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CLASSICAL AZERBAIJANI POETRY IN ENGLISH SCIENTIFIC-LITERARY SOURCES
Adilov N.
PhD, Associate Professor of Translation and English Language Department,
Baku Engineering University, Baku
Abstract
This article is about the interest English orientalists and scholars showed in classical Azerbaijani poetry. Since the 18th century, orientalists have translated poems of Azerbaijani poets into English and have written many books on these poems and translated versions. Nizami Ganjavi, Muhammed Fuzuli, Khagani, Imadeddin Nesimi were some of the poets whose works were translated and interpreted by prominent English scholars.
Keywords: classical Azerbaijani poetry, poems, poet, orientalists, literature, scholar
The analysis of the books and research materials on classical Azerbaijani poetry written by English authors and orientalists is essential from different perspectives, including the quality of the translation of classical Azerbaijani poetry into English, the equivalence of these translations, and the critique of English academicians and orientalists on this topic. This process also throws light on the literary links between Azerbaijan and the UK. Linguistic interpretation and discourse analysis of the classical Azerbaijani poetry in English, studying academic sources in this area written by British scholars is also essential for understanding the perception of literature from diverse cultural views.
It has not been possible to determine the exact time when the works by Azerbaijani poets were translated into European languages for the first time. Although Nicholas Nichole, who traveled to Istanbul as an ambassador, mentioned Nesimi (1369-1417), the 14th-century Azerbaijani poet, while analyzing religious sects in Turkey in 1551, the comprehensive translation of the works of Azerbaijani poets dates to the 17th and 18th centuries [1, p.4]. Since that time, the poems of worldly-known Azerbaijani poets Nizami Ganjavi, Shah Ismail Khatai, Imadeddin Nesimi, Falaki Shir-vani, Khagani Shirvani, Gazi Burhaneddin, and Mu-hammed Fuzili have been translated into several languages, including English.
Classical Azerbaijani poems were either in Persian or Arabic because of the political-social issues of that time. However, the introduction of these works as samples of Persian literature is the falsification of realities. Scholar-researcher Leyli Aliyeva mentions that Western orientalists became interested in Azerbaijani literature in the 16th century, but the works by Azerbaijani authors were translated in the 18th century for the first time. The description of the manuscripts of Muhammed Fuzili (1494-1556) in the catalogue compiled by English orientalist Charles Rieu (1820-1902 and the translation of Muhammed Fuzili's Leyli and Majnun poem by Sofi Huri into English are the proofs that Western
orientalists were interested in learning Azerbaijani literature.
Charles Rieu, Elias John Wilkinson Gibb, Edward Browne, Hadi Hasan, Vladimir Minorsky, Thomas Moore, and other well-known orientalists and scholars conducted researches on Azerbaijani literature and wrote valuable books on the theme. History of Ottoman Poetry (6 volumes), Literary History of Persia (4 volumes), The Poetry of Shah Ismail I, Biographical Notes of Persian Poets, Cassel's Encyclopedia of Literature, Falaki Shirvani: His Times, Life, and Works are some of the important materials to be used as references [2, p.156].
It is worth mentioning that Nizami Ganj avi (11411209) was one of the poets whose works were translated and learned by Western orientalists more than those of other authors. William Jones (1746-1794), who is considered the father of English orientalists, learned Nizami Ganjavi's works attentively and translated The Treasury of Secrets, the first poem of the author, into prose in 1786. The translated version of the poem was published in 1804 in London after his death [2, p.21]. English orientalist James Atkinson (17801852) translated Leyli and Majnun into English in 1836 [3, p.4], and this poem was translated into English four times at different times [4, p.7]. It must be mentioned that James Atkinson's translation was criticized by E.Berthels. He wrote, "The translation is not equivalent, and there are many rough mistakes. This translation is only of historical importance." [2, p.56].
Biographical Notes of Persian Poets that well-known English G.Ouselly published in London (1846) attracts attention from different perspectives. Among the biographical notes about thirty-one poets from the Middle and Near East, the author included information about some prominent Azerbaijani poets in his book. The main thing worth mentioning is the attitude of G.Ouselly to classical Azerbaijani poetry and the representatives of this poetry, such as Nizami Ganjavi, Khagani, Shah Gasim Anvar, Maghribi, Katibi, Shahi,
Assar Tabrizi, and Saib Tabrizi. Unfortunately, G.Ou-selly could not distinguish between two notions: Persian poetry and poetry in the Persian language. G.Ou-selly was the first scholar to give information about Khagani Shirvani in Europe.
Arthur John Arberry (1905-1969), the British orientalist and the scholar of Arabic and Persian, wrote about researches on Nizami Ganjavi in European resources. He also underlined the main features of poems by Nizami Ganjavi. In the fifth section of his book entitled Classical Persian Literature, A.J.Arberry gave information on Nizami Ganjavi, as well as Khagani (1120-1199). The scholar appreciates Nizami as a prominent figure and compares him with Ferdowsi (940-1020), the Persian poet [5, p.300].
Henry Wilberforce-Clarke (1840-1905) translated the last poem of Nizami Ganjavi (isgendername) into English, and this translation was published in 1881 under the title Sikandar Nama [6]. This poem was translated into prose, and there are explanations and remarks in the English version. In general, Nizami Ganjavi's poems were translated into English by professional and prominent scholars and orientalists. This fact is visible in the translation of Seven Beauties (Haft Peykar) by Charles Edward Wilson. He had been the professor of the Persian Language and Literature at London College for fourteen years when he completed his translation. For the mentioned reason, the translation was excellent and successful [7, p.24].
As already have been mentioned above, the interest of Western orientalists, researchers, and scholars was not limited to Nizami Ganjavi. Falkaki Shirwani (1108-1146) and Khagani were among the poets who hold very important places in the literature. Although E. Berthels and A.Krimsky wrote about Falaki in their researches, it was Hadi Hasan who presented detailed information about the creativity and life of Falaki Shir-wani in his book entitled Falaki Shirwani: His Times, Life, and Works. Before Hadi Hasan, some orientalists and scholars such as M.D 'Erbola, H.Ete, and E.Browne had provided some limited information about F.Shir-wani, and in their works, we only witness to repeated facts.
In Biographical Notes of Persian Poets by G.Ou-selly, in the catalogue of Charles Rieu, and the researches of Edward Browne (1862-1926), we can encounter information about Afzaladdin Khagani, the prominent representative of classical poetry of Azerbaijan. He rose to fame at a young age and was regarded as the "Master of Poetry" by his contemporaries. G.Ou-selly gave detailed information about his childhood, his interest in sciences, and his life in the palace of Manu-chohr III.
One of the prominent representatives of Azerbaijani literature is Gazi Burhaneddin (1345-1398), who demonstrated the beauties of the Azerbaijani language in his poems. As Azerbaijani scholar Aliyar Safarli mentioned, "He raised our language to the new level: the language of poetry and art. He laid the foundation of Divan literature and created the first samples of classical poetry." [8, p.3]
While speaking about the scholars, researchers, translators, and orientalists who conducted researches,
translated classical poetry, and wrote books on Azerbaijani literature, it is essential to underline the name of Scottish orientalist Elias John Wilkinson Gibb (18571901). Since E.Gibb was an avid scholar who acquired a knowledge of Arabic, Persian, and Turkish languages and was interested in Azerbaijani literature, he felt the magnificence of Gazi Burhaneddin poems and appreciated him highly. In his book, he wrote, "Before the dawn of the fifteenth century, a new note was struck, and secular poetry — the eternal blending of love and religion renders dogmatizing dangerous — made its appearance alongside of verse confessedly mystic and naught beside. Before, however, we turn our attention to the valiant and adventurous Judge (Gazi Burha-neddin) who, so far as we know, was the first to invoke the new spirit, we shall glance for a moment at a work which though only a translation calls for a brief mention in these pages." [9, p.21]
While translating the works of Gazi Burhaneddin, E.Gibbs stayed loyal to the characteristics of poems and did his best to keep the style and tone of them. From this perspective, we can say that the well-known orientalist managed the difficult and honored task. We can compare the original and the translated version of one poem:
Ban necasi dirilam sandan irax Bilmaram na qilayim sandan irax. Gozlarim ya§i durur sayil §aha, Man daxi ham sayilim sandan irax. Dil dilarsan can veriram ban avaz Dilaram ki, dil dilam sandan uzax [8, p.507].
How shall I live on, ah, afar from thee? Know that what I shall do, afar from thee. O my Liege, from fort! Mine eyen pour the tears Poor am I, as beggar low, afar from thee. Thou wouldst have my heart, I give my life instead Hard I'd hurt my heart all through afar from thee [10, p.217].
The literary heritage of Imadeddin Nesimi, one of the distinguished poets, who lived in a very hard time, attracted the attention of not only Eastern scholars but also Western orientalists. Gibb mentioned that among hurifis, Seyyid Imadeddin, who wrote under the pen name "Nesmi" and dedicated all his life to this sect, was the most popular one. E.Gibb presented the full analysis of Nesmi's Divan and showed that there were two hundred and fifty-three gazals and approximately one hundred and fifty rubais. The first sample that E.Gibb translated from Nesimi is as follows:
§irin hadisin har bin bir govhari-yekdanadir §ami-ruxun anvarina ay ila gun parbanadir [11, p.37].
Yeag every dulcet speech o thine is e'en a pearl of lustrous ray;
Both sun and moon are moths that round thy Face's taper flit and play [10, p.359].
It is worth mentioning that it is very difficult to translate Nesimi, as he was a hurufi poet. However, E.Gibb overcame all obstacles and chose the best poems to translate. One of the main reasons behind Gibb's success was his being familiar with the characteristics
of Eastern poetry. In some cases, the orientalist provided some explanations.
Elias John Wilkinson Gibb also studied and translated the literary heritage of Muhammed Fuzuli. Needless to say, until E.Gibb, no one had conducted in-depth researches and interpreted the main directions of Fuzulu poetry. Dedicating his life to learn Eastern literature, E.Gibb gave information about M.Fuzuli for the first time in the article entitled "Turkey" in 1888 [12, p.33]. He translated several poems of the prominent poet, and these translations are valuable from both language and equivalency points of view. We can see it based on the comparison of original gazal and its translated version:
Dustum, alam saningun gar olur du§man mana, Gam deyilg zira yetarsan lust ancaq san mana. O my loved one, though the world because of thee my foul should be,
There no sorrow, for thyself alone were friend enow for me [13, p.313].
Prominent public figure, talented military leader, and skilled poet Shah Ismail Khatai (1487-1524) had an exceptional role in the history of Azerbaijan. He was very famous both in the East and West, and numerous researches were conducted about him. He declared the Azerbaijani language the official language of the country and played an unprecedented role in the development of poetry in the mother tongue. Charles Rieu, J.Malcolm, M.Robert, E.Browne, V. Minosrsky, and other researchers kept his works and life in the center of attention. However, some Western scholars, made rough mistakes and introduced Shah Ismail as the representative of Iranian literature. In some cases, they believed that the language that Shah Ismail used was the dialect of the official Ottoman language. Unfortunately, such kinds of mistakes were repeated in the works of other next-generation scholars.
One of the scholars who tried to render information about Shah Ismail Khatai was Edward Browne. Although his book entitled Literary History of Persia in Modern Times covered information about the creation of Safavids State, historic events that took place at that time, and Persian literature, there were no information about the literature in the Azerbaijani language and the poems Shah Ismail wrote in this language. The author mainly focused on the events that happened during that time and the policy Shah Ismail pursued as the
leader of the country. V.Minorsky is considered to be the first translator of Shah Ismail Khatai.
In conclusion, we must emphasize that English orientalists tried to make wider audiences aware of Azerbaijani classical poetry via translations. Among the poets whose works English orientalists translated, Nizami Ganjavi was in the first place. Western scholars and orientalists were mainly interested in Leyli and Majnun. Also, Elias John Wilkinson Gibb played an important role in the popularization of Azerbaijani poets in the West via his translations. E.Gibb translated the poems of well-known poets, including Nesimi, Gazi Burhanuddin, Fuzuli, so on. All these facts once more prove that Azerbaijani classical poetry was very interesting for English orientalists.
REFERENCES:
1. Aliyeva L. Fuzuli and English Orientalism. Baku. Ozan, 1997. p. 285
2. Shahin Khalilli. Classical Peotry and Literary Links. Baku, 2003. p. 163
3. Leyli and Majnun. Translated by James Atkinson. Re-Edited with an introduction by L. Clanmer Byng, 2014.
4. Guliyev F. Leyli and Majnun by Nizami Ganjavi in English Literature. 1990. p. 130
5. Arthur John Arberry. Classical Persian Literature. London, George Allen & Unwin Ltd. 464 page
6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ni-zami_Ganjavi#Eskandar-N%C3%A2meh
7. Shahla Naghiyeva. Literary Translation: Theory and Practice. 2004, p.246
8. Gazi Burhaneddin. Divan. Compiled bu Ali-yar Safarli. Baku, 1988. p. 656
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12. Translation of Azerbaijani Literature in the Works of Elias Gibbs. Baku, 2013.86 p.
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