Scientific conference on the occasion of the 120th anniversary of the birth of Besim-ef. Korkut: A lifetime dedicated to science until the end

A scientific conference was held today at the Faculty of Islamic Sciences in Sarajevo to mark the 120th anniversary of the birth of Besim-ef. Korkut, an Islamic scholar and translator of the Quran.

The conference was held as part of the Tezkiretname, a program of institutional celebration of the birth dates of figures significant to Islam, Muslims and the Islamic Community in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

– Besim Korkut is one of the real founders of the Oriental Institute, and the conditions were created for the Institute itself to publish his translation of the Quran two years after his death. This is the first translation that, we can say, has achieved communication with the Bosnian and Herzegovinian readership.

The translations that were done before had certain noises, and his sentence is contemporary and Bosnian-Herzegovinian – said on this occasion academician Enes Karić.

With reference to the previously described sentence, Academician Karić emphasized that this is a linguistic idiom that was spoken in cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina and in areas marked by Muslims and traditional believers of these regions.

– That is why the significance of this translation is very great. The Islamic Community later published it several times, and something commendable happened; this translation has gained some canonical value, it is the most widely read and widespread. I don't think there is any rival that will remove it from that place – assessed Academician Karić.

Today's program is being implemented by the Faculty of Islamic Sciences and the Institute for the Islamic Tradition of Bosniaks, and is part of the event “Days of the Islamic Tradition of Bosniaks” which is being implemented in several cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina from 26 November to 25 December.

– Besim Korkut entered the lives of Bosniak Muslims, since his translation of the Quran also represents his interpretation of certain parts of the Quran, and many of the translation solutions he incorporated into his translation are also interpretations of some less clear parts of the Text.

This is an interpretation that is in line with the tradition of Bosniak Muslims and the path taken by the Islamic Community – said the director of the Institute for Islamic Tradition of Bosniaks, Hafiz Dr. Elvir Duranović.

Following the above, Duranović explained that Korkut, as a student of Al-Azhar, like other scholars who paved the way for the Islamic Community, adopted certain modernist ideas that were in some way incorporated into this translation.

The scientific conference also featured speakers Prof. Dr. Džemaludin Latić, Prof. Dr. Asim Zupčević, Prof. Dr. Amrudin Hajrić and Dr. Dželila Babović, and the program was moderated by Prof. Dr. Zehra Alispahić.

– Besim Korkut synthesized language, linguistics, literature, historiography and theology. All of this fit into one personality, created by his educational path, which began in his native Travnik, continued at the Sharia Judicial School, the Higher Islamic Theological School and Al-Azhar – emphasized Prof. Alispahić.

She assessed that Besim Korkut's translation of the Quran was established in the context of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and was greeted with the same joy with which major projects such as the Revival and the Islamic Theological Faculty were greeted.

– In all of this lies the modest but dignified personality of Besim Korkut, whose life was dedicated to science, searching, insight, counseling, debating and striving to be better and different, and to leave some lasting values ​​for this region to use – concluded Dr. Alispahić.

In addition to the translation of the Quran, which is the crowning achievement of his scholarly and translation work, Korkut translated extensively from the Arabic language, especially from Arabic literature. The publishing company “Svjetlost” published Arab Jokes and Fables, and Indian Fables, which were translated and prepared for printing by Besim Korkut himself.

The publishing company “Dečja knjiga” in Belgrade, in the Kolibri library, published eight books from One Thousand and One Nights, which Korkut translated from Arabic.

– These are some of the most important works of classical Arabic literature, which, thanks to Korkut, found their way to a wider reading audience in Bosnia and Herzegovina. They are an integral part of our school education system as mandatory reading in primary and secondary education – emphasized Dr. Dželila Babović.

In addition to the publishing company Svjetlost, several others, such as “Novo pokoljenje”, “Veselin Masleša” or “Džepna knjiga,” published four books from the cycle One Thousand and One Nights, all translated from Korkut.

The Indian short stories Kalila and Dimna were published in an expertly edited Korkut's translation.

(Preporod.info)