John of Spain (Hispanus)

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JOHN OF SPAIN (HISPANUS)

Philosopher; d. Toledo, 1166. A converted Jew, he lived principally in Toledo and became bishop of Segovia in 1149, and then archbishop of Toledo. He is often confused with john of seville (hispalensis). Although lacking originality in thought, he adroitly synthesized the ideas of others and made observations concerning differences among the schools from a historical viewpoint. Collaborating with his disciple dominic gundisalvi, he promoted the spread of philosophy in Europe by translating Arab texts and elaborating original works. Among the fruits of this collaboration, the following are the most noteworthy: (1) Tractatus de anima, ed. J. T. Muckle, "The Treatise De anima of Dominicus Gundisalvus," manuscript 2 (1940); (2) Liber de causis, ed. from the Arab-Latin text by O. Bardenhewer, Die pseudoaristotelische Schrift über das reine Gute bekannt unter dem Namen Liber de causis (Freiburg 1882); (3) Liber de causis primis et secundis, ed. R. De Vaux, in Notes et textes sur l'avicennisme latin (Paris 1934).

Bibliography: m. alonso, "Traducciones del árabe al latín por Juan Hispano (Ibn Dawud)," Al-Andalus, 17 (1952) 129151; Temas filosóficos medievales (Ibn Dāwād y Gundisalvo ) (Comillas 1959).

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