Translation has always been the great enabler of communication between nations allowing for the transfer of meaning across daily business, cultural, and religious activities.

1. Arabic Translation History
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2. Arabic Translation History
Translation has always been the great enabler of communication
between nations allowing for the transfer of meaning across daily
business, cultural, and religious activities. Arabic translation has its
deep roots in the ancient history of mankind. Arabic cultures have
always had an intrinsic role in spreading knowledge and science across
nations throughout the ages.
Arabic translation dates back to the 2nd century, when Arabs translated
Persian history into Arabic, and it went through several stages of
transformation since then. From mere interpretation among the Arabic
traders and neighboring countries, through the era of prosperity and
enlightenment during the Islamic golden age, and lastly in the modern
age embracing technology and globalization.
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3. Arabic Translation History
Bait al-Hikmah (House of Wisdom) in Baghdad, Abbasid Empire
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4. Arabic Translation History
Arabs started to pay attention to translation with the rise of Islam,
as Prophet Mohammed encouraged his followers to learn foreign
languages and translate the Qur’anic verses and Islamic beliefs and
teaching to other nations. Then it reached its peak during the 1st
Abbasid Period and the establishment of the city of Baghdad,
especially at the time of Caliph Al-Ma‟moun, who built “Bait Al Hikma‟
(House of Wisdom), which was the greatest institute of translation at
that time. During that time, the major Islamic capital cities of Baghdad,
Cairo, and Córdoba became the main intellectual centers for science,
philosophy, medicine, trade, and education, and scholars from
different parts of the world sought to learn and transfer knowledge to
and from Arabic. They were keen on translating the knowledge of the
ancient civilizations into Arabic and Persian. Later on, all of this
knowledge which the Arabs developed was translated into western
languages like Turkish, Hebrew and Latin. During this time we had
some prominent figures like Ibn al-Muqaffa', who translated great
manuscripts from Indian and Persian like “Kalīla wa Dimna”
Panchatantra.
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5. Arabic Translation History
The act of translation and translators were highly recognized at that
time, to the extent that the Caliph used to reward distinguished
translators with the weight of their books in gold. On the other hand,
translation at that time was recognized by its accuracy, validity, and
authenticity as translators exerted great effort to reference, validate
and maintain the quality of the translation. They used to travel to far
off countries, spending years in researching and validating and even
producing several translated versions for the sake of accuracy.
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6. Arabic Translation History
The role of Arabic translations was not only transferring knowledge,
but also it helped to preserve many subjects as part of world. During
the 11th to 13th centuries, medieval Europe absorbed knowledge from
Arab civilization, which was at its peak during this time. The most
important act at this time was the rediscovery of the ancient classic
texts, especially the work of Aristotle, through retranslations from
Arabic and in addition translations helped preserve and spread the
advances in astronomy, algebra, chemistry, and geology made in the
Islamic world during the 10th century. One famous tool, the astrolabe,
dates back to 150 BC and was developed over centuries in the Middle
East. These advancements were shared with Europe thanks to early
Arabic translations.
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7. Arabic Translation History
According to http://www.astrolabes.org:
“The astrolabe was introduced to the Islamic world the mid-eighth
century. The astrolabe was fully developed during the early centuries
of Islam. Arab treatises on the astrolabe were published in the ninth
century and indicate a long familiarity with the instrument (the oldest
existing instruments are Arabic from the tenth century, and there are
nearly 40 instruments from the 11th and 12th centuries). The
astrolabe was inherently valuable in Islam because of its ability to
determine the astronomically defined prayer times and as an aid in
finding the direction to Mecca (the qibla).
It must also be noted that astrology was a deeply
imbedded element of early Islamic culture and astrology was one of
the principle uses of the astrolabe.”
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8. Arabic Translation History
The astrolabe
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9. Arabic Translation History
With the downfall of the Islamic Empire, Arabic countries suffered
from bad economic and political conditions and consequently the art
and availability of Arabic translations suffered from years of decay.
However, in the modern age starting from Mohamed Ali’s rein in 1805,
translation regained its importance in education, culture and
commerce. Specialized translation schools opened their doors to
produce new generations of specialized Arabic translators. In 1835 the
establishment of Al Alsun (Languages) school in Egypt and some great
modern translators like Helmy Morad and Tharwat Okasha emerged
to carry on the great tradition and trade of Arabic translation. These
translators were responsible for translating international literature
like “Anna Karenina”, “Dr zhivago”, some of Bernard Show and Gibran
Khalil’s work …
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10. Arabic Translation History
Today as we march into a globalized world, the translation of Arabic
content in the world benefits from the use of computers, digital
materials and the spread of databases of terminologies that offer
translators a considerable wealth of linguistic resources. Now-a-days
translation has become an important industry in the Arabic world. The
field of translation now benefits from many university programs and
cultural organizations that promote the translation profession.
Translation is being systemized by specialized translation institutions
and translators in various fields: literature, science, technology, and
medicine, etc…. With the great efforts now being exerted to enhance
the quantity and quality of Arabic online and offline content, by either
Arabic translation or Arabic creative writing, hopefully we are at a new
renaissance in the Arabic culture.
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11. Arabic Translation History
Further Resources on Arabic Localization, Arabic Globalization and
Arabic SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
Globalization Partners International (GPI) has extensive experience localizing
marketing materials, technical documents, and large, scalable websites into the Arabic
language. Due to increased demand for projects in Arabic and other BiDi languages,
like Farsi, we have posted a number of useful guides to best practices in this area. Feel
free to review our blogs that are particularly relevant:
Speaking the Languages of Online Marketing in UAE
Multilingual Websites and Small Businesses in UAE
Arabic SEO and Localization
Providing Green Translation Services! Sustainability Initiatives in the UAE
You may contact GPI for translation services at info@globalizationpartners.com or visit
our website at www.globalizationpartners.com. You may also request a
complimentary Translation Quote for your project as well.
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12. Arabic Translation History
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