BEDJAN, PAOLO. - Orientalist, priest of the Mission, b. at Khosrova in Persia in 1838, and after having been a zealous missionary among the Chaldean rite Christians, d. at Cologne-Nippes (France) in 1920. Extraordinary was his activity as an editor of ancient texts in the Syriac language.
Comprising 36 volumes published within the space of 27 years. Among these must be mentioned the Chaldean breviary and missal, whose publication met with opposition from the Chaldean hierarchy. Also very famous are the 7 volumes of the Acta Martyrum et Sanctorum, which include hagiographical material almost entirely unpublished, the 4 volumes of the Homiliae selectae of Mar Jacobus Sarugensis, and the edition of the Book of Heraclides, a work of Nestorius hitherto unknown.
B., even without being an eminent critic, rendered an incomparable service to Oriental studies.