I Sette Viaggi di Sindbad il marinaio: un romanzo arabo nelle Mille e Una Notte

The textual history of the Travels of Sindbād the sailor is intimately linked to the textual history of the Thousand and One Nights. While independent in origin since the discovery of Antoine Galland (1646-1715) onwards, this narrative cycle has been later incorporated in the corpus of the Thousand and One Nights. The article aims to examine the textual history of the Travels of Sindbād in the light of the diverse and various interpretations that have been given. The first chapter summarizes the main events of Travels, as they are present in two different recensions (M. Gerhard: A version of “Galland” and Langlès and version B “Zer” Bulaq, Calcutta II) and how they have been taken up in the various translations into different languages (A. Galland, EW Lane, Burton R., Payne, Mardrus, E. Littmann, F. Gabrieli). The second chapter examines in detail the various and conflicting theories that M. Gerhardt, F.J. Ghazoul, A. Kilito, P. Molan, A. Miquel, H. Moucannas-Mehio, J.-P. Picot have formulated the “structure” of Travels in the light of a different interpretation of its protagonist and the relationship of the work to frame the story of the Thousand and One Nights. The third chapter discusses the issue of their origin not so much in relation to (the character of) its protagonist, but rather in relation to the genres to which they belong (geographical literature and narratives of the maritime ‘aǧā’ib of the IX and X sec.). Taking a thesis already advanced by M.J. De Goeje, then supported by A. Zeky, A. Chauvin and M. Casanova, we will examine the exchange of letters between the king of Sarandīb and the Caliph Hārūn al-Rashīd and the so-called embassy of Sindbād in the island narrated between sixth and seventh travel (Langlès Arabic text, Calcutta I, translated by A. Galland) as the possible original nucleus which over time the other travels were then attached.