Saliba orSliba ibn Yuhanna (Arabic:Ṣalībā ibn Yūḥannā) was a medievalSyriac Christian, author of a 1332 Arabic compendium known asThe Books of Secrets (Asfar al-Asrar). Born inMosul in the late 13th century, he was active inJazīrat Ibn ʿUmar on the upperTigris in the early 14th century, and inFamagusta,Cyprus, in the 1330s.
He is principally known for his edition ofMari ibn Suleiman's andAmr ibn Matta'sBook of Towers. MS Paris BNF Arab. 204 is a likely autograph, where ibn Yuhanna copied texts that interested him. The manuscript is internally dated to June 1315 and placed in Jazīrat Ibn ʿUmar. Years later, ibn Yuhanna added aLetter from the People of Cyprus to the manuscript, dated to 1336, written in Famagusta, Cyprus.
Ibn Yuhanna's "Book of Secrets" opens with a letter addressed to the Christians in the "West" (Byzantine Empire), defending the authenticity of theChurch of the East and making a plea for Christian unity. It is plausible that ibn Yuhanna was already in Cyprus, at the time still acrusader kingdom (under kingHugh IV) when he completed this work.
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