This English translation of a French original brings an excellent introduction to a wider audience. The authors, well-known for their contributions to Syriac studies, demonstrate their ability to craft a perceptive and engaging overview of the Syriac traditions. Despite the recent swell of activity in Syriac scholarship, synthetic presentations that capably represent the excitement and variety of the Syriac world to a general audience remain scarce. This contribution nicely achieves its aim of inviting readers unfamiliar with the territory to explore it, ably demonstrating that the Syriac world deserves to be much better known and more frequently referenced.

The introduction emphasizes the place of the Syriac branch of ancient Christianity as one of the big three, alongside Greek and Latin. Originally centered around ancient Edessa, the dialect of Aramaic known as Syriac came to have a wide influence across the Middle East, Central Asia, and beyond. Some outstanding features of Syriac Christianity include: its Semitic roots, the way it transcends political boundaries, engaging and mixing with different cultures, its characteristic modes of poetic and symbolic expression, and the place given to women, especially in its early phases.

In eight chapters, the book follows a chronological structure, weighted toward the seminal early period but continuing into the twenty-first century. Particular subjects of interest, such as Syrian asceticism, manuscript culture, and the Syriac fondness for picturing God and the Christian life pedagogically, are treated topically within the frame of the narrative history. The first chapter explains the origins of the Syriac linguistic heritage, highlighting its ancient multicultural contexts. Chapter two focuses on the origins of Syriac Christianity within the boundaries between ancient Rome and Persia. There is particular emphasis on the diversity of the earliest Syriac literature and the influence of the late antique authors, Aphrahat the Persian Sage and Ephrem the Syrian.

Chapters three and four address qualities of the Syriac heritage that emerge early and remain pervasive: asceticism and a culture of knowledge. Distinct early forms of asceticism left a deep impression on Syriac ecclesial forms and spiritual practice, including the establishment of a vibrant manuscript culture and networks of schools, in which leaders, theological visionaries, and missionaries were formed. The reader is introduced to a number of spiritual and scholastic luminaries and the picture of God as teacher and salvation as a pedagogical exercise explain certain aspects of the tradition.

Something that newcomers to the Syriac world often find surprising is the subject of chapter five: the impact of Syriac missions across Central Asia, India, and China in the first millennium of Christian history. Artifacts, tales, and texts in a host of different languages across the continent bear the imprint of Syriac Christianity. Chapter six chronicles the fifth–ninth centuries, characterized by dynamism and division due to theological differences and political divisions. The progressive separation of Syriac Christianity from the western Christian world led to the increasing independence of its churches and the development of distinctive beliefs and practices. As groups developed their own Christologies, they also struggled to find a place in the situation brought about by the seventh-century Arab invasions. Readers might be surprised to discover how much Syriac scholarship contributed to the emerging Muslim culture, especially the translation of classical science, philosophy, and medicine into the dominant Arabic idiom.

Chapter seven deals with the tenth–fourteenth centuries, opening a window onto the era of the Crusades and the western Middle Ages from the remarkable vantage point of the Christian legacy of the Middle East. Alongside other noteworthy personalities, the Syriac polymath Bar Hebraeus was roughly contemporary with Thomas Aquinas, boasting a scholarly resumé that is in no way less impressive. Chapter eight addresses the modern Syriac world, from the early modern rediscovery of Syriac in European scholarship to the impact of global politics recently. Migrant communities have taken root in many parts of the world, and the current heirs to the Syriac world face the challenges and opportunities of retaining their identities, adapting to changing circumstances, and making new connections.

The book strikes a fairly good balance between overview and detail, favoring the former but consistently illuminating its summary presentation with anecdotes and quotations. At times the approach simplifies matters of considerable scholarly debate – e.g. the relationship between Judaism and early Syriac Christianity and the theological content of the Odes of Solomon. The lack of nuance may create the illusion that some subjects are more settled than they are, especially in the absence of footnotes. However, the conclusions are neither idiosyncratic nor misleading, and readers may refer to the bibliography for further discussion. More regrettably, some opportunities to highlight areas for further research are passed over. Although the approach depicts a fascinating landscape that will undoubtedly inspire many readers to want to learn more, one might wish for an introductory book to gesture more explicitly toward the many unanswered questions and unexplored materials of the Syriac world.

The book is richly illustrated with quotations, pointing the reader to the wealth and variety of primary sources on which the narrative is based. Numerous images of inscriptions, artifacts, architecture, and manuscript illuminations add texture to the presentation. A list of references to the quotations is provided, along with a bibliography of general and specialized resources (English and French), the latter organized by chapter. Helpful maps, diagrams, and charts occur throughout. An appendix gives a comparative chronology of the history; a glossary of terms and a full index round out the generous assortment of reader's aids.

As a translation, the English style is excellent. While retaining aspects of a continental idiom, the translator has effectively conveyed the readability and energy of the original. The book is accessible to a general audience having little or no knowledge of the Syriac tradition, yet those familiar with the discipline will find its synthesis helpful and constructive. General readers interested in the history and culture of the Middle East or the history of Christianity will find much to appreciate in this book, which would make an excellent textbook in history and religion courses.