GIOVANNI bar Zö'bi. - A Nestorian, monk at Bet Qo'qà in the 13th century. His principal work is a grammar of the Syriac language, which marks the apex of grammatical studies among the Nestorians.
G. also wrote theological and philosophical works in metrical form; such as an explanation of Nestorian doctrine, a commentary on the Eucharistic liturgy, and a poem “on the four problems of philosophy.”
Bibl.: A. Baumstark, Geschichte der syrischen Literatur, Bonn 1922, pp. 310 ff.; J. B. Chabot, Littérature syriaque, Paris 1934, p. 129; W. de Vries, Die Erklärung der göttlichen Geheimnisse des Nestorianers Johann Bar Zö'bi (13. Jahrh.), in Or. Chr. periodica, 9 (1943), pp. 188-203. Guglielmo de Vries