Salem Choheili

Salem Choheili
Salem Choheili
	Salem Choheili reading the Left Ginza in 2015
Born	1935; Ahvaz, Iran
Nationality	Iranian
Other names	Bayan bar Šarat
Occupation(s)	Scribe, teacher, author
Organization	Mandaean Council of Ahvaz
Notable work	Mandaean Book of John manuscript (1989); Ginza Rabba (2021, Persian translation)
Title	Shganda

Šganda Salem Choheili (Persian: سالم چحیلی; born 1935 in Ahvaz, Iran^[1]} is an Iranian Mandaean scribe, teacher, and author. He is also a shganda and yalufa (learned Mandaean layman)^[1] and is one of the leaders of the Mandaean Council of Ahvaz.^[2] Salem Choheili is a fully fluent speaker of Neo-Mandaic.^[3]^: 211

Biography

Salem Choheili was born in Ahvaz, Iran in 1935 into the Kuhailia (Persian pronunciation: Choheili) family.^[1] His Mandaean baptismal name is Bayan bar Šarat (Classical Mandaic: ࡁࡀࡉࡀࡍ ࡁࡓ ࡔࡀࡓࡀࡕ, romanized: Baian br Šarat, lit. 'Bayan, son of Šarat').^[3]

As a child, he learned to speak colloquial Mandaic from his parents.^[2] Salem Choheili later served as Slovak linguist Rudolf Macúch's primary Neo-Mandaic linguistic informant in 1989,^[4]^: 37 as well as a guide for Norwegian-American scholar Jorunn Jacobsen Buckley during her 1996 field trip to Iran.^[3]^: 211

After serving in the Iranian military, Salem Choheili focused on transcribing Mandaic manuscripts.^[2] On April 12, 1989, he finished copying a handwritten manuscript of the Mandaean Book of John. Dr. Sinan Abdullah, the son of physicist Abdul Jabbar Abdullah, brought a photocopy of the manuscript to Niskayuna, New York, United States, which was later transferred to Colonie, New York.^[5]

In addition to publishing Mandaean scriptures printed in the original Mandaic alphabet, Salem Choheili has written various Persian-language books on Mandaean history, religion, and language. In 2021 (1400 S.H.), he completed a Persian translation of the Ginza Rabba.^[6]^[7]^[8]^[2]

Although not a formally ordained Mandaean priest, Salem Choheili serves as a shganda (priestly assistant) in the Iranian Mandaean community^[3] and is currently a member of the Mandaean Council of Ahvaz.^[2] He has taught Mandaic to Iranian Mandaeans for decades and runs a Mandaic language school in Ahvaz.^[1]^[9]

Family

As a member of the Choheili family, his relatives include Jabbar Choheili (1923–2014), Salah Choheili, and Najah Choheili.^[3]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Buckley, Jorunn Jacobsen (2023). 1800 Years of Encounters with Mandaeans. Gorgias Mandaean Studies. Vol. 5. Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias Press. ISBN 978-1-4632-4132-2. ISSN 1935-441X.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "سالم چحیلی". اطلس اقلیت‌های دینی ایران (in Persian). Retrieved 2024-02-02.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Buckley, Jorunn Jacobsen (2010). The great stem of souls: reconstructing Mandaean history. Piscataway, N.J: Gorgias Press. ISBN 978-1-59333-621-9.
^ Häberl, Charles (2009). The Neo-Mandaic Dialect of Khorramshahr. Otto Harrassowitz. doi:10.7282/t3qf8r7c.
^ Haberl, Charles; McGrath, James (2020). The Mandaean Book of John: critical edition, translation, and commentary. Berlin: De Gruyter. ISBN 978-3-11-048651-3. OCLC 1129155601.
^ Choheili, Salem (2021). گنزا ربا. Ahvaz: Tarava [ترآوا]. ISBN 9786003474161.
^ "برگردان فارسی کتاب مقدس منداییان منتشر شد". ایسنا (in Persian). 2021-04-22. Retrieved 2024-07-30.
^ "گنزا ربا". شبکه جامع کتاب گیسوم (in Persian). Retrieved 2024-07-30.
^ Škanda Salem Choheili Salman (2002). A school for Mandaic language and literatures in Ahwaz. Lecture given on 9 July 2002 at the ARAM 17th International Conference, Oriental Institute, University of Oxford.

External links

Readings of various Mandaic texts and prayers by Salem Choheili (at Sobhan Zahrooni's YouTube channel)

[Buckley_2023-1] Buckley, Jorunn Jacobsen (2023). 1800 Years of Encounters with Mandaeans. Gorgias Mandaean Studies. Vol. 5. Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias Press. ISBN 978-1-4632-4132-2. ISSN 1935-441X.

[adyan-2] "سالم چحیلی". اطلس اقلیت‌های دینی ایران (in Persian). Retrieved 2024-02-02.

[Buckley2010-3] Buckley, Jorunn Jacobsen (2010). The great stem of souls: reconstructing Mandaean history. Piscataway, N.J: Gorgias Press. ISBN 978-1-59333-621-9.

[Haberl_2009-4] Häberl, Charles (2009). The Neo-Mandaic Dialect of Khorramshahr. Otto Harrassowitz. doi:10.7282/t3qf8r7c.

[Haberl2020-5] Haberl, Charles; McGrath, James (2020). The Mandaean Book of John: critical edition, translation, and commentary. Berlin: De Gruyter. ISBN 978-3-11-048651-3. OCLC 1129155601.

[6] Choheili, Salem (2021). گنزا ربا. Ahvaz: Tarava [ترآوا]. ISBN 9786003474161.

[7] "برگردان فارسی کتاب مقدس منداییان منتشر شد". ایسنا (in Persian). 2021-04-22. Retrieved 2024-07-30.

[8] "گنزا ربا". شبکه جامع کتاب گیسوم (in Persian). Retrieved 2024-07-30.

[9] Škanda Salem Choheili Salman (2002). A school for Mandaic language and literatures in Ahwaz. Lecture given on 9 July 2002 at the ARAM 17th International Conference, Oriental Institute, University of Oxford.

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