The article studies two most popular translations of the Book of Lamentation by St. Gregory of Narek from Grabar (Old Armenian) into Modern Armenian. On the example of Mkrtich Kheranyan’s and Vazgen Gevorgyan’s translations an attempt is made to study how translators perceive, interpret and reproduce a Medieval work in Modern Armenian, what problems they encounter while translating the text and what solutions they offer. The analysis of these translations not only provides an opportunity to evaluate translators’ efforts, but also detect problems and some peculiar features of the translation, which in the future can contribute to the emergence of new, improved translations of the Book of Lamentation. Commentaries facilitate an accurate comprehension of the Book of Lamentation, enabling readers to evaluate the work of the translators. Commentaries were produced between the 13th and 19th centuries with the objective to facilitate the comprehension of Gregory’s work. From an analysis of the translations of the Book of Lamentation and the testimonies of the translators, it is evident that in the translation process they have made use of the commentaries, while drawing on their own insights. Furthermore, as the medieval interpreters and subsequently H. Patriarch Nalean and G. Avetikean addressed the interpretation of the original text with a clear objective in mind, we have also referred to the analysis of the correlations between the original, its various interpretations and translations.

KeywordsGregory of Narek Book of Lamentation prayer book problems of the translation commentary context medieval thinking