A new interpretation of the so-called “lemma” of the Barlaam and Ioasaph Romance

Abstract

The article examines one of the most frequently discussed problems in Byzantine studies: the question of the author of The Barlaam and Ioasaph Romance (CPG 8120), the most widely read non-biblical book in the Christian Middle Ages. On the basis of an analysis of the titles of the Romance, preserved in the manuscripts, and the interpretations proposed, we formulate a new hypothesis for reading the traditional data, which confirms that the ancient version of the title of the Romance contained an indication of the person who had brought it from India, as well as of its author St. Euthymius the Georgian (955 c.-1028), writer and translator, Hegumenon of the Iviron or Iberian monastery on Mt. Athos from 1005 to 1019.