Louis Maracci

Louis (or Ludovico) Maracci (1612-1700) was an Italian Catholic priest who translated the Qur'an into Latin in 1698 in Padua. Maracci held that Mohammed and Islam were not very dissimilar to Luther and Protestantism.

Life

He was born at Lucca in 1612, and first obtained notice by the share which he had in the Roman edition of the Arabic Bible, published in 1671. Maracci was the confessor of Pope Innocent XI and was taught Arabic by a Turk. He then taught Arabic for many years in the University of the Sapienza at Rome.

Translator

His celebrity is due to his critical edition of the Qur'an with a refutation and commentary[1]. It was the third Translation of the Qur'an into Latin. The first translation in Latin was made by Robertus Rotenesis and Hermannus Dalmatin in 1143 followed by the work of Marco de Toledo in 1209 or 1210. He dedicated his work to the holy Roman Emperor Leopold I.

George Sale's English translation of the Qur'an was done by using Maracci's Latin work.

References