Georgian · Other ·
Joh.Chrys. · titus
Work dossier · summary and historical context
The Commentary on the Apostolicum attributed to John Chrysostom survives only in an Old Georgian translation preserved in a single manuscript. The translation is credited to the eleventh-century Georgian monk Ephrem the Minor, who claims to have faithfully transmitted the version of George the Hagiorite. The commentary covers the Apostolicum—the Acts, Catholic Epistles, and Pauline Epistles used in liturgy—and was employed in Georgian monastic instruction. Its attribution to Chrysostom is uncertain, and the work is not widely cited in later Byzantine or Latin traditions.
This commentary is a rare witness to the reception of Chrysostom in the Georgian tradition and to the translation practices of Ephrem the Minor and George the Hagiorite. It illustrates how Greek patristic texts were adapted for Georgian monastic education. Its single-manuscript survival and uncertain authorship highlight the challenges of studying medieval Caucasian Christian literature.
The Old Georgian text of this commentary is preserved in a single manuscript, edited in the Titus series, with no other known witnesses. The colophon attributes the translation to Ephrem the Minor, an eleventh-century Georgian translator and scribe active at the Georgian monastery on the Black Mountain. Ephrem states he is preserving the version of George the Hagiorite (1009–1065), a Georgian monk and translator at Iviron Monastery on Mount Athos. The commentary was used in Georgian monastic instruction, as indicated by marginal notes. Its doctrinal content may reflect earlier Chrysostom material, but the attribution to Chrysostom is tentative. The work was not widely cited in later Byzantine or Latin tradition, and the edition lacks a critical apparatus for the Georgian text.
Apparatus · what the pipeline recorded
| Coptic | Rendering | Count | First |
|---|---|---|---|
| no glossary terms recorded | |||