Voice of Arabic Network
Search

Alphonse Rousseau

ألفونس روسو

Notable figure 1820–1870 · Source: Alain Messaoudi, Les arabisants et la France coloniale, annexes: notice Rousseau · Second source: Bibliothèque nationale de France, authority record: Rousseau, Alphonse

Field: Translation

Affiliation

Translated from Arabic al-Tijani's journey and Tunis texts

Biography

A French interpreter and consul born at Aleppo, son of the consul Joseph Rousseau. He entered the dragoman service (1843), worked at Mogador, Tunis and Cairo, became first interpreter at Tunis (1847), then consul at Jidda and Sarajevo. He translated from Arabic an account of the taking of Tunis (1845), an extract from al-Zarkashi (1849) and the journey of the shaykh al-Tijani (Journal asiatique, 1852–53), and wrote Annales tunisiennes (1864), based on Arab historians.