Notes on Shem Tov Ibn Falaquera as a Translator of the Guide of the Perplexed

Abstract

Shem Tov Ibn Falaquera must be considered among the translators of Maimonides’ Guide of the Perplexed because of the Hebrew translation of many passages of the Guide that is included in his works. These quotations are not only textual indirect witnesses of Maimonides’ text. The present article suggests a perspective that takes them into account as evidence for Ibn Falaquera’s use of sources, showing distinct ways, aims and methodological assumptions through which Ibn Falaquera chooses to render, to interpret and to teach Maimonides’ work. Ibn Falaquera’s early educational writings, where the author intends to instruct his coreligionists in philosophy and sciences and to make them acquainted with Greco‑Arabic wisdom and its doctrines, contain few quotations taken from the Guide. Their limited number reveals Ibn Falaquera’s attitude towards this source. They are analysed and interpreted, as well as the quotations occurring in the late works, namely the commentary Moreh ha‑Moreh and the apologetic Letter regarding the Guide, showing a different approach and aim.