Amiran-Darejaniani
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''Amiran-Darejaniani'' ( ka, ამირანდარეჯანიანი), translated into
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
as "The story of Amiran, son of Darejan", is a medieval
Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
romance Romance (from Vulgar Latin , "in the Roman language", i.e., "Latin") may refer to: Common meanings * Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings * Romance languages, ...
, dating probably from the early or middle decades of the twelfth century. It is one of those literary works which heralded the emergence of native secular literature after several centuries of domination by patristic tradition. It is a prose tale of battling knights in twelve episodes attributed to Moses of Khoni (Mose Khoneli; მოსე ხონელი). This attribution is found in the
epilogue An epilogue or epilog (from Greek ἐπίλογος ''epílogos'', "conclusion" from ἐπί ''epi'', "in addition" and λόγος ''logos'', "word") is a piece of writing at the end of a work of literature, usually used to bring closure to the w ...
of '' Vep’khis-tqaosani'', an
epic poem An epic poem, or simply an epic, is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces, gave shape to the mortal universe for their descendants. ...
by
Shota Rustaveli Shota Rustaveli ( ka, შოთა რუსთაველი, c. 1160 – after c. 1220), mononymously known simply as Rustaveli, was a medieval Georgian poet. He is considered to be the pre-eminent poet of the Georgian Golden Age and one of th ...
, the greatest classic of medieval Georgian literature, and is otherwise unknown. A tradition holds it that Moses came from the town of
Khoni Khoni ( ka, ხონი) is a town in the Western Georgian region (mkhare) of Imereti with the population of 8987 (2014 Georgia census). It is situated on the left bank of the Tskhenistkali River in the north-west of Imereti, close to the borde ...
in western Georgia, and, like Rustaveli, served at the court of
Queen Tamar Tamar the Great ( ka, თამარ მეფე, tr, lit. "King Tamar") ( 1160 – 18 January 1213) reigned as the Queen of Georgia from 1184 to 1213, presiding over the apex of the Georgian Golden Age. A member of the Bagrationi dynasty ...
( r. 1184-1213), who presided over the Georgian "Golden Age".Imedashvili (1966)
/ref> ''Amiran-Darejaniani'' was first published by the self-educated Georgian literary critic and bibliophile
Zakaria Chichinadze Zakaria Chichinadze ( ka, ზაქარია ჭიჭინაძე; 1854 – 27 December 1931) was a self-educated Georgia (country), Georgian literary critic, bibliophile, historian, and a book publisher. Early years Zakaria Chichinadze was ...
in 1896, followed by several critical editions in the 20th century. The epos was first introduced to the English-speaking world through a translation by Robert Horne Stevenson in 1958. Next appeared a
Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
translation by Bidzina Abuladze in 1965. Мосэ Хонели. Амиран Дареджаниани. Рыцарский роман об Амиране- сыне Дареджан. Перевод с грузинского Бидзины Абуладзе. Тбилиси: Литература да хеловнеба, 1965.


Origin and context

''Amiran-Darejaniani'' is the oldest surviving original Georgian romance, but its roots can be traced both in Georgian folk tradition and Persian epos which Georgian authors admired and translated; ''
Visramiani ''Visramiani'' ( ka, ვისრამიანი) is a medieval Georgian version of the old Iranian love story '' Vīs and Rāmīn'', traditionally taken to have been rendered in prose by Sargis of Tmogvi, a 12th/13th-century statesman and w ...
'', a free Georgian rendition of ''
Vis o Ramin Vis, ViS, VIS, and other capitalizations may refer to: Places * Vis (island), a Croatian island in the Adriatic sea ** Vis (town), on the island of Vis * Vis (river), in south-central France * Vis, Bulgaria, a village in Haskovo Province * Vis ...
'', being the closest to the period in question. Moses of Khoni's composition gave rise to a whole cycle of legends, handed down by the village story-teller. So involved has the interrelation of the literary and folk variants become that some leading experts have suggested that the folk variants, stemming from the legends about
Amirani Amirani or Amiran ( ka, ამირანი) is the name of a culture hero of a Georgian epic who resembles the Classical Prometheus. Various versions of the myth reveal a process through which the myth was transformed over time, but the legend ...
, preceded the literary ''Amiran-Darejaniani'', rather than being derived from it. The Persian and Arabic names and the lack of specific Georgian references in the text have led to a hypothesis, suggested by
Marie-Félicité Brosset Marie-Félicité Brosset (24 January 1802 – 3 September 1880) was a French orientalist who specialized in Georgian and Armenian studies. He worked mostly in Russia. Early life and first works Marie-Félicité Brosset was born in Paris int ...
and
Nicholas Marr Nikolai Yakovlevich Marr (, ''Nikolay Yakovlevich Marr''; , ''Nikoloz Iak'obis dze Mari''; — 20 December 1934) was a Georgian-born historian and linguist who gained a reputation as a scholar of the Caucasus during the 1910s before embarking o ...
, but now largely discredited, that ''Amiran-Darejaniani'' is a translation of a lost Persian text. Yet, the influence of Persian epic tradition, particularly
Ferdowsi Abul-Qâsem Ferdowsi Tusi ( fa, ; 940 – 1019/1025 CE), also Firdawsi or Ferdowsi (), was a Persians, Persian poet and the author of ''Shahnameh'' ("Book of Kings"), which is one of the world's longest epic poetry, epic poems created by a sin ...
’s ''
Shahnameh The ''Shahnameh'' or ''Shahnama'' ( fa, شاهنامه, Šāhnāme, lit=The Book of Kings, ) is a long epic poem written by the Persian poet Ferdowsi between c. 977 and 1010 CE and is the national epic of Greater Iran. Consisting of some 50,00 ...
'', is strongly felt.Lang & Meredith-Owens (1959), pp. 454-490.Rayfield (2000), pp. 69-72. Over the five following centuries ''Amiran-Darejaniani'' was also versified several times. Beyond this, the reflections of ''Amiran-Darejaniani'' are also noticeable in Shota Rustaveli’s work. Yet, ''Amiran-Darejaniani'' has a flavor somewhat different from that of ''Visramiani'' and ''Vep’khis-tqaosani''. Its narrative is less elaborate and adorned, but rather pure and simple – an account of endless battles and joustings, with a strong fairy-tale elements such as dragons, evil spirits, mythic monsters ''devi'', magic men of copper, miraculous elixirs, and other supernatural phenomena. ''Amiran-Darejaniani'' is composed of twelve prose sections or "gates", whose order is often transposed in manuscripts which date to the 17th and 18th century. Set in the
Orient The Orient is a term for the East in relation to Europe, traditionally comprising anything belonging to the Eastern world. It is the antonym of ''Occident'', the Western World. In English, it is largely a metonym for, and coterminous with, the c ...
al-themed fictional world, the narrative evolves around Amiran, son of Darejan (Amiran Darejanisdze), whose heroic exploits and adventures are related in five sections. The remaining sections are dedicated to other heroes and have no strong connection with each other.
Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
critics have attempted to see in ''Amiran-Darejaniani'' a mirror of the society of feudal Georgia, but neither national nor religious pathos plays a role in the tale, its primary focus being on the praise of chivalric ideals of fearlessness and male solidarity as well as vivid description of battle scenes. Its heroes are typically of enormous physical strength, fearless, warlike, merciful toward their defeated human enemies, generous and chivalrous. Yet,
courtly love Courtly love ( oc, fin'amor ; french: amour courtois ) was a medieval European literary conception of love that emphasized nobility and chivalry. Medieval literature is filled with examples of knights setting out on adventures and performing vari ...
praised by Rustaveli is absent in this story and female interest is minimal. For the heroes of ''Amiran-Darejaniani'', a woman’s love is won by a sword and is no more than a pretext for even greater battles.


Synopsis

The cycle begins with an introduction in which Abesalom, king of the
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
ns, is haunted by a mysterious portrait of knights with a short message relating that a daughter of the King of the Seas was delivered by these men from captivity of the ''kaji'', a tribe of evil sorcerers. Abesalom eventually seeks out the last survivor depicted, Savarsamidze, who then becomes one of the main narrators of the romance. Thus the painting, which turns out to illustrate Amiran son of Darejan and his associates, is expanded into a series of tales told to King Abesalom about Amiran and his followers Savarsamidze, Nosar and Badri on their violent missions. We then hear of Amiran meeting a black-clad and weeping stranger who relates a story of his patron, the knight Badri, son of Iaman (Badri Iamanisdze), who is seized by the monster Baqbaq-Devi on his way back from an extremely dangerous but ultimately successful mission to free and marry the daughter of the King of the Seas. Another valiant knight, Nosar Nosreli, sent by the King of the Seas to deliver Badri, shares the same fate. Amiran, accompanied by his servant Savarsimisdze and the black-clad man, sets out on a campaign to free the captured knights. After a wild sequence of battles, encounters with monsters and other adventures, Amiran relieves Badri and Nosar, and murders Baqbaq-Devi. Victorious, Amiran departs to seek a jousting with the renowned
Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
warrior Ambri from the
Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...
who has gained fame, among other things, for his defeat of three
Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...
giants and liberation of
Arabia The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate. ...
, but finds Ambri dead. Amiran then travels, following to the request of
Amir Emir (; ar, أمير ' ), sometimes transliterated amir, amier, or ameer, is a word of Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person possessing actual or cerem ...
Mumli of
Baghdad Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon ...
, to the Land of the Stars where he defeats all knights seeking hands of the seven beautiful daughters of King Aspan and brings three of these maidens as brides to the sons of Mumli. After this, Amiran departs, inspired by a dream, to the Land of Talismans and marries a local beauty Khvareshan, having overcome numerous obstacles on his way. Next comes a tale of the famed warrior Sepedavle, son of Darispan (Sepedavle Darispanisdze), whose deeds intrigues Amiran into challenging him into a
single combat Single combat is a duel between two single warriors which takes place in the context of a battle between two armies. Instances of single combat are known from Classical Antiquity and the Middle Ages. The champions were often combatants who repres ...
which does not reveal a victor and the two men become friends. They together move to
Ghazna Ghazni ( prs, غزنی, ps, غزني), historically known as Ghaznain () or Ghazna (), also transliterated as Ghuznee, and anciently known as Alexandria in Opiana ( gr, Αλεξάνδρεια Ωπιανή), is a city in southeastern Afghanistan ...
where they kill five local giants and massacre the entire populace, avenging a treacherous murder of the noble knight Mzechabuki ("sun-like youth"). In the last chapter Amiran saves
Balkh ), named for its green-tiled ''Gonbad'' ( prs, گُنبَد, dome), in July 2001 , pushpin_map=Afghanistan#Bactria#West Asia , pushpin_relief=yes , pushpin_label_position=bottom , pushpin_mapsize=300 , pushpin_map_caption=Location in Afghanistan ...
from a demon that devastates the city and marries a daughter of the local king, returning home with fame and glory.


Notes


References

*
Rayfield, Donald Patrick Donald Rayfield OBE (born 12 February 1942, Oxford) is an English academic and Emeritus Professor of Russian and Georgian at Queen Mary University of London. He is an author of books about Russian and Georgian literature, and about Josep ...
(2000), '' The Literature of Georgia: A History''.
Routledge Routledge () is a British multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanities, behavioural science, education, law, and ...
, . * D. M. Lang, G. M. Meredith-Owens. ''Amiran-Darejaniani'': A Georgian Romance and Its English Rendering. ''Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies,
University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...
'', Vol. 22, No. 1/3 (1959), pp. 454-490. * Imedashvili, Gaioz, ამირანდარეჯანიანი (''Amirandarejaniani''), in: Baramidze, Aleksandre (ed., 1966), ქართული ლიტერატურის ისტორია (''History of Georgian Literature''), vol. II.
Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...
: Sabchota Sakartvelo Press.


External links

*{{in lang, ka}
მოსე ხონელი, "ამირანდარეჯანიანი"
(Mose Khoneli, ''Amiran-Darejaniani'' - a full text). ''Georgian ebooks'',
National Parliamentary Library of Georgia The National Parliamentary Library of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს პარლამენტის ეროვნული ბიბლიოთეკა, ''sakartvelos p'arlament'is erovnuli bibliotek'a'') is a governmenta ...
. 12th-century books Middle Georgian literature