ABRIM AL-QIBTI, ANBA (bishop)

Abrim authored a history of the world from the time of creation until the year A.H. 614/A.D. 1216. The only known manuscript of this work belonged to ‘ABD AL- MASIH SALIB AL-MASUDI, a Coptic priest of Cairo. It is cited by Paul Sbath in both his manuscript catalogs (Sbath, 1938, 1939).

No Coptic bishop by the name of Abrim is known. Graf suggested that the name might refer to a certain Afrim, or Ephrem, but this does not help to identify him. One possible identification is Anba Abra’am, bishop of Nastarawayh, who was present both at the synod convened on 28 June 1240 under CYRIL III Ibn Laqlaq and at the ceremony of preparing the holy chrism in A.M. 973/A.D.  1257 (Munier, 1943). In the one manuscript, the name of this bishop is given as Abram with only one alif (Sbath manuscript 1126; Sbath, 1934). Jacob Muyser (1944) has also suggested an equivalence between Abram and Abrim.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

• Munier, H. Recueil des listes épiscopales de l’église copte, pp. 31 and 35. Cairo, 1943.
• Muyser, J. “Contribution à létude des listes épiscopales de l’église copte.” Bulletin de la société d’Archéologie copte 10 (1944):115-76, especially p. 156.
• Sbath, P. Bibliothéque de manuscrits Paul Sbath, Vol. 3, p. 4. Cairo, 1934.
• Al-Fihris (Catalogue de manuscrits arabes), Vol. 1, p. 7. Cairo, 1938.
• “Manuscrits arabes d’auteurs coptes.” Bulletin de la Société d’Archéologie copte 5 (1939): 159-73, especially p. 161.

KHALIL SAMIR, S. J.