Tradisi Terjemahan Pra-Islam: Analisis Historis-Linguistik atas Kontak Budaya Arab Kuno

Abstract

This article discusses the development of translation traditions in Arab civilization during the ancient period. The study highlights cultural contacts between the Arabs and surrounding civilizations such as Babylonia, Persia, Rome, and Greece, as well as the influence of these interactions on the growth of translation practices. The discussion also covers the existence of early loanwords, trade activities, intertribal diplomacy, and processes of knowledge transfer prior to the emergence of major translation movements such as Bayt al-Ḥikmah during the Abbasid era. Through a historical-linguistic approach, this article argues that the tradition of translation was not a sudden phenomenon in the Islamic period, but rather a continuation of practices already rooted in ancient Arab society. The article emphasizes textual, archaeological, and linguistic evidence indicating that the Arabs had been familiar with translation long before the rise of the classical translation movement.