Bible. Armenian

A foundational work of Armenian literature and one of antiquity's great vernacular Bible translations, this version covers the complete Christian Bible and stands at the beginning of written Armenian letters, following the creation of the Armenian alphabet by Mesrop Mashtots in the fifth century and the establishment of Christianity in Armenia. It was made from Syriac and Greek sources, its base text being a later revision strongly associated with Greek biblical texts. In character it is a scholarly ancient translation, classifiable both as a fresh translation and as a revision, with early Syriac forms serving as its predecessor and base. Among its distinctive features is the possibility that its earliest stage drew on Syriac before being revised against Greek. Long central to the worship, learning, and literary culture of the Armenian church, it is also of interest to textual scholars for the early readings its witnesses preserve.