Job of Edessa (? â ?), called the Spotted (), was a Christian natural philosopher and physician active in Baghdad and KhurÃÂsÃÂn under the Abbasid Caliphate. He played an important role in transmitting Greek science to the Islamic world through his translations into Syriac.
Job was a native of Edessa. His birth is usually placed around 760, but may have been somewhat later, since he was active as a physician in the early 830s. The 13th-century historian Bar Hebraeus says that he was a contemporary of the Patriarch Timothy I of Seleucia-Ctesiphon (727âÂÂ823) and a member of the Church of the East, that is, he "followed the doctrine of Nestorius". Alphonse Mingana argued, on the basis of his Edessene origins, that he was probably a convert from either the Melkite or the Syriac Orthodox church. All known manuscripts of his works were produced in Syriac Orthodox circles.
In copies of his Book of Treasures, Job is given the title ('chief physician'). According to the 13th-century writer YÃÂqà «t al-Hamawë, Job and his son IbrÃÂhëm both served the Abbasid caliph al-Maþmà «n (813âÂÂ833) as physicians in Baghdad. In the early 830s, Job was assigned by the caliph to be the personal physician of ÿAbd AllÃÂh ibn ṬÃÂhir, governor of KhurÃÂsÃÂn.
Job's death took place after 832.
Job of Edessa was primarily known as a translator of Greek works into Syriac. The Christian polymath Ḥunayn ibn IsḥÃÂq, in a letter to ÿAlë ibn Yaḥyàibn al-Munajjim, claimed that Job translated 36 works by Galen, mainly into Syriac. Although Ḥunayn did not always think highly of Job as a translator, he made use of several of his Syriac versions in making his own Arabic translations. Job is mentioned by Ibn al-Nadëm in his encyclopedia Fihrist as a translator of Greek. He is said to have worked with a certain SimÿÃÂn to translate the astronomical tables (zëj) of Ptolemy for Muḥammad ibn KhÃÂlid ibn Barmak. He probably also translated Aristotle.
Two original works by Job have survived:
In these he cites several of his earlier works by title, namely:
These are now lost, but his treatises on urine were cited in medieval Arabic scientific works. Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad al-KhwÃÂrazmë cites it under the title KitÃÂb al-tafsëra fë l-bawl and Abà « l-Ḥasan Aḥmad al-Tabarë cites both that work and another entitled KitÃÂb al-bayÃÂn limàyà «jibuhu taghayyur al-bawl. Muá¹Âahhar ibn ṬÃÂhir al-Maqdisë cites Job's KitÃÂb al-tafsër ('book of interpretation'), which is probably either the KitÃÂb al-tafsëra fë l-bawl or else the Book of Treasures under a different title. These citations imply that the work on urine was either originally written in Arabic or else translated into Arabic. Other Arabic authors to cite Job include Abà « Bakr al-RÃÂzë and al-Bërà «në. Scholars disagree whether he wrote some works in Arabic or if they circulated only in translation.