The Armenian king and
historian Het’um II (d. 1307) mentions Sogdian Christians living in
Chorasmia (Khwarezm) who conducted church services in Greek,
undoubtedly referring to these Melkites.10
The famous Chinese-Syriac Xi’an Stele (dedicated in 781)
describes its donation by the priest and Chorepiscopus Yazdbozid,
son of Milis, a priest of Balkh in Tocharistan (modern-day
Northern Afghanistan).11 This occurred around the same time that
two letters of Timothy I, Patriarch of the Church of the East (780-
823) mention the conversion in 782/83 of an unidentified king of
the Turks and his people and the subsequent appointment of a
Metropolitan for the Turks in 792/93.12 It is likely that these Turks
were the Qarluqs, who controlled the steppe area north of the
Samanid Persian realm located in Mawara’l_nahr.13
The Muslim polymath Biruni (ca. 1000) mentions festivals
of Christians (both Nestorians and Melkites) in Khwarezm, south
east of the Aral Sea (modern-day Uzbekistan)14 and the Syriac
historians Bar Hebraeus (1286) and Man Ibn Sulayman (1214) both
See E. Hunter, ‘The Conversion of the Kerait to Christianity in
A,D. 1007,’ Zentralasiatische Studien 22 (1989-91) 159-60 and Mingana
(1925) 305-6,
1O The history of these Central Asian Melkites is addressed in
J.
Dauvillier, ‘Byzantins d’Asie centrale et d’Extrêrne-Orient au moyen Age.’
Revue des Etudes Byantines 11(1953) 62-87, J. Nasrallah, ‘L’Eglise meichite
en Iraq, en Perse et dans l’Asie centrale.’ Proche Orient Chrétien 26 (1976)
16-33, 319-53 and W. Klein, ‘Das Orthodoxe Katholikat von Romagyris
in Zentralasien.’ Parole de l’Orient24 (1999) 235-65.
II P. Saeki, The Nestorian Documents and Relics in china, 2nd ed.
(Tokyo: 1951) 68.
12 Mingana (1925) 306. He is mistaken in stating that the letter
was written in 781. The dates for all of Timothy’s extant letters have been
subsequently established by R, Bidawid, Les lettres du pafriarche nestorien
Timothéel. Studi e Testi 18” (Vatican City: 1956).
13 M. Dickens, ‘Patriarch Timothy I and the Metropolitan of the
Turks.’ Journal of the Rya/Asiatic Sociej (in press).
14 E. Sachau tr., The Chronology ofAncient Nations (London: 1879)
282-313.
THE SYRIAC BIBLE IN CENTRAL ASIA 95
describe the conversion of 200,000 Kerait Turks in 1007/08 after
their king experienced a vision while lost hunting in the mountains,
probably somewhere in modern-day Mongolia.15 In the following
century, according to Amr ibn Mattai (ca. 1350), the Patriarch Eliya
III (1176-90) consecrated two consecutive Metropolitans for
Kashghar (modern-day Chinese Turkistan), Yulannan Gohn and
Sabrisho.16
Numerous sources (Syriac, Arabic, Persian, and Latin)
attest to the presence of Turkic and Mongol Christians in the
Mongol Empire (13th14th centuries), including many in positions
of major influence, such as Sorqaqtani, mother of Kublai Khan,
and Doquz Khatun, wife of Hulegu, the Mongol conqueror of
Persia.1’ The Syriac History of Mar Yahballaha (ca. 1320) describes
the journey of the Turkic Ongut monks Rabban Sauma and
Marqos from China to the Middle East, where Marqos later
became the first and only Turkic Patriarch of the Church of the
East, Yahballaha III (12811317).18 The last references (both Syriac
and Latin) to Christianity in Central Asia are from the late 14th
century, shortly after the rulers in various parts of the Mongol
Empire (specifically the Il-khanate, the Golden Horde and the
Chaghatay Khanate) converted to Islam and the Mongol Yuan
Dynasty in China adopted Buddhism.
15 See the discussion of this conversion in Hunter (1989-91) and
Mingana (1925) 308-11.
16 E. Gismondi, ed./tr., Mans Amni et Slibae. Dc Patniarchis
Nestonianorum. Commentania, Pars Altera (Amni et Slibae) (Rome: 1896-7) 64
(Latin tr.).
1 For an excellent overview of this era, see C. Baumer, The
church of the East: An Illustrated History ofAsyrian C’hristianiy (London and
New York: 2006) 195-233.
18 For translations see, J. Montgomery, The History of Yaballaha
III, Nestonian Patriarch, and of his Vicar Bar Sauma (New York: 1927) and E.
Budge, The Monks ofKiibldi Khán, Emperor of China (London: 1928). See also
the discussion in P. Borbone, ‘Some Aspects of Turco-Mongol
Christianity in the Light of Literary and Epigraphic Syriac Sources.’ Journal
ofAsynian Academic Studies 19 (2005) 2, 5-20.
96 DICKENS
LANGUAGES AND SCRIPTS OF CENmAL ASIAN
CHRIsTIANs
Due to its geographical location, Central Asia has always been a
linguistic, cultural and religious meeting place. Over the centuries,
Iranian-speakers from the south have mixed with Turkic-speakers
from the north, a fact that is reflected in the languages used by
Christians in Central Asia. Although early missionaries from the
Persian Church (the Church of the East) who went to Central Asia
and China were undoubtedly fluent in both Middle Persian and
Syriac, the faith was subsequently spread by residents of Central
Asia itself, initially the Sogdians, who were inveterate traders along
the Silk Road, and later the Turks, encompassing both nomadic
and settled elements. Based on extant texts and inscriptions, we
know that Christians in Central Asia used at least six languages, all
of which employed alphabets ultimately derived from Aramaic:
Syriac, Middle Persian, Sogdian, New Persian, Old Uyghur and
ngüt Turkic.’9
Syriac was, of course, the liturgical language of the Church
of the East, but it was probably not used widely outside of the
liturgy, except in the early days by native-speakers amongst the
clergy and the monks. Later on, as the native Syriac-speaking
element in the Christian population declined, the communities
were dominated by non-Syriac speakers, so the use of Syriac was
eventually confined to liturgical usage. Extant Syriac manuscripts
and inscriptions from Central Asia are written primarily in the
Estrangela script, although East Syriac (Nestorian) vocalization is
used in places.
Middle Persian (or Pahiavi) was the language of the Persian
Sassanid Empire. Thus it was the lingua franca of most of the
Persian Christians, members of the Church of the East, who
initially evangelized Central Asia and China. However, Middle
Persian could not compete with the Sogdian language in Central
Asia, so it was probably not used outside of religious contexts
19 On the Aramaic origins of these alphabets, see 0. Skjaervo,
‘Aramaic Scripts for Iranian Languages.’ In: The ltorld’i Wi*in,g lystems, ed.
P. T. Daniels and W. Bright (New York: 1996) 515-35 and G. Kara,
‘Aramaic Scripts for Altaic Languages.’ In: The World’s Writing S 3 stems, ed.
P. T. Daniels and W. Bright (New York: 1996) 537-58.
THE SYRIAC BIBLE IN CENTRAL ASIA 97
(both Zoroastrian and Christian) and was eventually replaced
completely by Sogdian and Uyghur Turkic. Middle Persian was
written in both Book Pahlavi script and Pahlavi Psalter script; the
latter was a variation of the former which the Christians used and
which is known from the invaluable extant folios of a Pahlavi
Psalter found in Turfan, China and discussed below.20
Sogdian was an Eastern Middle Iranian language spoken in
Sogdiana (modern-day Uzbekistan). It was the lingua franca of much
of the Silk Road from Persia to China, due to the crucial role that
the Sogdians played in the conduct of trade along this vital
commercial corridor. However, after the Arab conquest of Central
Asia, particularly during the 9th century, Sogdian was gradually
supplanted by New Persian amongst the Iranian-speakers of
Central Asia. Sogdian was written in three scripts: the native
Sogdian script; a modified Syriac script used by the Christians (with
3 extra letters for Sogdian sounds not found in Syriac) and the
Manichaean script. There are Christian texts in both the Syriac
script and the Sogdian script.21
New Persian is the Iranian language that evolved out of
Middle Persian beginning in the 9th century. It is essentially the
same as modern Persian and is written in a Persian version of the
Arabic script, but Christians who used this language in Central Asia
initially used a modified Syriac script, similar to that used for many
Christian Sogdian texts.
Old Uyghur22 was an important dialect of Old Turkic
spoken in Central Asia up until the Mongol era. It was initially
written in the runic Old Turkic script, but no Christian texts or
inscriptions have been found in this script, so we have no idea if
Christians ever used it. It was later written in several scripts,
including the Uyghur script (adapted from the Sogdian script), a
modified Syriac script (again, similar to that used for many
Christian Sogdian texts) and the Manichaean script. Parallel to the
20 On Middle Persian, see W. Sundermann, ‘Mittelpersisch.’ In:
Compendium Lmguariim Iranicarum, ed. R. Schmitt (\Viesbaden: 1989) 1 38-
64.
21 On Sogdian, see N. Sims-Williams, ‘Sogdian.’ In: Compendium
Linguarum Iranicarum, ed. R. Schmitt (Wiesbaden: 1989) 173-92.
22 So named to distinguish it from the Modern Uyghur language
spoken in Xinjiang, China.
98 DICKENS
situation with Sogdian, there are Christian texts in both the Syriac
script and the Uyghur script.23
Ongut Turkic was a dialect of Old Turkic spoken in what
is now Inner Mongolia. It was written in the same modified Svriac
script that was used for Christian texts in Old Uyghur, reflecting
the fact that for some time the Ongüt Turks were openly Christian.
It is only preserved in Christian gravestone inscriptions; no
Christian Ongüt manuscripts have been found to date.24
The process of linguistic change in the Christian
communities in Central Asia is particularly evident from analysis of
the Christian manuscripts discovered at the monastery of Bulaylq
near Turfan, as summarized by Nicholas Sims-Williams (emphasis
mine):
“Syriac was always maintained as the primary language of the
liturgy, the languages of the local people being admitted into
liturgical use only for particular parts of the service such as
hymns, psalms, and Bible readings... The Pahlavi Psalter
found at BulayIq may be seen as an import from the mother-
church in Iran and the use of Middle Persian for the
vernacular parts of the liturgy as a feature of the earliest period
in the history of the Christian community in the Turfan oasis,
before Sogdian was raised to the status of a church
language... The writers and readers of the Christian Sogdian
manuscripts may in many cases have been Turkish speakers.
During the final phase of the monastery’s existence...
[Uyghur] Turkish was probably the principal language of
day-to-day business, although Sogdian evidently retained a
place beside Svriac as a language of literature and liturgy.”2
23 On Old Turkic, see M. Erdal, ‘Old Turkic.’ In:
The Turkic
Languages, ed. L.Johanson and E. A. Csató (London: 1998) 138-5’,
24 The gravestones have been documented most recently
by T.
Halbertsma, Eaiy Christian Remains of Inner Mongolia: Discovey, Reconstruction
and Appropriation. Sinica Leidensia 88 (Leiden: 2008).
29 N. Sims-Williams, ‘Sogdian and Turkish Christians in the
Turfan and Tun-huang Manuscripts.’ In: Tuifan and Tun-huang, the Texts:
Encounter of Civiliations on the Silk Route. Orientalia Venetiana IV, ed. A.
Cadonna Firenze: 1992) 49-51, 54.
THE SYRIAC BIBLE IN CENTRAL ASIA 99
ROLE OF BIBLIcAL ExEGEsIs IN CENTRAL ASIA
The traditions of biblical interpretation and exposition were fully
developed in Central Asia. There are several biblical exegetes and
expositors connected with Central Asia, many of whom are
referred to by the Syriac title mpha!qdnd, meaning “instructor,
expositor, commentator, interpreter, and translator.”20 Perhaps the
most famous is Isho’dad of Merv (ca. 850), one of most important
biblical exegetes in the Church of the East.2 Other important
Central Asian exegetes mentioned are Theodore of Merv (ca. 540)
and Eliya of Merv (ca. 660),28 as well as the author of the 10th
century Gannat Bussdmi ‘Garden of Delights,’ a voluminous
commentary on the lessons appointed to be read in the East Syriac
liturgy. Although the work itself makes no reference to Central
Asia, the East Syriac writer ‘Abdisho bar Berikha (ca. 1318) calls its
author “the Interpreter of the Turks,” probably referring to an
ethnic Turk living in Persia.29
In addition to these literary references, we also have
epigraphic references to others in the Central Asian church who
were involved in teaching and explaining the Scriptures. Thus, one
of the Svriac inscriptions on the cliffs above Urgut, Uzbekistan
(dating probably from the 8th or 9th century) mentions “the sinner
Nawruz ...the interpreter.” 30 Furthermore, gravestones with
Syriac inscriptions discovered in the Chu Valley, Kyrgyzstan (dating
20
J Payne Smith, A Compendious Sj’riac Dictionary, founded Ipon the
Thesaurus Sjriacus of R. Pajne Smith (Oxford: 1903) 293.
r On whom, see W. Wright, A Short Histo 9 of Sjiiac Literature
(London: 1894) 220-1.
25 On whom, see Wright (1894) 119-20, 1 9-80.
29
J S. Assemani, Bibliotheca Orientalis Ciementino-T/aticana, Vol.
III: 1 (Rome: 1725) 188. A less than satisfactory English translation is
given by G. P. Badger, The Nestorians and Their Rüuals, Vol. II (London:
1852) 374. See also the discussion of the author’s identity in G. J. Reinink,
Studien zurQuellen- und Traditionsgeschichte des Ei’angelienkommentars der Gannat
Bussame. CSCO 414, Subsidia 57 (Louvain: 1979) 4-5 and G. J. Reinink,
ed., Gannat Bussame I, Die Adventssonntage ‘Texi’. CSCO 501, Syriaca 211
(Louvain: 1988) vii-viii.
30 My reading is based on digital images supplied to me b Dr.
Alexei Savchenko. M. Tardieu, ‘En site chrétien dans la Sogdiane des
Sâmãnides.’ Le monde c/c Ia Bible 119 (1999) 40-2 reads the name as Itä
Küröz, but the digital image does not support this reading.
 100 DICKENS
from the 13th and 14th centuries) make numerous references to the
following ecclesiastical positions: esku/aya (“scholar, scholasticus”);
mdraidnd (“teacher, preacher”); maphdnn (“teacher, master”);
mphaJqdnd (“interpreter, exegete”) 31
The gravestones also feature a Sogdian word in Syriac
script: xufti/qu.(/i, xu!tarn/quftan4 “teacher (masc. and fern.).” This
is a loan-word into the dialect of Turkic, the language spoken by
those commemorated on the gravestones. Most fascinating is the
fact that the feminine form of the word, xuitan//quftan4 occurs far
more frequently than the masculine form. For many years, scholars
thought that it was a variant form of the name Constance, but it
seems to be a title, perhaps referring to a position in the church,
although we have no other references to verify this supposition.32
CHRIsTIAN MANUSCRIPTS FROM CENTRAl AsIA
Although archaeological discoveries are extremely helpful in
helping us to understand Central Asian Christianity, they reveal
31 The majority of this corpus is documented in D.
Chwolson,
‘Sy risch-Nestorianische Grabinschriften aus Semirjetschie.’ Mémoires de
lAcadémie imperiale des sciences de Si-Pétersboug, Ser. VII, vol. XXXVII
(1890) and his later work Sricch-Nestoriaiiisc/e Grabinschriften aus Semijetschie.
Neue Foige (St. Petersburg: 1897). See also the excellent coverage of this
topic in W. Klein, Das nestorianische C’hrisientum an den Hande/swegen durch
Kjtysian his zum 14. Jh. Silk Road Studies III (Turnhout: 2000).
32 F. Nau, ‘L’expansion nestorienne en Asic,’ Anna/es
dii Musée
Guime4 Bib/iotheque de vu.garisation 40 (1914) 336 suggested that it was the
most common female name in the corpus. However, W. Sundermann,
‘Soghdisch *xwit’nc ,,Lehrerin”.’ Acta Orienta/ia Academiae Scienliarum
Hun,garicae 48 (1995) 225-7 argues convincingly that this is a title, not a
name. See also P. Zieme, ‘Die seltsamen Wanderwege des sogdischen
Titels *xuItan ,,Lehrerin”.’ In: Turko/ogie für das 21. Jahrhundert.
Veroffentlichungen der Societas Uralo-Altaica 70, ed. H. Fenz and P.
Kappert (Wiesbaden: 2006b) 301-’. Two letters in the feminine form
deserve comment: The initial letter is one of the three extra letters in the
Sogdian version of the Syriac script, pronounced /x/ in Christian Sogdian
and generally /q/ in Christian Turkic. The final letter, Syriac ,rade, is
pronounced // in both Christian Sogdian and Christian Turkic, This use
of the Aramaic letter /s/ for the sound // is the general practice in pre
Islamic Iranian languages which use scripts based on Aramaic, since the
former sound does not occur in Iranian languages and there is no Aramaic
letter for //).
THE SYRIAC BIBLE IN CENTRAL ASIA 101
little about the role that the Bible played in these Christian
communities. The rich manuscript finds from the cities of Turfan,
Dunhuang and Qara-khoto in western China have given scholars
much more insight into that role. These discoveries were initially
the result of several European archaeological expeditions to
western China (East Turkistan or Xinjiang) in the early 20th
century, but Chinese archaeologists have discovered further
manuscripts and artifacts in each of these places since that tirne.
Turfan was located at the heart of the Uyghur Kingdom of
Qocho (ca. 860-1284). Four Prussian expeditions led by Albert
Grünwedel and Alexander von le Coq (in 1902-3, 1904-5, 1905-7,
and 1913-4) discovered manuscripts in 15 languages and 25 scripts,
all now in the Turfanforschung Collection, housed in several
locations in Berlin.34 Approximately 1100 fragments of Christian
texts were discovered in the ruins of BulayIq in 1905, most dating
from the 9thlOth centuries.
Dunhuang was an important Buddhist centre to the east of
Turfan, but its inhabitants also included “Turks who are Nestorian
Christians,” according to Marco P010.36 A British expedition under
Marc Aurel Stein in 1907 brought back numerous manuscripts and
artifacts now kept in the British Library and the British Museum. A
3 The story of these European expeditions to western China is
told in P. Hopkirk, Foregn devils on the Silk Road: the searchfor the lost cities and
treasures of Chinese CentralAsia (London: 1980).
On the Prussian expeditions, see A. von le Coq, Auf He/las
Spuren in Ostiurkistan: Berichte und Ahentener der II. und III. Deutschen Tufan
Expedition (Leipzig: 1926), A. von le Coq, Buried Treasures of Chinese
Turkesian: an Account of the Activities and Adventures of the Second and Third
German Tufan Expeditions, tr. A. Barwell (London: 1928) and A. von le
Coq, Von Land und Leuten in Ostturkistan: Berichte und Abenieuer der 4.
Deutschen Tuzne4edition (Leipzig: 1928).
35 A good overview, albeit with some errors and omissions, can
be found in J. Asmussen, ‘The Sogdian and Uighur-Turkish Christian
Literature in Central Asia before the Real Rise of Islam: A Survey.’ In:
Indo/o,gical and Buddhist Studies: Volume in Honour of Proftssor J. U5’ de Jong on
his Sixtieth Birthdqy, ed. L. Hercus ci al (Canberra: 1982) 11-29. See also W.
Hage, ‘Das Christentum in der Turfan-Oase.’ In: Sjnkretismus in den
Rehgionen Zentralasiens, ed, W. Heissig and H.-J. Klimkeit (Wiesbaden:
198) 46-57 and N. Sims-Williams, ‘Christianity, iv. Christian Literature in
Middle Iranian Languages.’ Enyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. 5 (1992) 534-5.
36 R. Latham, tr., The Travels ofMarco Polo (London: 1958) 85.
102 DICKENS
separate French expedition led by Paul Peffiot in 1906-8 brought
back more manuscripts, housed in the Bibliotheque Nationale,
Paris. A few Christian texts have been uncovered at Dunhuang,
including some recently discovered by the Chinese, but nowhere
near the quantity found at Turfan.
Qara-khoto was an important centre of the Tanguts,
amongst whom there were Christians during the Mongol era. A
Russian expedition under Peter Kozlov in 1908-9 brought back
numerous manuscripts currently kept in the Hermitage Museum,
St. Petersburg. Again, amongst the manuscripts discovered were a
few Christian texts.
Syriac Texts
As noted above, most Syriac texts from Central Asia have been
discovered in Turfan. These include approximately 400 Syriac
manuscript fragments in Berlin and nearly 100 in St. Petersburg.v
A few Syriac manuscript fragments have also been discovered by
the Chinese in recent years in Dunhuang.
Compared to the Christian texts in Iranian (Middle Persian,
New Persian and Sogdian) and Turkic (Uyghur languages, little
research has been done on the Syriac texts from Turfan,30 Thus,
the exact contents of the overall corpus are still unclear, but most
fragments seem to be liturgical texts or biblical texts. The liturgical
texts include the earliest manuscripts of the East Syriac Uudrd
(including several chants that do not appear to be extant in any
The Syriac manuscripts in Berlin are summarized in ivi.
Mardth, ‘Die syrischen Handschriften in der Turfan-Sammiung.’ 4gptee,
orderasien, Tutjc-m: Pro b/erne der Edit/c,, tied Bearbeitung a/torienta/ischer
7
T the following texts from the East Svriac Psalter have been identified:
Handsch?!/ien. Schriften zur Geschichte und Kultur des alten Orients 23,
ed. H. Klengel and W. Sundermann (Berlin: 1991) 126-8. Those in St.
Petersburg are described in E. Meshcherskaya, ‘The Syriac fragments in
the N,N. Krotkov Collection.’ Tufan, Khotan and Dunhuang. Bcrichtc und
Abhandlungen, Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften 1,
ed. R. Emmerick etal(Berlin: 1996) 221-7.
The Svriac, Christian Sogdian and Christian Turkic fragments
from Berlin are currently being catalogued as part of an AHRC-funded
research project, led by Dr. Erica Hunter, which is based in the
Department for the Study of Religions, School of Oriental and African
Studies, University of London.
THE SYRIAC BIBLE IN CENTRAL ASIA 103
other manuscripts)3 and a portion of the Office of Martyrs for the
First Sunday, part of the St. Petersburg collection.4° The biblical
texts so far identified are all from the Psalter, including certain
Psalm-like passages that are from other biblical books, but which
are included in the East Syriac Psalter.41
Syriac texts from Dunhuang include:
1. Fragments of Gal. 3:7-10 and I Cor. 1:18-19, probably
part of an East Syriac Easter liturgy, since the readings
are typically used on Good Friday and Holy Saturday.
The reading follows the Peshita text, with minor variants
and is dated to the 13th or 14th centuries, during the
Mongol era.
42
9 W. F. Macomber, ‘A List of the Known Manuscripts of the
Chaldean lludrã.’ Oriental/a Chris/inca Period/ca 36 (1970) 123-4. Only a few
of these texts have been published: s T II B 7 No. la; T II B 26; T II B
55, published in E. Sachau, ‘Litteratur-BruchstOcke aus Chinesisch
Turkis tan.’ Silungsberichte der Konzg/ich Preussischen Akademie der
W/z:rsenschaften (1905) 964-”8 and Saeki (1951) 337-47. As Saeki (1951) 334-
5 notes, the fragments published by Sachau include hymns to be sung on
Christmas Day, on the Feast Day commemorating St. Mary and on the
Feast of the Sanctification of the Church. The fragments published in H.
Engberding, ‘Fünf Blätter eines alten ostsyrischen Bitt- und
Bussgottesdienstes aus Innerasien,’ Ostkirchliche Sludien 14 (1965) 121-48
have not yet been identified, since the author did not indicate their
numbers.
40 N. Pigoulewskv, ‘Fragments svriaques et syro-turcs de Hara
hoto et de Tourfan.’ Revue de l’Orient Chrétie,, 30 (1935-6) 3 1-9.
41 See P/ale 1. Sriac Psalter fragment, Turfan Collection. To
date, in the process of cataloguing the Turfan Syriac fragments in Berlin,
Psalm 22:8-26:3; 78:26-64; “9:9-80:12a; 84:3b-85:5; 89:46-47; 90:2; 95:9-
10; 96:5-8; 119:32-49, 64-80; Exodus 15:15-21 (from the so-called First
Song of Moses); Deuteronomy 32:31-40 (from the so-called Third Song
of Moses); Isaiah 42:10-13; 45:8 (from the so-called Song of Isaiah).
Thanks to Dr. David Taylor and Mr. Steven Ring for clarifying how these
latter texts, sometimes called “canticles” or “odes,” fit into the Psalter in
the East S riac tradition. How many separate copies of the Psalter are
amongst the Turfan fragments is unclear, but there are at least three.
42 W. Klein and
,J. Tubach, ‘Em syrisch-christliches Fragment
aus Dunhuang/China.’ Zeitschrifl der Deutschen Mo,en/dndischen Gesel/schaft
144 (1994) 1-13, 446 with subsequent commentary in H. Kaufhold,
104 DICKENS
2. Excerpts from the Syriac liturgical “Book of the Before
and the After” containing quotations from the Psalms
(Psa. 15, 17, 21, 23, 24, 25, 28), with an interlinear text in
Uyghur script of Buddhist origin, also from the Mongol
43
era.
Qara-khoto has yielded two Syriac prayer texts:
1. A prayer of penitence pleading for rain after a drought,
which includes a quotation from Psa. 51:4.44
2. A prayer for help, focusing on the suffering, death and
resurrection of Christ.45
There are also two Syriac texts of uncertain provenance,
either from Chinese Turkistan or China proper, which are either
biblical or liturgical in nature:
1. A book of Old Testament texts written in Beijing in 1725
from a copy dating back to 752/53 (now in the John
Rylands Library) ,46
2. Fragments of the “Book of the Before and the After,”
containing morning and evening Martyrs’ Anthems for
several days of the week, including frequent quotations
from the Psalms, Probably dating from the 13th century,
it was located somewhere in Beijing in the 1920’s but its
present whereabouts are unknown.4
‘Anmerkungen zur Veroffentlichung eines syrischen Lektionarfragments.’
Zeitschriji c/er Deutschen MorgenIãidischen Gesellschaft 146 (1996) 49-60.
B53:14 published in D. Qing, ‘Bericht über em neuentdecktes
syrisches Dokument aus Dunhuang/China.’ Oriens Christianus 85 (2001)
84-93 and A. Yakup, ‘On the Interlinear Uyghur Poetry in the Newly
Unearthed Nestorian Text,’ Splitter aus c/er Gegend von Tu/im: FestschrftJiir
Peter Zieme anlaji’lich seines 60. Geburtstags, ed. M. Olmez and S-C.
Raschmann (Istanbul-Berlin: 2002) 409-17.
Pigoulewsky (1935-6) 14-18,
Pigoulewsky (1935-6) 18-21,
46
J F. Coakley, ‘A Catalogue of the Syriac Manuscripts in the
John Rylands Library.’ Bulletin ofthe John Rjlands Library 75 (1993) 120-3.
“ W. Taylor, ‘Syriac MSS. found in Peking, Ca. 1925.’ Journal of
the American Oriental Sociqy 61(1941) 91-7.
THE SYRIAC BIBLE IN CENTRAL ASIA 105
Middle Persian and New Persian Texts
John Chrysostom (ca. 347-ca. 407) and Theodoret (ca. 393-ca. 457)
both make statements that imply that parts of the New Testament
were translated into Persian at their time, in the late 4th and early 5th
centuries. We know from statements in Syriac literature that
hymns, discourses and liturgical texts were certainly translated from
Syriac into Persian in the 5th century and were still in use in the 8th
century. Unfortunately, none of these have survived, except some
philosophical works and legal treatises translated from Persian back
into Syriac. An important testimony to Middle Persian Christian
literature is the fkand-gumdrn(g Wicir a 9th century Zoroastrian
polemic against Jews and Christians which cites several Old
Testament and New Testament verses in Middle Persian.4
However, undoubtedly the most significant find thus far is
the Middle Persian Psalter from Turfan, the only extant Christian
manuscript in Middle Persian.4 It represents the language at an
intermediate stage between earlier Sassanid inscriptions and later
Zoroastrian literature preserved after the Arab conquest. Indeed,
the script is similar to Book Pahiavi script, but is actually an earlier
form. The extant fragments contain most of Psa. 94-99, 118, 121-
136 (thus, most of the Songs of Ascent). The manuscript is not
older than the 6th century, but the original text was probably
significantiy older, perhaps 4th or 5t century. It is generally a literal
translation of the Peshitta, including many Syriac loan-words, but it
occasionally agrees more with the Hebrew text or the Greek
Septuagint.5°
46 On the Bible in Middle Persian, see K. Thomas, ‘Bible, iii.
Chronology of Translations of the Bible,’ Enfyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. 4
(1990) 203-6 and S. Shaked, ‘Bible, iv. Middle Persian Translations of the
Bible,’ Enclpaedia Iranica, Vol. 4 (1990) 206-7.
‘
Plate 2: Pahlavi Psalter fragment, Turfan Collection.
50 On the Psalter, see F. Andreas, ‘Bruchstücke einer Pehlewi
Ubersetzung der Psalmen aus der Sassanidenzeit.’ Situngsberichte c/er
Könglich Preussischen Akaclemie der Wissenschaflen (1910) 869-72 and F.
Andreas and K. Barr, ‘Bruchstücke einer Pehlewi-Ubersetzung der
Psalmen.’ Sitangsberichte c/er Preussischen Akademie c/er Wissenschaften (1933)
91-152. See also J. Asmussen, ‘The Pahiavi Psalm 122 in English.’ Dr J.
vL Unuala Memorial Volume (Bombay: 1964) 123-6 and P. Gignoux,
1
‘L’auteur de la version pehlevie du psautier serait-il nestorien?’ Memorial
!4gr Gabriel Khouri-Sarkis 1898-1968 (Beirut: 1964) 233-44.
106 DICKENS
The liturgical usage of Middle Persian in Turfan is
surprising, since it was not widely used beyond the boundaries of
the Persian Sassanid Empire. However, the fact that it was found
so far to the east indicates that the language had a certain status for
Central Asian Christians, even though it was probably not spoken
by any of the monks at Turfan during the heyday of the Christian
community there (9th..13th centuries). The Middle Persian origins of
Central Asian Christianity are also evident in the use of the Pahlavi
loan word tars4g “one who fears,” referring to Christians and used
in Christian Sogdian manuscripts in the form tarsdk.51
Finally, there is an interlinear Syriac-New Persian Psalter
fragment from Turfan which contains Psa. 146:5-147:7, according
to the Peshitta numbering (equivalent to Psa. 147 in the English
Bible). The Syriac lines are followed by a New Persian translation
in modified Syriac script (with the extra letters used in Christian
Sogdian texts).52
Sogclian Texts
There are approximately 500 Christian Sogdian manuscripts from
Turfan in the modified Syriac script plus another 50 in Sogdian
script, along with a handful from Dunhuang.53 However, no
Christian Sogdian texts have been discovered in Sogdiana proper,
5’ The Syriac letter qoph was pronounced /k/ in Sogdian. On
the term itself, see S. Pines, ‘The Iranian name for Christians and the
‘God-Fearers’.’ Proceedings of the Israel Acade#y of Sciences and Hnmanities II
Gerusalem: 1968) 143-52.
52 T II B 57, T II B 64, discussed in F. W. K. Muller, ‘Em
syrisch-neupersisches Psalmenbruchstück aus Chinesisch-Turkistan.’
Festschrifr Eduard Sachau, ed. G. Well (Berlin: 1915) 215-22, E. Benveniste,
‘Sur un fragment d’un psautier syro-persan.’ Jonrnal Asialique 230 (1938)
458-62 and W. Sundermann, ‘Einige Bemerkungen zum Syrisch
Neupersischen Psalmenbruchstük aus Chinesisch-Turkistan.’ MemorialJean
deMenasce, ed. P. Gignoux and A. Tafazzoli Louvain: 1974) 441-52.
5 On the Christian Sogdian manuscripts from Turfan, see N.
Sims-Williams, ‘Die christlich-sogdischen Handschriften von BulayIq.’
Agypten, T/orderasien, Tufan. Schriften zur Geschichte und Kultur des alten
Orients 23, ed. H. Klengel and W. Sundermann (Berlin: 1991) 119-25, On
those in Sogdian script, see C. Reck, ‘A Survey of the Christian Sogdian
Fragments in Sogdian Script in the Berlin Turfan Collection.’ Controverses
des chrltiens dans l’Iran sassarnde. Studia Iranica Cahier 36, ed. C. Jullien
-
(Paris: 2008) 191-205.
THE SYRIAC BIBLE IN CENTRAL ASIA 107
to the west of the Tien Shan Mountains which divide Chinese
Central Asia from the former Soviet Central Asia. Almost all of the
Christian texts can be dated to the 9th or 10th century. Many are
translations of Syriac hagiographical texts or ascetical works,
including some that go back to the Egyptian monastic tradition.
Some, such as the Antirrheticus of Evagrius Ponticus, contain
frequent biblical quotations.54
There are several Sogdian biblical texts of note from
Turfan:55
1. Portions of a Gospel lectionarys6 with Syriac titles in red
ink (i.e. rubrics) and Sogdian text in black ink, thus
indicating the use of both languages in church services.
The Syriac text is generally identical with the Peshita, but
there are some textual variations. By contrast, the
Sogdian text shows general dependence on the Peshita,
but there are some traces of the Diatessaron and the Old
Syriac version of the New Testament. In general, the
readings are very close to East Syriac lectionaries from
later manuscripts.5
C2 = n 41-42, 474-475, 477, The overall manuscript C2 has
been published in 0. Hansen, ‘Berliner soghdische Texte II: Bruchstllcke
der grol3en Sammelhandshrift C2.’ Akademie der Wissenschafren und der
Lñ’eratur in Main Jahrbuch, Abhandlungen der Geistes- .tind
Sozjalwissenschaflhichen Klasse 15 (1954) 821-918. A new and improved
reconstruction of the manuscript has been published more recently by N.
Sims-Williams, The Christian Sogdian Manuscrzt C2. Berliner Turfantexte
XII (Berlin: 1985).
On the Bible in Sogdian, see N. Sims-Wiffiams, ‘Bible, v.
Sogdian Translations of the Bible.’ Enclopaedia Iranica, Vol. 4 (1990) 207.
5 CS. An edition and translation of this manuscript is currently
underway. See Plate 3: Fragment from Christian Sogdian CS lectionary,
Turfan Collection.
v T II B 67 = a 151 r = Matthew 5:30-33; T II B 64 = n 212
= Luke 1:1-4; T II B 17 = n 149 r John 1:19-27; T JIB 46 = a 201 r =
Gal. 3:25ff, published in F. ‘‘1. K. Muller, ‘Soghdische Texte I.’
Abhandlun,gen der Kornglich Preussischen Akademie der WissenschaJien.
Philosophisch-Historische Klasse 11(1912) 1-111 and discussed in F. C. Burkitt,
The Religion of the Manichees (Cambridge: 1925) 119-25 and C. Peters, ‘Der
Texte der soghdischen Evangelienbruchstllcke und das Problem der
Peiitta.’ Oriens Christianus 33 (1936) 153-62.
108 DICKENS
2. Lectionary fragments with alternating Syriac and Sogdian
58
sentences.
3. Fragments of a Sogdian Psalter, clearly translated from
the Peshita, in which the first verse of each Psalm is in
both Syriac and Sogdian. Included in this manuscript is a
Sogdian version of the Nicene Creed in Sogdian script.59
4. A fragment of Psa. 33 (probably from a Psalter), with the
first phrase in Greek, but continued in Sogdian. Unlike
other Christian Sogdian texts, it shows the influence of
the Septuagint, as well as the Peshita. The translation
was probably made in the Sogdian homeland, since
Melkites were present there, but not in Turfan.60
However, despite these examples, it is unclear if any books of the
Old or New Testament, apart from the Psalms, were ever
translated into Sogdian as a whole.
Uyghur Turkic Texts
Approximately 50 Christian Turkic manuscripts have been
discovered from Turfan and a handful from Qara-khoto, in both
Uyghur script and the modified Syriac script. Several of these date
from the Mongol period. Although there are no biblical texts per se,
there are various texts with biblical allusions and brief quotations
which indicate the biblical foundation of the extant Turkic
Christian literature:
1. The story of the Three Magi, originating in the Syriac
Protoevangelium Jacobi.61
58 T II B Y: see M. Schwartz, ‘Sogdian Fragments of the Book of
Psalms.’ Altorientalische Forschungen 1 (1 9’4) 257-61.
T II B 65, T III TVB, T Ii B 68, so15490 in Schwartz (1974).
60 T II B 66 = so12955, on which see W. Sundermann, ‘Byzanz
und BulayIq.’ Iranian and Indo-European Studies: Memorial Volume of Otakar
KIlma, ed. P. Vavrouiek (Praha: 1994) 25-8.
T II B 29, published in F. W. K. Muller, ‘Uigurica 1.’
Abhandlungen der Konzglich Preussischen Akademie der Wissenschqften.
Philosophisch-Historische Klasse, No. 11(1908) 5-10, C. MaA0B, flaMI’rxmcH
ApeBHeTIopKc’coil flncbMetmocTrs, (MocKaa-AeomnrpaA: 1951) 131-8 and
A. van Tongerloo, ‘Ecce Magi ab Oriente Venerunt.’ Philosophie-Philosophj
Tolerance. Acta Orientalia Belgica VII, ed. A. Théodoridès (Brussels: 1992)
57-74.
THE SYRIAC BIBLE IN CENTRAL ASIA 109
2. Fragment of an oracle book or collection of apocryphal
sayings, including a non-canonical quotation from Luke.62
3. A prayer booklet written in Syriac and Uyghur scripts
(possibly used as a school exercise book), including a
Syriac phrase probably taken down by dictation which
may refer to Psa. 72:17,63
4. A wedding Blessing, with references to Abraham, Jacob,
Joseph, Joshua and Samson.64
5. A text which expands on Psa. 68:5, speaking of God as
“Mother to the motherless, Father to the fatherless.”05
6. A fragmentary text from Qara-khoto on the passion of
Christ, referring to Jonah in the whale’s belly and Daniel
in the lions’ den, probably translated from a Syriac
original, due to the use of many Syriac loan_words.66
7. A small booklet from Qara-khoto containing
exhortations to alms-giving, with a Uyghur paraphrase of
Prov. 22:9 and a Syriac quotation from Matthew 10:42.6”
62 See Plate 4: Christian Uyghur fragment in Uyghur script with
non-canonical saying from Luke [T II B 1 = U 3201 published in A. von
le Coq, ‘Em christliches und em manichäisches Manuskriptfragment in
Türkischer Sprache aus Turfan (Chinesisch-Turkistan).’ Situngsberichte der
Konglich Preussischen Akademie der Wissenscha,fien (1909) 1205-8.
63 T II B 41 = U 338, in P. Zieme, ‘Notes on a bilingual prayer
book from Bulayik.’ Proceedings of the 2nd International C’onftrence ‘Research on
the Church f the East in China and Central Asia,’ Salburg 1-6 June 2006.
Collectanea Serica, ed. R. Malek and P. Hofrichter (in press).
64 See Plate 5: Christian Uyghur wedding blessing in Syriac script
[T III Kurutka 1857 = U 72641 published in P. Zieme, ‘Em
Hochzeitssegen Uigurischer Christen.’ Scholia: Beitrage ur Turkologie und
Zentralasienkunde, ed. K. Röhrborn and H. Brands QX’iesbaden: 1981) 221-
32.
65 T II B 28 = U 4910, published in P. Zieme, ‘Zu den
nestorianish-türkischen Turfantexten.’ Sprache, Geschichte und Kultur der
altaischen Vflker: Protokollband der XII Tagzing der Permanent International
Altaistic Coi/irence 1969 in Berlin. Schriften zur Geschichte und Kultur des
alten Orients 5, ed. G. Hazai and P. Zieme (Berlin: 1974) 663-4.
66 Pigoulewsky (1935-6) 21-31.
6’ P. Zieme, ‘A Cup of Cold Water: Folios of a Nestorian-Turkic
Manuscript from Kharakhoto.’ Jingüao: The Church of the East in China and
Central Asia. Collectanea Serica, ed. R. Malek and P. Hofrichter (Sankt
Augustin: 2006) 341-45.
110 DICKENS
OTHER CHRISTIAN MANUSCRIPTS AND
ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS
In addition to the manuscripts found in Turfan, Dunhuang and
Qara-khoto, there are several other manuscript and archaeological
finds from Central Asia and Mongolia that shed further light on the
role of the Bible in Central Asia.
An ostracon (potsherd) was excavated at Penjikent (modern
day Tajikistan), dating from the late 7th or early 8th century.
68
Originally part of a very large vessel, portions of Psalm I and 2 in
Syriac were written in black ink on it. The text is the same as the
Peshitta, but scribal errors indicate that it was taken down by
dictation and the writer was a Sogdian-speaker, not a native Syriac
speaker. It was probably an exercise for mastering the Syriac script
and possibly may indicate the presence of a school attached to a
Christian monastery.
A funerary tile from Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, dated to 1253,
has a vertical inscription painted in black ink, not engraved (like
other Syriac gravestones from Central Asia and China).69 The
deceased is described as Yawnan Gonas), head of the local
government and commander of the auxiliary troops. Due to the
location, Yawnan was probably an Ongut Turk. In addition to the
cross and Uyghur Turkic inscription, there is a quotation from Psa.
34:6 in Syriac: “Look unto him [and] hope in him.” Quotations
from Psa. 34:6 sometimes accompany an image of the cross in
Syriac manuscripts, but this is the only use of this text on a
gravestone, perhaps reflecting Syriac manuscripts used in Inner
Mongolia at that time.
The final relevant artifact is the so-called Gospel of Princess
Sara, formerly located in Divarbekir and now in the Vaticanfo It is
6s A. V. Paykova, ‘The Syrian Ostracon from Panjikant.’ Le
Musion 92 (1979) 159-69.
P. Borbone, ‘Peshitta Psalm 34:6 from Syria to China.’ Tex4
Translation, and Tradition: Studies on the Peshitta and its Lee in the Syriac
Tradition. Monographs of the Peshitta Institute Leiden 14, ed. W. van
Peursen and B. ter Haar Romeny (Leiden: 2006) 1-10.
-o Vat. Syr. 622, described in A. Scher, ‘Notice sur les manuscrits
syriaques Ct arabes conserves a l’archevCchC chaldéen de Diarbékir.’ Journal
Asiatique, Ser. X, Tom. X (1907) 334-5 and P. Borbone, ‘Princess Sara’s
Gospel Book: A Syriac Manuscript Written in Inner Mongolia?’ Jingiiao:
THE SYRIAC BIBLE IN CENTRAL ASIA 111
a fine example of chrysography (gold ink on blue paper), dated to
1298. It is obviously a Gospel book intended for personal use; the
colophon states that it was written for “Sara the believer.., sister of
Giwargis (George)... king of the Onga)i (Ongüt).” Based on
various factors, scholars have concluded that it was probably
written in the IVIiddIe East, not Sara’s homeland of Inner Mongolia.
Several factors probably influenced the commissioning of this
precious book, including the fact that Mongol rule in the Middle
East facilitated communication between the heartland of the
Church of the East and the Ongut homeland. Moreover, it was
written during when the Ongut Turk Yahballaha III was Patriarch
of the Church of the East. The Buddhist custom of writing sutras
in gold ink on blue paper may also have inspired Sara’s choice.
Whether or not it ever reached the Princess in her Central Asian
homeland is unknown.
CONCLUSIONS
Based on the testimony of Syriac literature from outside of Central
Asia and Svriac manuscripts and inscriptions from within Central
Asia, it is clear that the Bible played an important role in the life of
Central Asian Christians, especially those involved in the monastic
lifestyle. However, apart from the Turfan and Dunhuang
fragments, manuscript evidence of the use of the Bible in Central
Asia is fleeting.
Biblical texts are largely preserved in liturgical contexts,
including lectionaries; it is unclear whether or not the whole Syriac
Bible was ever translated into Sogdian and Uyghur Turkic,
although portions of the former and perhaps the latter were used
for readings in church services. The exception is the Psalter, one of
the most important parts of the Bible for those living a monastic
lifestyle, as is evident from the extant Psalter fragments in Syriac,
Middle Persian, Sogdian, and New Persian.
Apart from these liturgical texts, the influence of the Bible
on Central Asian Christianity can also be seen in some of the other
texts found in Turfan and elsewhere, whether prayers, wedding
blessings or texts of unclear purpose. In each of these, we can see
The Church of the East in China and &nfral Asia. Collectanea Serica, ed. R.
Malek and P. Hofrichter (Sankt Augustin: 2006) 34-8,
112 DICKENS
biblical allusions, paraphrases and direct quotations, including
innovative texts which extend the biblical quotation or supply non-
canonical quotes from biblical authors. Even non-manuscript
materials, such as the ostracon and funerarv tile, bear witness to the
importance of the Syriac Bible in Central Asia, even for those
whose mother tongue was Sogdian or one of the Turkic dialects of
Central Asia. Finally, the beautiful Gospel prepared for Princess
Sara in Mongolia gives us a glimpse into the role that Christianity
played amongst the upper class in certain parts of Central Asia.
As elsewhere in the history of the Church of the East, the
Bible played a foundational role in the establishment and growth of
the various Christian communities scattered across Central Asia,
from modern-day Afghanistan to Mongolia. The evidence, fleeting
as it is, clearly shows that Christianity in Central Asia was not
merely a thin veneer over the animistic and shamanistic religious
core of the Turkic peoples. There was sufficient spiritual vibrancy
and knowledge within the community to support teachers and
interpreters of Scripture. With the eventual demise of those
communities in the late 1 th and early 15th centuries, the only
4 Propaganda Fide.
testimonies we have of their Christian faith are the sporadic
archaeological artifacts, inscriptions and manuscripts that have
survived the ravages of time and which still speak to us of the
presence of a Syriac church, whose origins were in Mesopotamia,
that once numbered Sogdians, Qarluqs, Uyghurs, Onguts and
Mongols amongst its members.
LISTING OF PLATES
P/ate 1, Syriac Psalter fragment, Turfan Collection.
P/ate 2. Pahiavi Psalter fragment, Turfan Collection.
P/ate 3. Fragment from Christian Sogdian C5 lectionary, Turfan
Collection.
P/ate 4. Christian Uyghur fragment in Uyghur script with non-
canonical saving from Luke, Turfan Collection.
P/ate 5. Christian Uvghur wedding blessing in Syriac script, Turfan
Collection.
THE SYRIAC BIBLE IN CENTRAL ASIA 113
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Andreas, F. and Barr, K. (1933). ‘Bruchstücke einer Pehlewi
Ubersetzung der Psalmen,’ Situngsberichte der Preussischen
Akademie der Wissenschaften: 91-152.
Asmussen, J. (1982). ‘The Sogdian and Uighur-Turkish Christian
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ofProfessorJ. lT” de Jon,g on his Sixtieth Birthdaj, ed. L. Hercus
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‘The Pahlavi Psalm 122 in English.’ In: Dr J. M.
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Assemani, J. S. (1719-28). Bibliotheca Orienta/is C7ementino-Vaticana, 3
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Badger, G. (1852). The Nestorians and Their Rftua/s, 2 vols. London:
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Baumer, C. (2006). The Church of the East: An Illustrated Histoy of
As.yrian Christianity, London and New York: I.B. Tauris.
Benveniste, E. (1938). ‘Sur un fragment d’un psautier syro-persan,’
JournalAsiatique 230: 458-62.
Bidawid, R. (1956). Les /etters dupatriarche nestorien Timothée. I. Studi e
Testi 187. Vatican City: Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana.
Borbone, P. (2006a). ‘Peshitta Psalm 34:6 from Syria to China.’ In:
Text, Translation, and Tradition: Studies on the Peshitta and its
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 120 DICKENS

Protoko/Iband c/er XII Tagung c/er Permanent International

Altaistic C’wference 1969 in Berlin. Schriften zur Geschichte
und Kultur des alten Orients 5, ed. G. Hazai and P. Zieme.
Akademie-Verlag: 661-8.

MaA0B, C. (1951). flaM1ITHHKH ApeBHeT1opKcKoi

FIHcbMeHH0cTH. MocKBa-AenrnlrpaA: I43AaTeACTBO
I PREsTER JOHN’S REALM:
NEW LIGHT ON CHRISTIANITY BETWEEN
AKaAesHH HayK CCCP. I MERv AND TuRFAN

ALEx]I SAvCHENKO
SocIETy FOR THE ExPLoRATION OF CENTRAL AsIA

AND

vLRK DIcKENS

SCHOOL OF ORIENTAL AND AFRICAN STUDIES

The question of the historical role of Nestorianism in Turkestan, and of

the reasonsfor its complete disappearance belongs to the questions of main
conceni for that part of the local intellectuals who take interest in the
countO s past ... A more academic forozulation would of course
become possible when all iiformation of the Oriental authors is collected,
and when those places where, according to that information, Christiani
once flourished are subjected to thorough studj in order to discover
substantial new monuments. \Xilhelm Barthold (1 869—1 930), ‘More
on Christianity in Central Asia”

For centuries, Europeans were captivated by the figure of Prester

John, the legendary Christian priest-king who supposedly ruled
over vast stretches of Asia. The West eventuall3 realised that he
never existed, but the fascination with Christianity far to the East
of Europe remained and indeed was based on solid historical fact.
As the quote from Barthold above points Out, the task of

1 V. V. Bartol’d, Rabopo otdeljmpivblemam istorii Srednçj Aii 2.

Sochinenja (Moscow: 1964) 315.

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