The Guide of the Perplexed
Moses' original quote:
"Know also that all the statements that the men of Islam – both the Muʿtazila and the Ashʿariyya – have made concerning these notions are all of them opinions founded upon premises that are taken over from the books of the Greeks and the Syrians who wished to disagree with the opinions of the philosophers and to reject their statements."
1204 Samuel ibn Tibbon translation:
"Those who first initiated this line of inquiry were the Mutazilites, and later on, the Asharites branched out from them. All of these doctrines are built upon premises and propositions taken directly from the books of the Greeks and the Arameans, who exerted themselves to argue against and dispute the opinions of the philosophers, and to tear down their arguments."
Moses Maimonides composed The Guide for the Perplexed around 1190 in Judeo-Arabic, where he used the word al-Suryāniyyīn to mean "the Syrians." He was historically describing the Christian scholars of the Levant who translated classical Greek philosophy into Arabic. In 1204, Samuel ibn Tibbon translated the work into medieval Hebrew, choosing to replace "Syrians" with the term Aramim ("the Arameans").
