4.1 Introduction

The reading of Umberto Eco's novel “Il nome della rosa”gives the impression that laughter was a problematicexpression of human emotions in the European MiddleAges. Indeed, in its early centuries Christianityregarded laughter sceptically with reference to thepagan Roman theatre and held the monk who did notlaugh but weeped (is,qui luget) as anideal of Christian conduct. Early Christian Churchfathers like John Chrysostom (d. 407) could rely intheir argumentations on the Gospels which containindeed no reference that Jesus has ever laughed inhis earthly life. John Chrysostom remarked:

Laughter is an anthropological phenomenon which can beexpressed and regulated in different ways dependingon its cultural frame. As an anthropologicalphenomenon laughter is closely connected to thehuman body since it can be expressed only by thehuman body. Let us first regard some considerationson laughter in the Christian tradition; we shallthen consider regulations of laughter and jest—as amotivating factor for laughter—in the Islamicculture. The focus will then be on some works of thethird/ninth century polyhistor al-Jāḥiẓ (d.255/868–9).

The Hebrew Bible contains two different expressions forlaughter. While ṣaḥaq( שחק ) describes the natural laughter,there exists also the term la,ag, ( לעג ) which is maybe besttranslated as to mockor to make amockery and which can be understood as acondescending laughter or an insulting laughter. Asin Hebrew, there exist also in Greek terms whichexpress two different manifestations of laughter:While γϵƛάν describes natural laughter, kαταγϵƛάν isused for an evil or an insulting laughter.