The Toledo Qur’an and Islamic eschatology: translating the names of hell in Aljamiado literature

Abstract

The introduction of the Toledo Qur’ān states that the text in the Latin alphabet was copied from an Aljamiado translation. In fact, the translation of terms and expressions relating to hell shows some specific characteristics of Aljamiado literature, such as the privileged use of calques from Arabic and a preference for the term Jahannam, though the most quoted term al-nār (“fuego”) is also attested. These characteristics are more evident when compared to Latin translations prior or contemporaneous to the Toledo Qur’ān. It is clear that in the translation of terms related to hell, these works display greater attention to Latin style and final result thus evidencing another perspective and consequently another audience. The preference given to the term Jahannam is closely linked to the evidence emerging from the Aljamiado eschatological literature, where Jahannam is generally preferred to al-nār / “fuego.” This preference reflects more than specific characteristics of the literature of the Moriscos, an evolution of Muslim literature as a whole, which is reflected in the kind of literary materials circulating and trasmitted. Futher, along with this, Aljamiado literature on hell and also the Toledo Qur’ān reflect similar developments in the late medieval Muslim Arabic literature, and therefore also in eschatological traditions, in which Jahannam emerges strongly as the term used to describe hell in narratives.