Hafs ibn Albar

Hafs ibn Albar (Arabic: حفص ابن البر), commonly known as al-Qūṭī or al-Qurṭubî, was a 9th-10th Century Visigothic Christian count, theologian, translator and poet, often memorialised as the 'Last of the Goths'. He was a descendant of Visigothic royalty and held a position of power over the Christians of his region. He was possibly a priest or censor, but many scholars take him to be a layman.

He wrote in Arabic, which had then become the common language of Mozarabic Christians living in al-Andalus. Arabic was slow to be adopted by the Iberian Catholic Clergy because the Arabic language was enforced by the Islamic government and the Church wanted to appear completely separate from Islam. Hafs ibn Albar's work in translating the Psalms and other theological works has been characterised as integral to the preservation of the Iberian Church under Islam as it allowed Christians who had been raised in an Arabic culture to fully participate in the Christian faith.

Towards the end of the Visigothic period of Iberian history, the Visigoths were ruled by a monarchy elected by the Church. This system had been stable for some time, but eventually the children of former kings became claimants to the throne and civil wars broke out. In 711, the Visigothic Kingdom, in the middle of one such civil war, fell to Islamic forces. During the invasion there were two Visigothic claimants: the main claimant Roderic ruled from the ancient capital of Toledo and he controlled South-West, whereas Achila II ruled Tarraconensis and Narbonensis in the North-East. Achila was succeeded by his younger brother Ardo in Narbonensis alone as Tarraconensis had been taken by Islamic forces.

The fate of the conquered Christians varied from case to case. Standard Dhimmi contracts usually gave Christians and Jews fewer rights than their Muslim counterparts. Nobles, such as Count Theodimir, often managed to negotiate treaties which allowed them to keep some of their status, land and wealth, along with the rights of their subjects. The children of King Wittiza, the penultimate Visigothic king before the Islamic invasion, negotiated treaties and retained great significance. Al-Maqqari and the Chronicle of Alfonso III refer to them as Romulus, Artabasdus and Olmundus. Other chronicles and genealogies mention Evan and Sisebut in addition to the other sons of Wittiza. Romulus settled in Toledo and held extensive lands in the east of Spain. Some Scholars believe that the names Romulus and Artabasdus are corruptions of Achila and Ardo respectively. This would explain Romulus' holdings in the east of Spain.

In the centuries following the Islamic conquest of Spain, Romulus' descendants had significant power over the Mozarabs of al-Andalus due to the fact that the representatives of Christian communities, called counts, were required to be Christians themselves. Hafs ibn Albar was a descendant of Romulus and the Count of the Christians of Toledo (although Ibn al-Qūṭiyya refers to him as the Judge or Qadi). Other Christian communities had counts, such as Flavius Athaulf of Coimbra, son of the aforementioned Prince Sisebut. Abû Sa’îd al-Qûmis, a descendant of Artabasdus, was Count of the Christians of al-Andalus, possibly because he lived in Cordoba, the capital of al-Andalus. Abû Sa’îd held extensive estates in central al-Andalus.

Name

Hafs is usually remembered by his patronym 'ibn Albar', usually taken to refer to him being the son of Álvaro of Córdoba, although some claim that Hafs is more likely to be Álvaro's grandson or descendant. He is also remembered either as al-Qūṭī (the Goth) or al-Qurṭubî (the Cordoban). Some take al-Qurṭubî to be a toponym. Others believe that al-Qurṭubî is either a corruption of al-Qūṭī or a deliberate attempt to link him more closely with Álvaro. He is believed to have had been born with a full Latin or Gothic name, but this has been lost.

In one manuscript he is referred to as ibn al-Quti (Son of the Goth). He appears in Judaeo-Spanish texts as Héféç al-Qouti. In Maghrebi texts he instead appears as Alfuti. This is because the letters: ق and ف (usually romanised as q and f respectively) are especially similar in the Maghrebi Arabic alphabet.Such scribal errors at times confused details about his background. David Colville, the first person to translate the works of Hafs ibn Albar into English, believed that Hafs was Jewish. Adolf Neubauer refuted this based on the other works of Hafs, such as his pro-Christian polemics, which were unavailable to Colville. He also rejected the hypothesis that Hafs was a Jewish converso on the basis that Jewish writers who felt uncomfortable with using the works of apostates used the works of Hafs extensively. Neubauer believed Hafs to be an Arab or Syriac Christian due to his use of eastern forms of Arabic. His nickname, 'the Goth', and his gothic patronym suggest a gothic background and not an Arab/Syriac one. Today, he is taken to be of Visigothic background.

Hafs wrote all of his surviving works in Arabic. One of the reasons he did this was to remove, or at least weaken, thelink between the Arabic language and Islam. While some see Hafs as moving away from Álvaro's beliefs, others think of him as equally missionary-minded and interested in preserving Christian beliefs and culture. While Álvaro focused on defending Christianity, Hafs was subtly challenging Islam by associating Arabic with Christian works. He used Islamised vocabulary throughout his works(such as referring to the Psalms as suras), even when he expressed Christian ideas completely in opposition to Islam, such as the Trinity or that the Psalms were prophecies of Jesus' life. His free use of complex Arabic poetic forms and Islamic-sounding language limited the marginalisation that Christians felt during the 10th century and after. All major Mozarabic intellectuals who lived after Hafs used Arabic extensively.

Arabic Psalter

Hafs translated the entire book of Psalms into the Arabic language with a poetic prologue of his own, completing the work in 889AD. Each Psalm has a heading explaining whether the Psalm relates to Christ's life, the Churchand the spiritual health of believers. An example of this is his heading to Psalm 1, which states "This Psalm predicts the Nativity of the Messiah, the son of Mary".

He did this with the help and permission of Bishop Valens of Córdoba (862-875), whom Hafs highly esteemed. It was based on an earlier prose version that Hafs translated from the Old Latin Bible. His newer, more poetic version used the Vulgate more. This Arabic translation is significant as it represents a turning point in the cultural assimilation of native Christians. Only thirty years prior, Álvaro had publicly denounced the use of Arabic amongst Christians. Hafs, on the other hand, fully embraced the Arabic language and his Psalms were translated in Arabic rajaz verses. He was aware that rajaz verses were considered inferior amongst Arabs, but he defended its use on the grounds that it was more musical, was easily understood and allowed for a literal translation. It was his belief that the Psalms were essentially Hebrew rajaz.

Hafs defended his translation on the basis of 1 Corinthians 14, which he interpreted to be the Apostle Paul advocating for the translation of scripture. He said that the Apostle expected people to pray in their own languages. Hafs believed that the Psalms were the bedrock of Christian prayer. He used the example of the translations of the Psalms into Greek, Syriac, Persian and Latin to justify his own translation. He also appealed to the authority of Bishop Valens and a number of monks and priests who encouraged him in his work. He clarified that he intended his translation of the Psalms to be used liturgically in churches and monasteries and for 'the forgiveness of sins'.

Hafs' later works often quote the Gospels as translated by Isḥâq ibn Balashk al-Qurṭubî (Spanish: Isaac Velasco the Cordoban), completed either 904 or 942 (depending on how one reads the dating inscription), making the translation of the Psalms Hafs' earliest work. His is not the oldest translation of the Psalms into Arabic. Archbishop John of Seville (remembered in Arabic as: زيد المطران Zayd al-Matran) is believed to have produced the translation of the Psalms, Epistles and Gospels preserved in MS Madrid 4971. He also provided a commentary and took part in the Council of Cordoba in 839. He became bishop in 831 and died 851.Hafs' version is said to be more fluent and complex, while John's version is strict and literal.

Other Works

Hafs is also believed to have translated Orosius' Seven Books of History Against the Pagans and the works of Jerome. He wrote a number of original works as well. His Treatise on the Trinity is considered to be the first anti-Islamic polemic written in the West. He also wrote a treatise called al-Fiqh and two books: Kitab al-Huruf (the Book of Letters) and Kitâb al-Masâ’il al-Sab῾ wa-al-Khamsîn (the Book of the Fifty-Seven Questions). Jewish writers of later years referred to Hafs as the author of the Book of al-Quti, a compilation of moral maxims.

Ibn Qūṭiyya wrote that Hafs ibn Albar was still alive in 961. Hafs was highly esteemed among the Christians, Jews and Muslims of Spain and his works describing the Trinity, the nature of Christ and the Eucharist were seen as definitive long after his death. His translation of the Psalms also remained popular after his death, not only for its intended Ecclesiastic and Monastic use, but among Muslims and Jews as well. It is this version that Al-Qurtubi, Moses ibn Ezra and Ibn Gabirol used.

The “Alcalde de los Mozárabes” that existed after Toledo was reconquered by the Christians in 1085 is believed to be the continuation of the title of Count of the Christians of Toledo. The Arabised Christian culture of Toledo would last for centuries after the death of Hafs, with some Arabic cultural elements surviving even into the Early Modern Era.