Robert of Ketton facts for kids
Robert of Ketton, also known by his Latin name Rodbertus Ketenensis, was an important English scholar who lived from about 1141 to 1157. He was an astronomer, a translator, a priest, and even a diplomat. He spent much of his time working in Spain.
Robert is famous for translating many books from Arabic into Latin. His most notable work was the very first translation of the Quran into a Western language. This was a huge achievement at the time.
From 1144 to 1157, Robert worked as an archdeacon in the diocese of Pamplona, which is a church district. Sometimes, people have confused him with another English translator named Robert of Chester, who also worked in Spain around the same time. Some experts even think they might have been the same person!
Robert's last name, Ketenensis, likely comes from Ketton, a small village in Rutland, England. This village is close to Stamford. It's thought that Ketton was his birthplace. However, in official documents from Pamplona, he was simply called "Master Robert" (magister Rodbertus). This title showed that he had a master's degree.
We know that Robert of Ketton the translator is the same person as Master Robert the archdeacon because of a letter. This letter was written by Peter the Venerable, who was the abbot of Cluny. In 1144, Peter sent some of Robert's translations to Bernard of Clairvaux. In his letter, he clearly stated that the translator was "Robert of Ketton from England, who is now archdeacon of the church of Pamplona."
Robert's Amazing Translations
Before 1141, Robert of Ketton worked closely with another scholar named Hermann of Carinthia. They were busy translating Arabic texts for their own learning. Some historians believe they might have even traveled to Arabic-speaking countries.
From this early work, only one of Robert's translations is still known today. At Hermann's request, Robert translated a book by al-Kindi called Astrological Judgements. Robert called his Latin version Judicia. In the introduction to this book, Robert explained that he was most interested in geometry and astronomy. However, he translated the astrology book because of his friendship with Hermann.
Robert also mentioned their bigger plan. They wanted to study Euclid's Elements and Theodosius's Spherics. Their goal was to understand Ptolemy's famous book, Almagest. At that time, these important scientific books were only available in Arabic.
Some experts think another translation of Euclid's Elements might also be Robert's work. This version is called "Adelard II." It's usually thought to be by Adelard of Bath or sometimes Robert of Chester. It was a very popular Latin translation of Euclid's work in the 1100s. In 1143, Hermann also mentioned that Robert gave him the astronomical tables of al-Battani, which Robert might have translated.
Translating for the Abbot
In 1141, Robert and Hermann met Abbot Peter the Venerable near the Ebro River, probably in Logroño. Peter convinced them to translate some important Islamic texts for his collection. This collection is now known as the Toledan Collection.
For this special project, Robert translated a history of the early Caliphate. He gave it the title Chronica mendosa Saracenorum, which means "Lying Chronicle of the Saracens." He also translated the Quran itself. He called this work Lex Mahumet pseudoprophete, meaning "Law of the False Prophet Muhammad." A person named Muhammad helped him with the Quran translation. Robert's translation of the Quran was very free, and he didn't divide the text into its original sections, called suras.
The entire Toledan Collection, including Robert's translations, was later printed in 1543.
Even in 1143, Robert was still thinking about his and Hermann's astronomy project. He wrote a letter to Peter the Venerable promising a "celestial gift." He said this gift would reveal "all the celestial circles and their quantities, orders and conditions, and, finally, all the various movements of the stars, and their effects and natures."
Robert's Church Career
Robert's work in the church began after he finished his main translation projects. It's possible he received his church position as a reward for his important translation work.
He became an archdeacon in Pamplona by 1144, and he held this position until 1157. After that, he moved to a canonry in Tudela. We know he was in Pamplona from official papers in 1145, 1147, 1149, and 1151. He also traveled to Barcelona for church business in 1152.
Robert seems to have been the archdeacon of Valdonsella, which included the town of Uncastillo. This area was on the border between the Kingdom of Navarre and the Kingdom of Aragon, and they often argued over it.
Robert also served as a diplomat for King García Ramírez of Navarre. He even helped create a peace treaty with Raymond Berengar IV of Barcelona, who was the ruler of Aragon. This treaty was signed on July 1, 1149. For his efforts to bring peace, Robert was praised by Pope Eugenius III.
In 1151, Robert's bishop, Lope de Artajona, sent him to a meeting. Robert's job was to help solve a disagreement about the border between the church districts of Pamplona and Zaragoza. Later, Robert led some of the Pamplona clergy in a disagreement with Bishop Lope. They made up for a while, but when Lope had a conflict with King Sancho VI, Robert sided with the king. It was probably through the king's help that Robert got his new position in Tudela after his archdeaconry became difficult. There are no records of Robert after 1157.
One scholar, Charles Burnett, noted that Robert's education made him very good at being a diplomat, a royal adviser, and someone who could write official documents.
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