Introduction

Religion is man’s systematic search for God and truth. It is a collection of beliefs and thoughts regarding deity and its relation to man. When one is considering the claims of a religion, one must consider the source of the authority upon which that religion bases its claims.

According to Islamic doctrine, Muhammad is the messenger of Allah (Q 2.101, 279; Q 3.32, etc.) and the “Seal of the Prophets” (Q 33.40) on whom the Qur’ān was revealed through a heavenly intermediary. This intermediary is called “the Faithful Spirit” (Q 26.193) and other times “Holy Spirit” (Q 16.102). After Muhammad’s migration to Medina, this intermediary became known as “Gabriel” (Q 2.97-98). (See “Muhammad’s Jibril “Gabriel”)

The Qur’ān was revealed to Muhammad in the Arabic language (Q 12.2, Q 13.37, Q 20.113). Muhammad gave this revelation to a people group that, previous to this time in history, had no heavenly revealed books, and who had never had a prophet sent to them (Q 34.44). The Qur’ān makes the claim within its verses that it is part of the series of the holy books, e.g., the Torah, the Gospel (Q 2.41, 91, 97; Q 3.3, 50).

This period of revelation took place over the course of twenty-three years (AD 610-632), during which Muhammad declared himself a prophet. After the death of Muhammad, his companions gathered the Qur’ān into a book. (See “The Compilation of the Qur'ān'')

Names of the Qur’ān

Muslims have called their most holy book several different names, each with its own origin and meaning.

The Qur’ān

The common name for the holy book of Islam is the Qur’ān (Q 2.185). The name Qur’ān appears about seventy times in the Qur’ān. The opinions of scholars vary regarding the origin and meaning of the word Qur’ān:

Qur’ān comes from the word qara’a, meaning “to recite.” Those who hold this view say that the expression the Qur’ān appears with this meaning in Q 75.17-18, where the Arabic reads with the word Qur’ān and its derivatives:

“It is for us to collect it and to read it; and when we read it then follow its reading”.

Qur’ān is a description following the Arabic grammatical form fu‘lan. Qur’ān then is considered a derivative of the word qar’i meaning “to gather.” It is similar to the saying “qara’ta al-ma’a fi al-hawd”, which means “you gathered the water in the tub”.

Qur’ān is derived from qarantu, meaning “to pair one thing to another” or “to merge them together.” The Qur’ān received this name because of the manner in which its suras, verses, and letters were merged together to form the whole.

Qur’ān “is derived from qraa’in because its verses confirm one another and, in many ways, look the same; hence, they are similar”.

Qur’ān is a unique proper noun, not borrowed. It is applied to the words revealed to Muhammad.

It is interesting to note that many Muslim commentators and exegetes have disregarded the Semitic root of Qur’ān, which is קרא (qara’a), meaning “to recite.” This root word, qara’a, is likely to have come from the Aramaic-Canaanite region. The word Qur’ān is present in Hebrew, Phoenician, Aramaic, and Syriac.

One opinion maintains that the origin of the word Qur’ān was influenced by the Hebrew expression מִקְרָא , which later came to mean “recitation, reading” according to the Old Testament (Neh. 8.8). This expression מִקְרָא is also repeated in rabbinical writings several times. However, most researchers lean toward the idea that Qur’ān comes from the Syriac ܩܪܝܢܐ , which means “reading, recitation” and is used in connection to the study of the Bible.

The similarity between the Arabic and the Syriac words is clear. The Syriacs called the books, or chapters, of the Bible that are read in church ܩܪܝܢܐ, or lectionaries. Thus Muhammad chose for his book the name that was familiar to him then. Without a doubt, the word Qur’ān reached Muhammad from Christian sources.7

In the Qur’ān the verb qara’a appears whenever Muhammad shares a revelation—with the exception of four locations. Two of these exceptions refer to the other holy books (Q 10.94; Q 17.93). The other two refer to the records of deeds that are given to people on Judgment Day (Q 17.71; Q 69.19). All of these references show that the inclusion of the verb qara’a in the Qur’ān is always associated with the heavenly books.

Al-Mushaf

A common name for the Qur’ān is al-Mushaf, the plural of which is Masahif. The root of the word appears to be suhuf. According to an Islamic narrative, the word has an Abyssinian root. When the caliph Abu Bakr had assembled the various parts of the Qur’ān, he gathered his advisors to discuss the issue of naming the book. Some of them wanted to name it Injīl (“Gospel”), but that suggestion was rejected. Others proposed naming it al-Sifr (“the Book, the Record”), but this suggestion was rejected as well. One advisor, Ibn Mas‘ud, said that he had heard that the Abyssinians used the name al-Mushaf and suggested it. His suggestion was accepted.

Al-Furqan

The famous name al-Furqan is used considerably but is less common than al-Qur’ān and al-Mushaf. It is mentioned in Q 2.185, Q 3.4, and Q 25.1.

The expression al-Furqan is not limited to the Qur’ān but is mentioned when dealing with other holy books. For example, this phrase is used to describe the books of Moses (Q 2.53; Q 21.48). The Torah and the New Testament are also called by this name collectively (Q 3.4).

The Qur’ān states that if a person believes in Allah, he would make that belief for the person a furqan (Q 8.29). In addition, the victory of Badr (Q 8.41) is called (in Arabic) “the day of al-Furqan”.

All of the various uses of the name al-Furqan cause us to consider its Semitic root. This word is present in the rabbinical literature as פרְקָז, which means “to save or to redeem”.

In his book, The Foreign Vocabulary of the Qur’ān, Jeffery traces the history of this word furqan and offers this summation:

No doubt Muhammad himself borrowed the word ‘Furqan’ to use it as a technical term and gave it his own special meaning. The origin that was borrowed from was, without a doubt, the concordance of the Aramaic-speaking Christians.12

Other Names

The Qur’ān is called by other common names:

al-Kitab (“the Book”) in Q 2.2

al-Wahi (“the Inspiration”) in Q 21.45

al-Dhikr (“the Reminder”) in Q 15.9

In the books of Qur’ānic science, there are fifty-five names given to the Qur’ān, including the following examples:

Noor (“light”) in Q 4.174

Shifa (“healing”) in Q 17.82, Q 41.44

Maw‘izah (“guidance”) in Q 3.138, Q 10.5713

Structure of the Qur’ān

Al-Qur’ān is the book.

Al-Sura is a chapter of the Qur’ān and is equivalent to a poem.

Al-Aya is similar to a line of poetry and will be called a “verse” in this book.

Al-Fasila is the end of the verse and acts as the rhyme14

The Sura

The sura is a chapter of the Qur’ān. Its plural is suwar (suras). The word sura appears in the Qur’ān in Q 2.23, Q 10.38, and Q 11.13.

Most of the verses that mention the word sura belong to the later period of Muhammad’s activity, when he was mainly in Medina. The Islamic sources do not contain information that indicates the origin of this word. Nöldeke and other Orientalists suggest that it came from the Hebrew שׁוּרָח (which is used in the Mishnah) and means “a lineup, or a chain.” The problem with this view is that שׁוּרָח is not associated with the holy books, whereas the word sura in the Qur’ān is exclusively associated with the holy books. This association compels Hirschfeld to think that the word is equivalent to the Jewish word סדרה, which is a known term for section markers in the Hebrew books. Jeffery believes the word sura comes from the Syriac word ܣܘܪܛܐ, which means “writing.

According to the ‘Uthmanic codex, which is the most widely used Qur’ān, there are 114 suras. By some counts, Q 8 and Q 9 are considered to be one sura, which makes the total number of suras 113. The number of suras in the codex of Ibn Mas‘ud is 112 suras, since he does not include Q 113 and Q 114, known as al-Mu‘awwidhatayn, the two refuge-seeking chapters. However, in the codex of Ubayy Ibn Ka‘b the number of suras is 116, because he adds the two suras al-Hafd and al-Khal‘. Others say that the codex of Ibn Ka‘b actually contains 115 suras because he combines Q 105 and Q 106 into one sura. (See “The Compilation of the Qur’ān”)

A sura may often have more than one name. For example, sura Muhammad (Q 47) is also called al-Qital (“The Fight, the Battle”). The formal name for Q 65 is sura al-Talaq, or “Divorce Chapter.” Q 65 is nicknamed sura al-Nisa’ al-Qusra (“The Smaller Chapter about Women'') because it contains similar content (women’s issues) as Q 4 but is shorter in length.

The Aya

The word aya is sometimes translated as “verse.” The plural of aya is aay or ayat. This word appears several times in the Qur’ān and its Arabic meaning is “the mark.” It also “occurs in the old poetry…[of well-known Arab poet] Imru’ ul-Qais…and so was in use before the time of Muhammad”.

Later on, the expression aya came to mean a verse of the Qur’ān. Despite the fact that the word aya (ayat) is repeated throughout the Qur’ān, it rarely appears in the Meccan verses.

Even though there is no root for the word aya (ayat) in Arabic, it likely reached the Arabs through the Syriac-speaking Christians. This Syriac word is used exactly like the Hebrew word אוח. In Hebrew, the word aya is written as from the verb אוה , which means “to indicate or to mark”. References of this word found in several Old Testament books indicate multiple meanings: the signs (marks) of the seasons (Gen. 1.14); standards, or military banners (Num. 2.2); signs for remembrance (Josh. 4.6); the miracles and wonders that reveal the divine presence (Deut. 4.34; Ps. 78, 43); and signs or warnings that accompany and testify to the works of the prophets (Exod. 3.12; 1 Sam. 10.7, 9). What is readily noticeable is that the uses of אוח are very close to the Qur’ānic meaning of the word.

Disagreements about the totals of suras (chapters) mentioned earlier similarly occur with the number of verses in the Qur’ān. Though based on the ‘Uthmanic codex, even the most famous Schools of Reading have tabulated the verses differently:

The First Medinan (according to Kufa: 6217 verses; yet, according to Basra: 6214 verses)

The latter Medinan: 6214 verses

The Meccan: 6210 verses

The Bassran: 6204 verses

The Damascan: 6227 verses (and also 6226 verses)

The Hummusan: 6232 verses

The Kufan: 6232 verses.

For another example, Q 112 has five verses according to the Meccan and the Syrian Schools of Reading but only four verses according to the rest of them.

Al-Fasila (normally the end of the verse)

Al-Fasila is the last word in a verse of the Qur’ān. These fasilas in the verses of the suras of the Qur’ān resemble the rhymes in the poetic lines of Arabic poem anthologies. The al-Fasila often had to be taken into consideration during the composition of the Qur’ān to preserve the poetic qualities of the sentence. This practice led to weak, irregular, or illogical construction of some of the syntax and sentence structures, as displayed in the following examples:

Q 54.41: The subject and object of the verb are out of place for the purpose of maintaining the rhyme.

Q 53.25: In the Arabic, the verse states that “it is to Allah that the End and the Beginning of all things belong.” The “End” is placed before the “Beginning” to keep the rhyme; otherwise the “Beginning” would have been stated first as in Q 28.70.

Q 40.5: The possessive ya (“my”) is dropped and replaced with a kessra, “i” accent, to keep the al-Fasila rhyme.

Q 33.66: An unnecessary letter was added to the word “messenger” in keeping with the rhyme.

Q 21.33: Instead of using the normal irregular form of the plural, the regular plural is used to refer to the irregular object. Also, in Arabic grammar there are singular, dual (when referring to two), and plural nouns. In this verse the plural is used instead of the dual when the verse is talking about the sun and the moon. All these changes were done to keep al-Fasila.

There are many such examples in al-Rasafi’s book, Kitab al-Shakhsiyya al-Muhammd-iyya aw Hhal al-Lughz al-Muqadas.

Qur’ānic Challenge

Muslims believe that it is impossible to bring forth a Qur’ān that is equal to the one they currently have. They base this belief on the challenges of such a task as presented in the Qur’ān itself: “Say,‘If mankind and ginns [jinns] united together to bring the like of this Qur’ān, they could not bring the like, though they should back each other up!’” (Q 17.88). Similar examples include Q 11.13 (“‘Bring ten surahs like it devised...’”) and Q 10.38 (“‘Bring a surah like it...’”).

To the pagan tribesmen of the Quraysh the challenge of replicating “the like of this Qur’ān” was not so much an impossible task but a ludicrous undertaking: “Revelations of the kind which Mohammed uttered, no unbeliever could produce without making himself a laughing-stock”. Furthermore, any attempt to exactly duplicate Muhammad’s compositions would be futile, since his compositions derived from his own unique educational reserve, psychological experiences, and personal language. If a pagan was to imitate the Qur’ān, his imitation would be no more than a weak approximation. The poet Ma‘ruf al-Rasafi echoes these difficulties:

It is difficult for an objector to bring forth words similar to the ones to which he objected. Muhammad knew that well, which is why he calmly and assuredly with all courage and valor challenged his people saying, “And if ye are in doubt of what we have revealed unto our servant, then bring a chapter like it, and call your witnesses other than God if ye tell truth” (Q 2.23).

No one has been mentioned to have intended to oppose the Qur’ān… If one had intended to do so, he would have definitely failed. The one who opposes the Qur’ān must, first of all, have spirituality exactly like that of Muhammad, and have intelligence like his and imagination like his….No one could oppose the Qur’ān and bring forth one like it except Muhammad himself.

On the other hand, Muslims believe that the beauty of the Qur’ān’s language is a given, ignoring the reality that the Qur’ān is different in composition from one period to another. The texts in the Meccan Qur’ān are fiery and incitant, whereas the texts in the Medinan portion of the Qur’ān are dry prose. (See “The Chronological Sequence of the Qur’ān”).

The objective reader may become bored when reading the Qur’ān. Orientalist Edward William Lane supports this likely reader reaction:

If not for the eloquence of the old Arabic language, which gave a sense of charm to some of the hard sentences and boring stories, the reading of the Qur’ān would be impossible. For one feels that one descended from the poetry to prose. The prose portion has nothing that deserves reading, which would compensate the loss of the poetic early texts, as the musical effect disappears.

Lane’s view is commonly held by the great Arab author al-Risafi:

What is unique to the Qur’ān and a characteristic that it does not share with the rest of the heavenly and earthly books is: redundancy. Take the Qur’ān and read one of its suras (one of the longer ones), then continue on to another sura after finishing the first, then move on to a third and a fourth sura. Based on the subject matter, it does not feel like you moved from one sura to another. That is because the redundant writings mainly contain mentioning prophets and what happened between them and their unbelieving people, and the mentioning of paradise, hell, the coming back to life, the resurrection, and the bashing of the unbelievers and their misleading others with idolatry….What is most amazing is that the Qur’ān is indebted to redundancy for its effect on the souls of those who read and hear it.

It is neither simple, nor customary among the learned to have a book use such redundancy, yet come out safe and blameless except the Qur’ān [our emphasis]. Considering this, it is possible to call the Qur’ān “The Book of Influence Through Redundancy”.

The Quraysh Opinion of the Qur’ān

Even though the first suras of the Qur’ān were recited in the language of the tribe of Quraysh, the majority of Muhammad’s tribesmen were not impressed. In fact, the initial reaction to the Qur’ān by the people of the Quraysh was not particularly favorable:

“‘These are but old folks’ tales’” (Q 6.25; Q 8.31; Q 23.83; Q 27.68)

The Qur’ān was composed by “a poet” (Q 21.5; Q 37.36; Q 52.30; Q 69.41)

They also dismissed Muhammad as

“an obvious sorcerer,” “a magician, liar” (Q 10.2; Q 38.4)

“a soothsayer” (Q 52.29; Q 69.42)

“possessed,” “mad” (Q 15.6; Q 44.14; Q 52.29; Q 68.2, 51; Q 81.22)

“bewitched” (Yusuf Ali trans.: Q 17.47; Q 25.8)

This negative response is probably what prompted al-Rasafi to make these remarks:

They greatly magnify the inimitability of the Qur’ān, but they are unable to mention one clear effect of this miracle that lead to the success of the call to Islam (Islamic Da‘wa). For it is clear that the Islamic Da‘wa succeeded by the sword, not by the miracle of the Qur’ān.

Importance of Studying the Qur’ān

The Qur’ān is a Source for Studying the History of Muhammad and Early Islam.

The Qur’ān is the record of Muhammad’s call (Da‘wa) of others to Islam. This ancient book helps us to understand the personality of Muhammad. For example, one finds in it the depth of the various worries that Muhammad experienced (Q 94); the fire of his anger against his uncle Abu Lahab (Q 111); or the rulings that he changed according to his human decisions, such as his position towards Zaineb Bint Jahsh (his adopted son’s wife), where Muhammad changed the rulings so he could marry her (Q 33.4, 36, 37, 53).

We also discover through the Qur’ān how Muhammad viewed his context and how he dealt with it and produced his doctrines towards those who gave allegiance to him and those who opposed him. (See “The Qur’ān and People of Other Faiths”).

The Qur’ān is a Source for Understanding the Islamic Context.

According to Islamic theory, the Qur’ān is Allah’s address to the Muslims, the foundation on which the Islamic teachings stand, and the source for legislation. It is the educational book that feeds the Islamic mind and defines for the Muslim the philosophy of life and how to understand oneself as well as others. For Muslims, the Qur’ān is the tool that shapes their worldview.

Despite the centrality of the Qur’ān to the life of Muslims, most of them, even the Arab Muslims, have very limited knowledge of it. That knowledge is often filled with ambiguity and deficiencies and hedged with inherited prohibitions. For this reason, we have decided to shed light on the Qur’ān, mainly relying on the different Islamic sources—the expositional, the narrations (hadīth), and the historical. We have also made use of the contemporary literary works in Arabic and other languages to help the reader gain a comprehensive knowledge of the Qur’ān.

This App also contains researched materials concerning historical matters (“The Compilation of the Qur’ān”), intellectual issues (“Women in the Qur’ān) and social issues (“The Qur’ān and People of Other Faiths”).

This App also examines the suras of the Qur’ān according to their current arrangement, dealing with three areas concerning the verses: (1) Critical Analysis, (2) Abrogation, and (3) Variant Readings. The aim behind this examination is to open serious and intellectual discussion concerning the Qur’ān.

Miscellaneous Facts about the Qur’ān

The longest word in the Arabic Qur’ān is in Q 15.22: “فَأَسْقَيْنَاكُمُوهُ : fa’asqaynakumuh, which means “so we give it to you to drink of”.

The longest verse is the verse called “The Debt (Lending) Verse” in Q 2.282.

The shortest verse is Q 93.1.

The longest sura is Q 2 and the shortest is Q 108.

Q 12 is the only sura that is over one hundred verses yet contains no mention of paradise or hell.

There are two copies of the Arabic Qur’ān (based on the ‘Uthmanic codex) that are in use today among the Muslims:

(1) The (more prevalent) Qur’ān according to the reading of ‘Assim as narrated by Hafs, which was issued in Cairo under the direction of al-Azhar in 1924.

(2) the Qur’ān according to the reading of Nafi‘ as narrated by Warsh, which was issued in Algeria in 1905.

References

1. Abū Shuhba 17. 2. al-Suyūt.ī, al-Itqān 341; Abū Shuhba 17. 3. al-Suyūt.ī, al-Itqān 340. 4. Ibid. 5. Ibid. 339; Abū Shuhba 18. 6. Jeffery, Foreign Vocabulary of the Qur’ān 233. 7. Ibid. 234; Nöldeke, Tārīkh al-Qur’ān 29-32. 8. Jeffery, Foreign Vocabulary of the Qur’ān 233. 9. al-Zarkashī 1: 281-282. 10. Jeffery, Foreign Vocabulary of the Qur’ān 226. 11. Geiger 41-42. 12. Jeffery, Foreign Vocabulary of the Qur’ān 228-229. 13. al-Suyūt.ī, al-Itqān 336-338; al-Zarkashī 1: 273-276. 14. al-Suyūt.ī, al-Itqān 336. 15. Jeffery, Foreign Vocabulary of the Qur’ān 181-182. 16. al-Suyūt.ī, al-Itqān 422. 17. Ibid. 423. 18. Ibid. 427. 19. Ibid. 362. 20. Jeffery, Foreign Vocabulary of the Qur’ān 73. 21. Ibid. 72. 22. Ibid. 72-73. 23. al-Dānī, al-Bayān H. a’-T. a’. 24. Ibid. 296. 25. al-Ras.āfī 561-562. 26. Ibid. 561-570; compare with the analysis of fās.ila in Nöldeke, Tārīkh al-Qur’ān 34-38 and Sketches 33-34. 27. Nöldeke, Sketches 36. 28. al-Ras.āfī 604-605. 29. Lane cv-cvi. 30. al-Ras.āfī 554. 31. Ibid. 608. 32. al-Zarkashī 1: 255.