Nafisa Valieva is a postdoctoral researcher at the Collège de France, philologist and historian specializing in Ethiopian texts in the Geez language.
The"Gadla Lālibalā Collection": A Critical Edition in Geez with Parallel English Translation
King Lālibalā is considered a saint along with other kings of the so-called Zāgwe dynasty, who ruled the Christian Kingdom of Ethiopia in the 12th-13th century CE. He is given credit for the construction of the renowned rock-hewn churches in the city of Lālibalā, named after him. The Geez term Gadl, lit. "Combat", defines a text written according to the hagiographic genre, which, with its own rules and conventions, reveals at the same time the author's own ideas. Therefore, hagiographical texts are excellent witnesses to the history of thoughts, mentality, and practices. The expression "Gadla Lālibalā collection" is used here for what is often referred to as the Gadla Lālibalā, which has been considered the main source about the life and deeds of King Lālibalā as a saint. The only scholarly yet partial edition of the "Gadla Lālibalā collection" was carried out by French philologist Jules Perruchon in 1892. Later, in 1972, Polish scholar Stanisław Kur published his complementing partial edition of the"Gadla Lālibalā Collection".
