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Simon Ockley





BIOGRAPHY

Ockley was born at Exeter . He was educated at Queens' College, Cambridge , and graduated B.A. in 1697 , MA. in 1701 , and B.D. in 1710 ; he became fellow of Jesus College and vicar of Swavesey , and in 1711 was chosen Arabic professor of the university. He had a large family, and his latter days were embittered by pecuniary embarrassments, which form the subject of a chapter in Isaac D'Israeli 's ''Calamities of Authors''.

The preface to the second volume of his '' History Of The Saracens '' is dated from Cambridge Castle , where he lay a prisoner for debt.

Ockley maintained that a knowledge of Oriental literature was essential to the proper study of theology, and in the preface to his first book, the '' Introductio Ad Linguas Orientates '' ( 1706 ), he urges the importance of the study.

He died at Swavesey .


WORKS


  • ''The History of the Saracens'', is his main work. It was published in two volumes, 1708 - 1718 , and long enjoyed a great reputation; unfortunately Ockley took as his main authority a MS. in the Bodleian of Pseudo- Al-Waqidi 's ''Futúh al-Shám'', which is rather historical romance than history.

  • A translation of Leon Modena 's ''History of the Persian Jews throughout the World'' 1707 .

  • ''The Improvement of Human Reason, exhibited in the Life of Hai Ebn Yokdhan'', a philosophical fiction work by Ibn Tufayl 1708 .

  • Translated from Arabic the ''Second Book of Esdras''

  • Translated from Arabic the ''Sentences of AH'' (??).



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