The Distinctio sermonis super librum auditus naturalis Attributed to Abu Nasr al-Farabi in Gerard of Cremona's Latin Translation

The aim of this article is to present and put into context an interesting short underestimated treatise attributed to al-Fārābī in the Arabic-Latin translation of Gerard of Cremona: the Distinctio sermonis super librum auditus naturalis. It is an overview of the content of books IV to VIII of Aristotle’s Physics, even if an internal reference to Physics III suggests that the text could have been more complete than as it features in the Latin translation. The Polish historian of philosophy and science Alexander Birkenmajer presents his editio princeps in 1935. In this article a new critical edition is presented on the basis of two more manuscripts, the references to Aristotle’s Physics and an English translation are added. Finally, the attribution of this text to al-Fārābī is discussed in relationship with the ancient lists of al-Fārābī’s works, and in relationship with his works devoted to the order of the topics dealt with in Aristotle’s Physics – in particular the Philosophy of Aristotle (Falsafat Arisṭūṭālīs).