Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 01.djvu/810

ARABIAN NIGHTS. the beast fable* represent probably the oldest structure, reverting, as they eventually do, to the primitive beliefs which attributed to animals human powers and evident superhuman faculties. The fairy tales show the Eastern imagination at its best, though it should be remembered that some of the tales are transformed myths that again belong to a more primitive age tlian one which was able to exercise the imaginative fancy for its own sake, independent of doctrines or of symbolical purposes. Burton assumes that the fairj- tale proper in the Arabian yights is "wholly and purely Persian" {Terminal Essay to his translation, page 127). and so far as the stimulus toward this branch of literature is in- volved, he is unquestionably right, for the genuine Arab, while of a higlily poetic tempera- ment, is restrained in his fancy through the sober and austere character of his i-eligionrwhich discountenances the products of the pure imagi- nation. Characteristically Arabic, on the other hand, are the stories introduced to prove a jjoint or to point a moral, while the incidents and anecdotes, historical and otherwise, are likewise the genuine production of the Arabic mind.

In judging of the obscene allusions with which many of the tales are well stocked, and the frankly indelicate manner in which incidents are related that shock Occidental sensibilities, it must be borne in mind that many themes may be discussed in the Orient with" perfect simplicity, that would be regarded as improper among us, so that not everything which seems obscene was really intended to be such. But making due allowance for this difference between the Oriental and Occidental point of view, there remains a large residuum of erotic material that is undoubtedly introduced to add piquancy to the tales. Such material, however, has its value for the student of customs and manners, who is given an insight into conditions existing at one time in the Orient which is not to be had in any other waj'. Indeed, apart from the entertaining character of the tales (when freed from their objectionable features), they abound in refer- ences to religious and social customs and man- ners of thinking that make them a perfect store- house of valuable material for the one who wishes to study the Orient, and modern scholars have done much toward utilizing this material in their researches regarding ilohanmiedanism and Arabic antiquities as well as Arabic his- tory.

The best editions of the Arabic text are those 01 Macnaghton (Calcutta, 1839-1842; lithographed, Bombay, 1879) and the Bulak editions of 1835 (2 vols.) and 1885 (4 vols.). A shorter and at times expurgated text is given by M. Habicht (12 vols., Breslau 1825-1843) and Salhani (5 vols., Beirut, 1888-1890). Galland's French translation (1704) was soon followed by an Eng- lish rendering, which as early as 1713 had already reached a fourth edition. Of English translations based on the Arabic, there are now three — the first by E. W. Lane, whose edition is abridged (1839-41); a popular edition was published in 1847, The Thousand and One Xights. The notes constitute a valuable feature. Lane's edition has been repeatedly reissued, the last one being in six volumes, edited by Joseph Jacobs (London, 1898). .Tohn Payne's translation, based upon the Macnaghton MSS. and prepared for the Villon Society, was issued in nine volumes ( l»ndon. -84). It takes rank with Sir Richard Bur- ton's translation in ten volumes ( 1885-86), with a '•Terminal Essay" embodying the results of Bur- ton's researches as to the origin, age, and charac- ter of the tales. To this he subsequently added six supplemental volumes ( 1887-88), containing tales not included in Macon's edition and drawn from other printed texts and manuscripts. An abridged and expurgated edition of Burton'3 work was prepared by Lady Burton and issued in six volumes (London, 1887-88). There are four noteworthy translations in German. The earliest was that of Habicht published at Breslau in fifteen volumes, 1824-25. This was followed by a translation by Zinserling, which was based upoii the French translation of Hammer-Purgstall (3 vols., Stuttgart, 1823). Gustav Weil's transla- tion appeared in three volumes at Stuttgart in 1838-43. There has been added lately a spirited translation by Max Henning in the iteclani Uni- versal liihlioihek (Leipzig. 180tj ct seq. ). Of these the most reliable is that of Weil. In France Galland's translation has been superseded by that of Mardrus (Paris, 1899, et seq.) and editions have been issued by Caussin de Perceval (Paris, 1806. 9 vols.), Ed'ward Gautier (1822- 24, 7 vols.). M. Destain (1823-25, 6 vols.), Sil- vestre de Sacy (1838, 3 vols.), and others. The success of Galland's venture gave rise to many imitations that appeared in France, Eng- land, and Germany, all more or less expurgated and altered to adapt them for popular use. A complete bibliography of the Arahian 'Sifihts is given in Chauvin. Bihliographie des onrru(ics arnhrs. V. (Paris. 1901). ARABIAN SEA (anciently, Lat. Mare Fry- Ihneu'n, or the lied Hea) (Map: Asia. F 7). The northwestern part of the Indian Ocean, lying between Arabia, India, and Baluchistan. Its southern limit is generally supposed to be on a line from Cape Comorin, in Hindustan, to Cape Guardafui, in Africa. By the Gulf of Aden it communicates with the Red Sea and also with the Mediterranean through the Suez Canal (q.v. ). On the northwest it forms the Gulf of Oman, with its continuation called the Persian Gulf. Among its eastern inlets may be mentioned the gulfs of Cuteh and Cambay. The only important river it receives is the Indus, from the east. The most important islands in the .rabian Sea are the Laccadives and Socotra. The commercial significance of the Arabian Sea was very great in ancient times when the prod- ucts of the Orient were conveyed hitlier by sea to be transported by caravans to Europe. But with the discovery of the all-sea route to India, in 1497. its importance was lost until the open- ing of the Suez Canal in 1869 gave a fresh stimu- lus to commerce in that quarter. At present it is again a busy water thoroughfare. Consult: C. F. Oldham, "Topography of the Arabian Sea," in Volume LXIV. Aniatic Journal (Calcutta, 1896). ARABIA PETRÆ'A (Lat.. Rocky Arabia). The norlliwcstcrn and more hilly region of Araliia. into which Arabia Deserta merges. ARAB'ICI, or Ara'bi. s. A sect in Arabia, in the Third Century, which held that the soul dies with the body and will be raised again with it. Eusebius says that Origen, at their invita- tion, held a debate with them at a considerable synod, convinced them of their error, and they renounced it.