The Journal of Antoine Galland in Istanbul: From the secretary to the expert translator

Abstract

Antoine Galland who is not only famous in French literature but also in world literature thanks to his translation of The Thousand and One Nights in 1704, accompanied the French Ambassador Monsieur de Nointel to Istanbul as his private secretary. At that time Galland was a 24 year old at the beginning of his career as a linguist, translator, and an expert in eastern civilizations. His first stay in the East lasted from 1670 to 1675, and resulted with a Journal which covers the years 1672 and 1673. In this journal which is a precious testimony of the ambassadorship of Monsieur de Nointel whose mission was to renew the famous “capitulations”, we witness the transformation of the young secretary into a knowledgeable linguist, the future translator of the masterpiece The Thousand and One Nights, a source of inspiration for all of Europe. Antoine Galland’s Journal also contains a rich inventory of books in Turkish, Arabic and Persian which were available in the 1670’s in Istanbul.