Bibliotheca Polyglotta

ʕĪsà ʕUbayd, Muqaddima (1921)

Complete text

III-§1.a

أما نحن فموقنون بأنّ أنصار الحقائق سينجحون رغماً عن قلّة عددهم وينتصرون على خصومهم الأقوياء ، ولكنْ بعد عناء شديد ومضى مدة طويلة ؛

ʔammā naḥnu fa-mūqinūn^a bi-ʔanna ʔanṣār al-ḥaqāʔiq sa-yanǧaḥūn^a raġm^an ʕan qillaẗ ʕadadi-him wa-yantaṣirūn^a ʕalà ḫuṣūmi-him al-ʔaqwiyāʔ, wa-lākin baʕda ʕanāʔⁱⁿ šadīd wa-maḍiyy muddaẗ ṭawīlaẗ;

As for us, we are convinced that the Factualists/Realists¹ will succeed although they are so few in number and that they will defeat their powerful opponents, but only after severe suffering and a long time,

1. ʔanṣār al-ḥaqāʔiq – lit., ‘the supporters/followers of the facts’.

AR: ḥaqīqaẗ (ḥaqāʔiq)
EN: …

لأنّ الشعب المصري شعب محافظ أخلاقي قبل كلّ شيء ،

li-ʔanna ’l-šaʕb al-miṣrī šaʕb muḥāfiẓ ʔaḫlāqī qabla kull šayʔ,

for the Egyptian people is, first and foremost, a conservative people, attached to tradition.²

2. The translation of ʔaḫlāqī, a nisba formation from ʔaḫlāq, pl. of ḫulq, is doubtful.

AR: šaʕb, miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ), muḥāfiẓ (muḥafaẓaẗ), ʔaḫlāq
EN: conservative, attached to tradition

يعبد قديمه ويقدّس ما صنعه الآباء متوهّماً أنّ ما وضعته أجداده العرب هو الحدّ النهائي للكمال الإنشائي الفنّي الذي يجب أنْ نترسّمه باحترام و إجلال .

yaʕbud^u qadīma-hū wa-yuqaddis^u mā ṣanaʕa-hū ’l-ʔābāʔ mutawahhim^an ʔanna mā waḍaʕat-hu ʔaǧdādu-hū ’l-ʕarab huwa ’l-ḥadd al-nihāʔī lil-kamāl al-ʔinšāʔī al-fannī allaḏī yaǧib^u ʔan natarassama-hū bi-’ḥtirām wa-ʔiǧlāl.

They adore their past and venerate/sanctify what the forefathers have created, in the erroneous assumption that what their Arab ancestors have produced is the optimum of creative perfection that one cannot but take as an example to follow with respect and deference.

AR: qadīm, qaddasa (taqdīs), al-ʔābāʔ, tawahhum, al-ʔaǧdād, ʕarab, kamāl, ʔinšāʔ (našʔaẗ, nušūʔ), fannī (fann)
EN: …

ولمّا كان الشعب المصري متفائلاً أخلاقياً يعتقد في طهارة (ز) أخلاقه ومتانة تقاليده الموروثة المقدّسة ؛

wa-lammā kāna ’l-šaʕb al-miṣrī mutafāʔil^an ʔaḫlāqiyy^an yaʕtaqid^u fī ṭahāraẗ ʔaḫlāqi-h wa-matānaẗ taqālīdi-hī ’l-mawrūṯaẗ al-muqaddasaẗ;

Since the Egyptian people have such an optimistic opinion about their habits and customs,³ they believe in the purity [p. vii] of these and the solidity of their holy/venerable inherited tradition.

3. The phrase ‘habits and customs’ renders the same word as above, ʔaḫlāq.

AR: šaʕb, miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ), ṭahāraẗ, ʔaḫlāq, matānaẗ, taqālīd (taqlīd), taqdīs
EN: …

فستؤلمه الحقيقة المرّة الجافّة القاسية ، ويهبّ في وجه مَن يتصدّى إلى تصويرها محتجّاً مستنكراً محاولاً تكذيبها ليستبقى أحلامه اللذيذة .

fa-sa-tuʔlimu-hū ’l-ḥaqīqaẗ al-murraẗ al-ǧāffaẗ al-qāsiyaẗ, wa-yahubbu fī waǧhⁱ man yataṣaddà ʔilà taṣwīri-hā muḥtaǧǧ^an mustankir^an muḥāwil^an takḏība-hā li-yastabqiya ʔaḥlāma-hū ’l-laḏīḏaẗ.

Therefore, the brutal, dry and bitter truth will cause them pain, and they will rise in protest against anyone who dares to portray it [as it is], refusing this and trying to show that it is a lie, [just] in order to keep their sweet dreams.

AR: ḥaqīqaẗ, murr (marāraẗ), ǧāff (ǧafāf), qāsⁱⁿ (qaswaẗ), taṣwīr
EN: …

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