ABSTRACT

Many Arabic place-names were translated into Latin, such as CA Qabr al-Qatl1 lithe sepulchre of the one killed (in battlerl is Lat Sepultura Occisi (ibid, 235/197), CA ijarik Bi?r al-llana~ lithe height of the well of snakesll becomes Lat Terterius Putet Serpentum (ibid, 213/186), CA Xandaq al-Qa~ab lithe trench of canesll is rendered in Lat Vallonts Cannarum (ibid, 241/200), CA llagar al-?Arak lithe stone of the thorny treell becomes Lat Petram Edere (ibid, 209/184) and CA Bab al-Bi?r lithe gate of the welr l is Lat Ad Portam Pute! (ibid, 203/180); while those that were Latinized from Arabic had long since been absorbed by the natives and consequently formed part of the Siculo-Arabic register as discussed in Chapter Six, ego CA Qar SuCayb IIsmall people1s cavell rendered in SA Lat Garsuayb (ibid, 225/192), CA llagar al-Buqal lithe stone of the vesselll becomes SA Lat Haiarbucal (ibid, 225/192) and CA lladd al-Andalusln lithe boundary of the Andalusiansll is SA Lat Hendulcini (ibid, 214/187); and other terms worth noting, ego CA manzil IIhouse; estatell > SA Lat menzel (ibid, 224/191), CA f awwara IIfountain; sourcell > SA Lat favaria (ibid, 243/196), CA lJudrgn IIwalls ll > SA Lat guduran (ibid, 605/603), CA marg IImeadowll > SA Lat margi (ibid, 242/201), CA masgid IImosquell > SA Lat mesita (ibid, 231/195), CA qalCa IIfortressll > SA Lat cala (ibid, 204/180), CA qulayCa IIsmall fortress ll > SA Lat coleya (ibid, 216/188), CA qulla "summitll > SA Lat culle (ibid, 213/186). The above toponymical references come from a gar7da issued in 1182 listing the boundaries of lato and

Corleone and the estates within them, and also the districts of Battellaro and Calatrasi (= QalCat al·larzl) (ibid, 202-44). The Latin translation (ibid, 179-202) of the Arabic text is perhaps the most interesting exercise of all the deeds recorded during the Norman period and, as Johns (1983, 308) suggested, a detailed palaeographic analysis of the document would throw light on the work put in by both the Arabic and the Latin speaking secretaries in so far as their training and technique are concerned.