L'origine et la valeur des grammaires de Oskan Erewanc'i

Oskan Łličenc' Erewanc'i (1614-1674), although better known as a printer, was also the author – among other works – of a grammar book. This has reached us in two versions, a longer one attested only in manuscript witnesses, and a shorter, reduced version thereof, published by Oskan himself in his own printing house in Amsterdam in 1666. The longer version is a translation / adaptation of a Latin text authored by Italian philosopher Tommaso Campanella and published in Paris in 1638. In principle, Oskan could have used this printed version. However, a few elements suggest that he might also have known the still unpublished work through Father Paolo Piromalli, a disciple of Campanella’s, and Oskan’s own teacher in Armenia between 1634 and 1636. At the time, Piromalli was in possession of manuscripts containing some of Campanella’s writings, including, perhaps, his grammatical work. While reworking his source, Oskan strictly adheres to the original in relatively minor details: for instance, he faithfully reproduces personal names even when the person in question was comparatively unknown in Armenian milieux. On the other hand, he shows considerable independence in relevant aspects: thus, he clearly shows his knowledge of the Armenian grammatical tradition alongside Campanella’s teachings. Moreover, he is clearly aware that certain grammatical categories – such as nominal gender, superlatives, etc. – although present in Campanella’s theoretical framework (based on Latin), do not exist in Armenian. As for the shorter version published in 1666, it is a basic manual, evidently cheaper to print than the longer version, but also much less informative.