The Origins of Scholasticism provides the first systematic account of the theological and philosophical ideas that were debated and developed by the scholars who flourished during the years immediately before and after the founding of the first official university in Paris. The period from 1150 to 1250 has traditionally been neglected in favour of the next century (1250–1350), which witnessed the rise of intellectual giants like Thomas Aquinas, Albert the Great, and John Duns Scotus, who famously popularized the major works of Aristotle. As this volume demonstrates, however, earlier scholastic thinkers laid the groundwork for the emergence of theology as a discipline that evolved subsequently. Although they relied heavily on traditional theological sources, this volume highlights the extent to which they also made use of philosophy not only from the Greek but also the Arabic traditions in ways that defined the role it would play in theological contexts for generations to follow.

This chapter witnesses the Crusades and forced conversions of Jews, disputations and expulsions, as well as blood libel charges. Even though Jews also disparaged Christianity, viewing it as idolatry, there were also periods of relatively easy Jewish–Christian coexistence, such as in Spain.

Noga Ayali-Darshan covers the wisdom works and vernacular sayings of Syria-Palestine from the Late Bronze Age. This material exists in some form of Akkadian, including Sumero-Akkadian and Akkadian-Hurrian, all of which comes from sites at Ugarit and/or Emar. Darshan organises the works into four types: practical wisdom, critical wisdom, disputation poems and fables, and righteous sufferer compositions. Much of her chapter will introduce readers to the texts themselves, by way of their provenance, language and versions. Additionally, some thematic and particular linguistic reflections are given. In short, this chapter provides an introduction to an emerging and perhaps neglected area of wisdom from the biblical world.