Syriac Historians and Chronicles

Syriac Historians and Chronicals

The medieval period, particularly after the advent of Syriac Christianity as a major literary and ecclesiastical tradition, saw the emergence of prominent historians from within the Syriac community itself and they played a major rols in passing the Syriac heritege to the generations that followed them. Thier chronicles provided not only the series of historical events but it provided information about the living conditions i nthe Near East. They recorded events like famine, drought, pandamics, etc. and they gave valuable infomration about the economic conditions of the population. 

Below is a partial list of the Syriac hsitorians and their work that added a singnificant contribution to the Syriac heritage. The wrote chronicles, general or particular, which are the history events as they know and read about them

• Eusebius of Caesarea (c. 260/265 – 339/340 CE): As an early church historian, Eusebius documented the beginnings of Christianity in the Syriac-speaking East, including traditions related to the apostles' activities in Edessa (Urfa). His Ecclesiastical History is a foundational source for understanding the early development of Syriac Christianity.

• John of Ephesus (c. 507 – c. 588 CE): A Syriac Orthodox bishop, his Ecclesiastical History (parts of which survive) is a vital primary source for the religious and political history of the 6th century Near East, written from a Syriac perspective and detailing persecutions and church affairs.

• Pseudo-Zacharias Rhetor (fl. late 6th century): The anonymous author of an ecclesiastical history that compiled and continued earlier works, offering valuable information on the Syriac world.

• Jacob of Edessa (c. 640 – 708 CE): A scholar and Syriac Orthodox bishop, Jacob wrote a Chronicle, continuing Eusebius's work, though only fragments remain. His contributions also extended to revising the Syriac Bible and standardizing the language.

• Dionysius of Tell Mahre (died 845 CE): A Syriac Orthodox Patriarch, his Chronicle (also known as the Zuqnin Chronicle for the monastery where the manuscript was found, though this attribution is now debated, with the work more likely by an anonymous 8th-century author) covered the period from creation to the late 8th century and is a significant source for early Islamic rule in Syria and Mesopotamia.

• Michael Rabo (Michael the Great, 1126–1199 CE): A Syriac Orthodox Patriarch, his extensive Chronicle is one of the most important works of Syriac historiography, covering events from creation to his own time. It incorporates numerous earlier sources and provides invaluable information on political, ecclesiastical, and social history. It's one of the longest and most comprehensive Syriac historical works and Notably, it contains unique data on climatic changes, including descriptions of volcanic eruptions and their effects, which have been of interest to modern scientists.

• Bar Hebraeus (Gregory Bar ‘Ebroyo, 1226–1286 CE): A prolific scholar and Maphrian of the East of the Syriac Orthodox Church, Bar Hebraeus wrote the Chronicon Syriacum (a secular history) and the Chronicon Ecclesiasticum (a church history). These works are comprehensive and draw on a wide range of Greek, Syriac, and Arabic sources.

Anonymous Chronicles

In addtion to all the above Syriac historians and their books and chornicles, there are many chronicals that were written by anonymous authers that we might never know their names but their writings provide a view into all the events that happened up to the 13th century

• The Chronicle of Pseudo-Joshua the Stylite: It is considered the earliest surviving work of Syriac historiography and provides a remarkably detailed account of the Roman-Persian War of 502–506 and covers the period of distress in Edessa, Amid, and all Mesopotamia from 494 to 506 CE. The chronicle is valued for its close proximity to the events it describes, lending it high historical value and also provide details on a period of plague, locusts, and famine from 494 to 502, alongside the significant military conflict.

• The Chronicle of Edessa: This anonymous Syriac chronicle was composed in the mid-6th century and focuses on the history of the city of Edessa and It covers a period from the founding of the kingdom of Osrhoene in 133/132 BCE until 540 CE, though it provides little detail before the 3rd century. This chronicle primarily relies on old Edessan royal archives and church records, making it a historically reliable source it offers unique insights into the early history of Christianity in Edessa, including a record of a flood in 201 CE that damaged a Christian church, one of the earliest mentions of a building exclusively dedicated to Christian worship.

• Chronicle to the year 640: This is a short chronicle that offers a valuable, nearly contemporary account of the early Islamic conquests in the Near East from a Christian perspective and it provides significant details about the Arab invasion of Syria and Palestine, including specific dates and leaders. This chronicle is a key source for understanding the initial impact of Islamic expansion on the Syriac-speaking Christian communities.

• Chronicle to the year 724: This chronicle is preserved in a manuscript copied in 724 CE, which includes a continuation up to that year. It is often described as a "composite chronicle" or "miscellaneous chronicle" as it draws from various sources without strict chronological order and while not a unified historical narrative, its diverse entries offer valuable glimpses into early 8th-century events and perspectives. The chronicle includes a list of caliphs translated from Arabic, making it an important early Christian source on Islamic rule.

• The Chronicle of Zuqnin (Pseudo-Dionysius of Tel Mahre): This is a universal history, beginning with the Creation and extending to 775-776 CE, the approximate date of its completion and modern scholarship now widely attributes it to Joshua the Stylite, a monk from the Monastery of Zuqnin, rather than Syriac Orthodox Patriarch Dionysius I of Tel Maḥre. The chronicle incorporates a variety of earlier sources, some of which are now lost, making it an essential repository of historical information, especially for the Roman-Persian wars and the early Islamic period and Its detailed fourth part, covering 767-775 CE, is particularly valuable for insights into early Abbasid economic policies and the Syriac Orthodox Church.

• Chronicle to the year 813: This chronicle covers the period from 754 until 813 CE, though it may have originally begun earlier and It focuses primarily on ecclesiastical history, providing lists of Syriac Orthodox patriarchs and bishops, but also records natural phenomena like famines and earthquakes. The chronicle offers valuable insights into the Christian community living under Abbasid rule, including a detailed description of the anarchy in Syria after the death of Caliph Harun al-Rashid. It is known from a single, partially damaged manuscript and is considered a West Syriac Orthodox work.

• Chronicle to the year 819: This chronicle was composed around 819 CE by a Syriac Orthodox monk from the monastery of Qarṭmin and was discovered in 1911 by Aphrem Barsoum (later to become Syrian Orthodox patriarch) in a ninth century manuscript at Basabrina in Tur-Abdin. It provides a chronological table of events from the birth of Jesus to 819 CE, with a strong focus on the monastery of Qarṭmin and its affairs and is particularly valuable for its coverage of the 7th and 8th centuries, drawing heavily on the monastery's archives and offering insights into the political and ecclesiastical landscape of the period. It was later largely incorporated into the Chronicle of 846, serving as its main source for the Islamic period.

• Chronicle to the year 846: This is a fragmentary universal chronicle written in Syriac by an anonymous author sometime between 846 and 873 CE, likely from or near the monastery of Qarṭmin. It presents short, chronologically ordered notices, drawing upon various earlier sources, including the Chronicle of 819 for the 7th and 8th centuries with a strong ecclesiastical focus, particularly for the later centuries, but also contains unique material on political events and the lives of Christian leaders under Islamic rule. This includes details about the exactions of Arab governors of Iraq and information about an otherwise unknown bishop of Edessa. It is considered a significant source for understanding the history of the Syriac Orthodox Church and daily life in Mesopotamia during this period.

• Chronicle to the Year 1234: This West Syriac universal history, likely composed in Edessa, extends from Creation to 1234 CE. and It is divided into two parts: ecclesiastical history and secular history, drawing on a wide array of earlier sources, some of which are now lost. The chronicle is particularly important for its unique use of the Book of Jubilees and its preservation of fragments from lost works like Theophilus of Edessa's history. It also offers invaluable primary source material for the Crusades and the Kingdom of Cilicia and the capture of Jerusalem by Salah al-Din in 1187 in the late 12th and early 13th centuries, from a Syriac Christian perspective and it is Likely written by a Syrian Orthodox ecclesiastic.