View source for Religion:Quran

{{Short description|Foundational Islamic religious text}}
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{{Infobox religious text
| religion = [[Religion:Islam|Islam]]
| image    = File:Qur'an and Rehal.jpg
| alt      = Quran opened, resting on a stand
| language = [[Social:Classical Arabic|Classical Arabic]]
| chapters = 114 (list)
| caption  = 
| period   = 610–632 CE
| name     = The Quran
| subheader = {{lang-ar|القرآن|al-Qurʾān}}
| native_wikisource = القرآن الكريم
| orig_lang_code = ar
| wikisource = Quran
}}

The '''Quran''' ({{IPAc-en|k|Ur|ˈ|ɑː|n}}, {{Respell|kuurr|AHN|'}};{{#tag:ref|The English pronunciation varies: {{IPAc-en|k|ə|ˈ|r|ɑː|n}}, {{IPAc-en|-|ˈ|r|æ|n}}, {{IPAc-en|k|ɔː|-}}, {{IPAc-en|k|oʊ|-}};<ref>dictionary.reference.com: [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Koran koran]</ref> especially with the spelling ''quran'' {{IPAc-en|k|ʊr|ˈ|ɑː|n}}, {{IPAc-en|-|ˈ|r|æ|n}};<ref>dictionary.reference.com: [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Quran quran]</ref> especially in British English {{IPAc-en|k|ɒ|r|ˈ|ɑː|n}}.<ref>Cambridge dictionary: [http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/the-koran koran]</ref><ref>Cambridge dictionary: [http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/the-qur-an?q=qur%27an quran]</ref>|group=lower-roman}} vocalized Arabic: {{lang|ar|{{Script/Arabic|اَلْقُرْآنُ}}}}, [[Social:Classical Arabic|Quranic Arabic]]: {{lang|ar|{{Script/Arabic|ٱلۡقُرۡءَانُ}}}}, {{transliteration|ar|ALA-LC|al-Qurʾān}} {{nowrap|{{IPA-ar|alqurˈʔaːn|}}}},{{#tag:ref|The Arabic pronunciation can be transcribed phonemically as {{IPA|/al.qurˈʔaːn/}}. The actual pronunciation in [[Social:Modern Standard Arabic|Literary Arabic]] varies regionally. The first vowel varies from {{IPAblink|o}} to {{IPAblink|ʊ}}, while the second vowel varies from {{IPAblink|æ}} to {{IPAblink|a}} to {{IPAblink|ɑ}}. For example, the pronunciation in Egypt is {{IPA|[qorˈʔɑːn]}} and in Central East Arabia {{IPA|[qʊrˈʔæːn]}}. |group=lower-roman}} {{lit|the recitation|the lecture}}), also romanized '''Qur'an''' or '''Koran''',{{#tag:ref|(English spelling) The form '''Alcoran''' (and its variants) was usual before the 19th century when it became obsolete.<ref>{{Cite OED1|Alcoran|volume=1|page=[https://archive.org/stream/oed01arch#page/210/mode/1up 210]|year=1888}}</ref><ref name="Ngram">{{Cite web |url=https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=Alcoran%2CKoran%2CQuran%2C+Qur%27an&year_start=1700&year_end=2000&corpus=15&smoothing=3&direct_url=t1%3B%2CAlcoran%3B%2Cc0%3B.t1%3B%2CKoran%3B%2Cc0%3B.t1%3B%2CQuran%3B%2Cc0%3B.t1%3B%2CQur%27an%3B%2Cc0t1 |title=Google Books Ngram Viewer |website=Google Books |access-date=16 February 2021}}</ref> The form '''Koran''' was most predominant from the second half of the 18th century till the 1980s, when it has been superseded by either '''Qur'an''' or '''Quran'''.<ref name="Ngram" /><ref>{{Cite OED1|Koran|volume=5|page=[https://archive.org/stream/newenglishdict05murrmiss#page/753/mode/1up 753]|year=1901}}</ref><ref name="OED-Koran">{{OED|Koran}}</ref><ref name="OED-Quran">{{OED|Quran}}</ref> Other transliterations include ''al-Coran'', ''Coran'', ''Kuran'' and ''al-Qur'an''. The adjectives vary as well and include ''Koranic'', ''Quranic'' and ''Qur'anic'' (sometimes in lowercase).<ref name="MWD-Koran">{{MerriamWebsterDictionary|Koran}}</ref>|group=lower-roman}} is the central [[Religion:Religious text|religious text]] of [[Religion:Islam|Islam]], believed by [[Religion:Muslims|Muslims]] to be a [[Religion:Waḥy|revelation]] from [[Religion:God in Islam|God]].<ref name="Britannica">{{harvnb|Nasr|2007}}</ref> It is organized in 114 [[Religion:Surah|chapters]] ({{abbr|pl.|plural}}: {{lang|ar|سور}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA-LC|suwar}}, {{abbr|sing.|singular}}: {{lang|ar|سورة}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA-LC|sūrah}}), which consist of [[Religion:Āyah|verses]] ({{abbr|pl.|plural}}: {{lang|ar|آيات}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA-LC|ʾāyāt}}, {{abbr|sing.|singular}}: {{lang|ar|آية}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA-LC|ʾāyah}}, {{abbr|cons.|construct case}}: {{transliteration|ar|ALA-LC|ʾāyat}}). In addition to its religious significance, it is widely regarded as the finest work in Arabic literature,<ref>{{cite book|first=Arthur|last=Arberry|title=The Koran Interpreted|location=London|year=1956|quote=It may be affirmed that within the literature of the Arabs, wide and fecund as it is both in poetry and in elevated prose, there is nothing to compare with it.|page=191|isbn=0-684-82507-4}} </ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Toropov |first1=Brandon |last2=Buckles|first2=Luke|title=Complete Idiot's Guide to World Religions|date=2004 |publisher=Alpha|isbn=978-1-59257-222-9 |quote=Muslims believe that Muhammad's many divine encounters during his years in Mecca and Medina inspired the remainder of the Qur'an, which, nearly fourteen centuries later, remains the Arabic language's preeminent masterpiece.|page=126|location=|oclc=}}</ref><ref name=Esposito>{{Cite book |last=Esposito |first=John |title=Islam: The Straight Path |publisher=[[Organization:Oxford University Press|Oxford University Press]] |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-19-539600-3 |edition=4th |page=21|quote=Throughout history, many Arab Christians as well have regarded it as the perfection of the Arabic language and literature.}}</ref> and has significantly influenced the [[Social:Arabic|Arabic language]].

Muslims believe that the Quran was orally revealed by God to the final prophet, Muhammad, through the archangel [[Biography:Gabriel|Gabriel]] incrementally over a period of some 23 years, beginning on [[Religion:Night of Power|Laylat al-Qadr]],<ref name="surah al-qadr">{{qref|97|c=y}}</ref> when Muhammad was 40, and concluding in 632, the year of his death at age 61–62.<ref name="Britannica" /><ref name="LivRlgP338">{{Cite book |last=Fisher |first=Mary Pat |date=1997 |title=Living Religions: An Encyclopaedia of the World's Faiths |edition=Rev. |location=London |publisher=I. B. Tauris Publishers |page=338}}</ref><ref>{{qref|17|106|b=y}}</ref> Muslims regard the Quran as Muhammad's most important [[Philosophy:Miracle|miracle]], a proof of his [[Religion:Prophet|prophethood]];<ref>{{cite book|last=Peters|first=F.E.|title=The Words and Will of God|year=2003|publisher=Princeton University Press|isbn=978-0-691-11461-3|pages=[https://archive.org/details/monotheistsjewsc01pete/page/12 12–13]|url=https://archive.org/details/monotheistsjewsc01pete}}</ref> and as the culmination of a series of divine messages starting with those revealed to Adam, including the [[Religion:Torah in Islam|Tawrat]], the [[Religion:Zabur|Zabur]] (Psalms) and the [[Religion:Gospel in Islam|Injil]] (Gospel).

The Quran is believed by Muslims to be not simply divinely inspired, but the literal [[Religion:Biblical inspiration|words of God]], and provides a complete code of conduct that offers guidance in every walk of their life.<ref name="Carroll-Q-H">{{cite web |last1=Carroll |first1=Jill |title=The Quran & Hadith |url=https://www.world-religions-professor.com/quran.html |website=World Religions |access-date=10 July 2019}}</ref> This divine character attributed to the Quran led [[Religion:Schools of Islamic theology|Muslim theologians]] to fiercely debate whether the Quran was either "[[Religion:Quranic createdness|created or uncreated]]."<ref name=WMP1897:54>Patton, ''Ibn Ḥanbal and the Miḥna'', 1897: p.54</ref> According to tradition, several of Muhammad's [[Religion:Companions of the Prophet|companions]] served as scribes, recording the revelations.<ref name="Donner-Companion">{{Cite encyclopedia |encyclopedia=The Cambridge Companion to the Qur'ān |publisher=Cambridge University Press |last=Donner |first=Fred |date=2006 |editor-last=McAuliffe |editor-first=Jane Dammen |pages=31–33 |article=The historical context}}</ref> Shortly after the prophet's death, the Quran was compiled by the companions, who had written down or memorized parts of it.<ref name=jecampo /> Caliph Uthman established a standard version, now known as the Uthmanic codex, which is generally considered the archetype of the Quran known today. There are, however, variant readings, with mostly minor differences in meaning. Controversy over the Quran's content integrity has rarely become an issue among [[Religion:History of Islam|Muslim history]]<ref>{{cite web|vauthors=Warraq I, Nöldeke T, Caetani L, Mingana A, Jeffery A, Magoliouth D, Geiger A, St Clair-Tisdall W, Torrey CC, Rippin A |display-authors=1 |editor-first=Ibn |editor-last=Warraq |others=Summarised by Sharon Morad, Leeds|url=http://debate.org.uk/topics/books/origins-koran.html|title=The Origins of the Koran: Classic Essays on Islam's Holy Book|website=The Christian response to the Muslim debate|access-date=15 March 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110518035126/http://debate.org.uk/topics/books/origins-koran.html|archive-date=18 May 2011}}</ref>{{#tag:ref|"Few have failed to be convinced that the Quran is the words of Muhammad, perhaps even dictated by him after their recitation."<ref name=peters-1991 />|group=lower-roman}} despite some hadiths stating that the textual integrity of the Quran was not preserved.<ref>https://www.al-islam.org/quran-its-protection-alteration-sayyid-saeed-akhtar-rizvi/some-ahadith-omission</ref>

The Quran assumes the reader's familiarity with major narratives recounted in the [[Religion:Biblical canon|Biblical]] and [[Religion:Apocrypha|apocryphal scriptures]]. It summarizes some, dwells at length on others and, in some cases, presents alternative accounts and interpretations of events.<ref name=sanigosian>{{cite book |last=Nigosian |first=Solomon A. |title=Islam: Its History, Teaching and Practices |url-access=registration|date=2004|publisher=Indiana University Press|isbn=978-0-253-21627-4|url=https://archive.org/details/islamitshistoryt0000nigo/page/65 |pages=65–80 |edition=New}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|first=Brannon M.|last=Wheeler|year=2002|title=Prophets in the Quran: an introduction to the Quran and Muslim exegesis|publisher=Continuum|page=15|isbn=978-0-8264-4956-6}}</ref> The Quran describes itself as a book of guidance for humankind ({{qref|2|185|pl=y}}). It sometimes offers detailed accounts of specific historical events, and it often emphasizes the [[Religion:Islamic ethics|moral significance]] of an event over its narrative sequence.<ref>{{harvnb|Nasr|2003|p=42}}</ref> Supplementing the Quran with explanations for some cryptic Quranic narratives, and rulings that also provide the basis for Islamic law in most denominations of Islam,<ref name="handbook" />{{#tag:ref|In a small number of denominations, only the Quran is used as a source, an approach called [[Religion:Quranism|Quranism]].|group=lower-roman}} are [[Religion:Hadith|hadith]]s—oral and written traditions believed to describe words and actions of Muhammad.{{#tag:ref|Hadith are primarily from Muhammad but some are from those closest to him. Muslim scholars have worked carefully to authenticate them; see [[Religion:Hadith studies#Evaluating authenticity|Hadith studies]].|group=lower-roman}}<ref name="handbook">{{Cite book |first1=Özlem |last1=Sandıkcı |last2=Rice |first2=Gillian |date=2011 |title=Handbook of Islamic Marketing |isbn=978-1-84980-013-6 |page=38|publisher=Edward Elgar }}</ref> During prayers, the Quran is recited only in Arabic.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Street |first=Brian V. |date=2001 |title=Literacy and Development: Ethnographic Perspectives |page=193}}</ref> Someone who has memorized the entire Quran is called a {{transliteration|ar|[[Religion:Hafiz (Quran)|hafiz]]}}. Ideally, verses are recited with a special kind of [[Social:Prosody (linguistics)|prosody]] reserved for this purpose, called {{transliteration|ar|[[Religion:Tajwid|tajwid]]}}. During the month of Ramadan, Muslims typically complete the recitation of the whole Quran during {{transliteration|ar|[[Religion:Tarawih|tarawih]]}} prayers. In order to extrapolate the meaning of a particular Quranic verse, Muslims rely on [[Religion:Exegesis|exegesis]], or commentary rather than a direct translation of the text.<ref>{{Cite book |author-link=Norman Oliver Brown |last=Brown |first=Norman O. |date=1991 |title=Apocalypse And/or Metamorphosis |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=0-520-07298-7 |page=81}}</ref>{{Quran|expanded=all}}

== Etymology and meaning ==
The word {{transliteration|ar|ALA|qur'ān}} appears about 70 times in the Quran itself,<ref name="Wheeler2002">{{cite book |last=Wheeler |first=Brannon M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qIDZIep-GIQC |title=Prophets in the Quran: An Introduction to the Quran and Muslim Exegesis |date=2002 |publisher=A&C Black |isbn=978-0-8264-4957-3 |page=2}}</ref> assuming various meanings. It is a verbal noun ({{transliteration|ar|ALA|maṣdar}}) of the [[Social:Arabic language|Arabic]] verb {{transliteration|ar|ALA|qara'a}} ({{lang|ar|قرأ}}) meaning 'he read' or 'he recited'. The Syriac equivalent is {{transliteration|syc|qeryānā}} ({{lang|syc|ܩܪܝܢܐ|}}), which refers to 'scripture reading' or 'lesson'.<ref name="Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon">{{cite web |title=The Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon |url=http://cal.huc.edu/searchroots.php?pos=N&lemma=qryn |publisher=Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion |access-date=31 August 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171018134645/http://cal.huc.edu/searchroots.php?pos=N&lemma=qryn |archive-date=18 October 2017}}</ref> While some Western scholars consider the word to be derived from the Syriac, the majority of Muslim authorities hold the origin of the word is {{transliteration|ar|ALA|qara'a}} itself.<ref name=Britannica /> Regardless, it had become an Arabic term by Muhammad's lifetime.<ref name="Britannica" /> An important meaning of the word is the 'act of reciting', as reflected in an early Quranic passage: "It is for Us to collect it and to recite it ({{transliteration|ar|ALA|qur'ānahu}})."<ref>{{qref|75|17|b=y}}</ref>

In other verses, the word refers to 'an individual passage recited [by Muhammad]'. Its liturgical context is seen in a number of passages, for example: "So when {{transliteration|ar|ALA|al-qur'ān}} is recited, listen to it and keep silent."<ref>{{qref|7|204|b=y}}</ref> The word may also assume the meaning of a codified scripture when mentioned with other scriptures such as the Torah and Gospel.<ref>See "Ķur'an, al-", ''Encyclopedia of Islam Online'' and {{qref|9|111}}</ref>

The term also has closely related synonyms that are employed throughout the Quran. Each synonym possesses its own distinct meaning, but its use may converge with that of {{transliteration|ar|ALA|qur'ān}} in certain contexts. Such terms include {{transliteration|ar|kitāb}} ('book'), {{transliteration|ar|[[Religion:Ayah|āyah]]}} ('sign'), and {{transliteration|ar|sūrah}} ('scripture'); the latter two terms also denote units of revelation. In the large majority of contexts, usually with a definite article ({{transliteration|ar|al-}}), the word is referred to as the {{transliteration|ar|[[Religion:Wahy|waḥy]]}} ('revelation'), that which has been "sent down" ({{transliteration|ar|[[Religion:Tanzil|tanzīl]]}}) at intervals.<ref>{{qref|20|2|b=y}} cf.</ref><ref>{{qref|25|32|b=y}} cf.</ref> Other related words include: {{transliteration|ar|ALA|[[Religion:Dhikr|dhikr]]}} ('remembrance'), used to refer to the Quran in the sense of a reminder and warning; and {{transliteration|ar|[[Philosophy:Hikmah|ḥikmah]]}} ('wisdom'), sometimes referring to the revelation or part of it.<ref name=Britannica />{{#tag:ref|According to Welch in the ''Encyclopedia of Islam'', the verses pertaining to the usage of the word {{transliteration|ar|hikma}} should probably be interpreted in the light of IV, 105, where it is said that "Muhammad is to judge ({{transliteration|ar|tahkum}}) mankind on the basis of the Book sent down to him."|group=lower-roman}}

The Quran describes itself as 'the discernment' ({{transliteration|ar|al-furqān}}), 'the mother book' ({{transliteration|ar|umm al-kitāb}}), 'the guide' ({{transliteration|ar|huda}}), 'the wisdom' ({{transliteration|ar|hikmah}}), 'the remembrance' ({{transliteration|ar|dhikr}}), and 'the revelation' ({{transliteration|ar|tanzīl}}; 'something sent down', signifying the descent of an object from a higher place to lower place).<ref name=Jaffer>{{cite book|first1=Abbas |last1=Jaffer |first2=Masuma |last2=Jaffer |title=Quranic Sciences|publisher=ICAS press|year=2009|isbn=978-1-904063-30-8|pages=11–15}}</ref> Another term is {{transliteration|ar|ALA|al-kitāb}} ('The Book'), though it is also used in the Arabic language for other scriptures, such as the Torah and the Gospels. The term {{transliteration|ar|[[Religion:Mus'haf|mus'haf]]}} ('written work') is often used to refer to particular Quranic manuscripts but is also used in the Quran to identify earlier revealed books.<ref name="Britannica" />

== History ==

=== Prophetic era ===
[[Religion:Sīrah|Islamic tradition]] relates that Muhammad received his first revelation in 610 CE in the Cave of Hira during one of his isolated retreats to the mountains. Thereafter, he received revelations over a period of 23 years. According to ''[[Religion:Hadith|hadith]]'' and [[Religion:History of Islam|Muslim history]], after Muhammad immigrated to Medina and formed an independent Muslim community, he ordered many of his [[Religion:Sahabah|companions]] to recite the Quran and to learn and teach the laws, which were revealed daily. It is related that some of the Quraysh who were taken prisoners at the Battle of Badr regained their freedom after they had taught some of the Muslims the simple writing of the time. Thus a group of Muslims gradually became literate. As it was initially spoken, the Quran was recorded on tablets, bones, and the wide, flat ends of date palm fronds. Most suras were in use amongst early Muslims since they are mentioned in numerous sayings by both Sunni and Shia sources, relating Muhammad's use of the Quran as a call to Islam, the making of prayer and the manner of recitation. However, the Quran did not exist in book form at the time of Muhammad's death in 632.<ref>{{harvnb|Tabatabae|1988|p=98}}</ref><ref name=watt>{{cite book|last=Richard Bell (Revised and Enlarged by W. Montgomery Watt)|title=Bell's introduction to the Qur'an|year=1970|publisher=Univ. Press|isbn=978-0-85224-171-4|pages=31–51}}</ref><ref name=chi>{{cite book|last=P.M. Holt, Ann K.S. Lambton and Bernard Lewis|title=The Cambridge history of Islam|year=1970|publisher=Cambridge Univ. Press|isbn=978-0-521-29135-4|page=32|edition=Reprint.}}</ref> There is agreement among scholars that Muhammad himself did not write down the revelation.<ref name=denffer>{{cite book|last=Denffer|first=Ahmad von|title=Ulum al-Qur'an: an introduction to the sciences of the Qur an|year=1985|publisher=Islamic Foundation|isbn=978-0-86037-132-8|page=37|edition=Repr.}}</ref>
[[File:Iqra.jpg|thumb|200px|Muhammad's first revelation, Surah Al-Alaq, later placed 96th in the Qur'anic regulations, in current writing style]]

''[[Religion:Sahih al-Bukhari|Sahih al-Bukhari]]'' narrates Muhammad describing the revelations as, "Sometimes it is (revealed) like the ringing of a bell" and Aisha reported, "I saw the Prophet being inspired Divinely on a very cold day and noticed the sweat dropping from his forehead (as the Inspiration was over)."{{#tag:ref|"God's Apostle replied, 'Sometimes it is (revealed) like the ringing of a bell, this form of Inspiration is the hardest of all and then this state passes off after I have grasped what is inspired. Sometimes the Angel comes in the form of a man and talks to me and I grasp whatever he says.' ʻAisha added: Verily I saw the Prophet being inspired Divinely on a very cold day and noticed the Sweat dropping from his forehead (as the Inspiration was over)."<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.cmje.org/religious-texts/hadith/bukhari/001-sbt.php |title=Translation of Sahih Bukhari, Book 1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120110054749/http://www.cmje.org/religious-texts/hadith/bukhari/001-sbt.php |archive-date=10 January 2012 |website=Center for Muslim-Jewish Engagement |publisher=University of Southern California}}</ref>|group=lower-roman}} Muhammad's first revelation, according to the Quran, was accompanied with a vision. The agent of revelation is mentioned as the "one mighty in power,"<ref>{{qref|53|5|b=y}}</ref> the one who "grew clear to view when he was on the uppermost horizon. Then he drew nigh and came down till he was (distant) two bows' length or even nearer."<ref name=watt /><ref>{{qref|53|6-9|b=y}}</ref> The Islamic studies scholar Welch states in the ''Encyclopaedia of Islam'' that he believes the graphic descriptions of Muhammad's condition at these moments may be regarded as genuine, because he was severely disturbed after these revelations. According to Welch, these seizures would have been seen by those around him as convincing evidence for the superhuman origin of Muhammad's inspirations. However, Muhammad's critics accused him of being a possessed man, a soothsayer or a magician since his experiences were similar to those claimed by such figures well known in ancient Arabia. Welch additionally states that it remains uncertain whether these experiences occurred before or after Muhammad's initial claim of prophethood.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |last=Buhl |first=Fr. |orig-date=1913–1936 |date=2012 |article=Muhammad |title-link=Encyclopaedia of Islam Online |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Islam |edition=1 |editor-first1=M. Th. |editor-last1=Houtsma |editor-link2=Thomas Walker Arnold |editor-first2=T. W. |editor-last2=Arnold |editor-first3=R. |editor-last3=Basset |editor-first4=R. |editor-last4=Hartmann |doi=10.1163/2214-871X_ei1_SIM_4746 |isbn=978-90-04-08265-6}} <!--url=https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-of-islam-1/muhammad-SIM_4746?s.num=1&s.f.s2_parent=s.f.cluster.Encyclopaedia+of+Islam&s.q=muhammad --></ref>

The Quran describes Muhammad as "{{Transliteration|ar|ummi}}",<ref>{{qref|7|157|b=y}}</ref> which is traditionally interpreted as 'illiterate', but the meaning is rather more complex. Medieval commentators such as Al-Tabari maintained that the term induced two meanings: first, the inability to read or write in general; second, the inexperience or ignorance of the previous books or scriptures (but they gave priority to the first meaning). Muhammad's illiteracy was taken as a sign of the genuineness of his prophethood. For example, according to [[Biography:Fakhr al-Din al-Razi|Fakhr al-Din al-Razi]], if Muhammad had mastered writing and reading he possibly would have been suspected of having studied the books of the ancestors. Some scholars such as Watt prefer the second meaning of {{Transliteration|ar|ummi}}—they take it to indicate unfamiliarity with earlier sacred texts.<ref name=watt /><ref>{{cite journal|last=Günther|first=Sebastian|title=Muhammad, the Illiterate Prophet: An Islamic Creed in the Quran and Quranic Exegesis|journal=Journal of Quranic Studies|year=2002|volume=4|issue=1|pages=1–26|doi=10.3366/jqs.2002.4.1.1}}</ref>

The final verse of the Quran was revealed on the 18th of the Islamic month of [[Religion:Dhu al-Hijjah|Dhu al-Hijjah]] in the year 10 [[Religion:Hijri year|A.H.]], a date that roughly corresponds to February or March 632. The verse was revealed after [[Religion:Event of Ghadir Khumm|the Prophet finished delivering his sermon at Ghadir Khumm]].

=== Compilation and preservation ===
{{Main|Religion:Canonization of Islamic scripture }}
Following Muhammad's death in 632, a number of his companions who knew the Quran by heart were killed in the Battle of Yamama by Musaylimah. The first caliph, Abu Bakr (d. 634), subsequently decided to collect the book in one volume so that it could be preserved. Zayd ibn Thabit (d. 655) was the person to collect the Quran since "he used to write the Divine Inspiration for Allah's Apostle". Thus, a group of scribes, most importantly Zayd, collected the verses and produced a hand-written manuscript of the complete book. The manuscript according to Zayd remained with Abu Bakr until he died. Zayd's reaction to the task and the difficulties in collecting the Quranic material from parchments, palm-leaf stalks, thin stones (collectively known as {{Transliteration|ar|suhuf}}, any written work containing divine teachings)<ref name="demyth-62">{{cite journal |author=Roslan Abdul-Rahim |title=Demythologizing the Qur'an Rethinking Revelation Through Naskh al-Qur'an |journal=Global Journal Al-Thaqafah|date=December 2017 |volume=7 |issue=2 |issn=2232-0474 |page=62 |ref=RARDtQ2017 |doi=10.7187/GJAT122017-2 |doi-access=free }}</ref> and from men who knew it by heart is recorded in earlier narratives. In 644, Muhammad's widow Hafsa bint Umar was entrusted with the manuscript until the third caliph, Uthman ibn Affan,<ref name="Donner-Companion" /> requested the standard copy from her.<ref>{{cite web |title=Wat is de Koran? |url=https://koran.nl/wat-is-de-koran/ |website=Koran.nl |language=nl |date=18 February 2016}}</ref>  (According to historian Michael Cook, early Muslim  narratives about the collection and compilation of the Quran sometimes contradict themselves. "Most ... make Uthman little more than an editor, but there are some in which he appears very much a collector, appealing to people to bring him any bit of the Quran they happen to possess."  Some accounts also "suggest that in fact the material" Abu Bakr worked with "had already been assembled", which since he was the first Caliph, would  mean they were collected when Muhammad was still alive.)<ref name=MCKaVSI2000:121>Cook, ''The Koran'', 2000: p.121</ref>

In about 650, Uthman (d. 656) began noticing slight differences in pronunciation of the Quran as Islam expanded beyond the [[Place:Arabian Peninsula|Arabian Peninsula]] into Persia, the [[Place:Levant|Levant]], and North Africa. In order to preserve the sanctity of the text, he ordered a committee headed by Zayd to use Abu Bakr's copy and prepare a standard text of the Quran.<ref name="Tabatabae1988p99">{{harvnb|Tabatabae|1988|p=99}}: {{Blockquote|Since the word of God seemed threatened with alteration, the [third] caliph ordered that five of the {{lang|arb-Latn|qurrā'}} from amongst the companions, (one of them being Zayd ibn Thābit who had compiled the first volume), produce other copies from the first volume which had been prepared on the orders of the first caliph and which had been kept with Ḥafṣah, the wife of the Prophet and daughter of the second caliph.

The other copies, already in the hands of Muslims in other areas, were collected and sent to Medina where, on orders of the Caliph, they were burnt (or, according to some historians, were destroyed by boiling). Thus several copies were made, one being kept in Medina, one in Mecca, and one each sent to Sham (a territory now divided into Syria, Lebanon, Palestine and Jordan), Kufa and Basra.

It is said that beside these five, one copy was also sent to Yemen and one to Bahrein. These copies were called the Imam copies and served as original for all future copies. The only difference of order between these copies and the first volume was that the chapters "Spirits of War" and "Immunity" were written in one place between "The Heights" and "Jonah."}}</ref><ref name=sbukhari1>{{cite web|last=al-Bukhari|first=Muhammad|title=Sahih Bukhari, volume 6, book 61, narrations number 509 and 510|url=http://www.sahih-bukhari.com/Pages/Bukhari_6_61.php |orig-date=810–870 |website=sahih-bukhari.com|access-date=16 February 2018}}</ref>  Thus, within 20 years of Muhammad's death (around 650 CE),<ref name=MCKaVSI2000:117>Cook, ''The Koran'', 2000: p.117</ref> the complete Quran was committed to written form, a codex.  That text became the model from which copies were made and promulgated throughout the urban centers of the Muslim world, and other versions are believed to have been destroyed.<ref name="Tabatabae1988p99" /><ref name="rippin">{{harvnb|Rippin|2006}}:

* "Poetry and Language", by Navid Kermani, pp. 107–20.
* For the history of compilation see "Introduction," by Tamara Sonn, pp. 5–6
* For eschatology, see "Discovering (final destination)", by Christopher Buck, p. 30.
* For literary structure, see "Language," by Mustansir Mir, p. 93.
* For writing and printing, see "Written Transmission", by François Déroche, pp. 172–87.
* For recitation, see "Recitation," by Anna M. Gade pp. 481–93</ref><ref>{{cite web |first=Mohamad K. |last=Yusuff |url=http://www.irfi.org/articles/articles_251_300/zayd_ibn_thabit_and_the_glorious.htm |title=Zayd ibn Thabit and the Glorious Qur'an}}</ref><ref name="MCKVSI2000:117–124">Cook, ''The Koran'', 2000: pp.117–24</ref> The present form of the Quran text is accepted by Muslim scholars to be the original version compiled by Abu Bakr.<ref name=watt /><ref name=chi />{{#tag:ref| "Few have failed to be convinced that … the Quran is … the words of Muhammad, perhaps even dictated by him after their recitation."<ref name=peters-1991>{{harvnb|Peters|1991|pp=3–5}}</ref>|group=lower-roman}}
{{#tag:ref|There is some disagreement among early Muslim sources disagree over who was the first to collect the narrations. At least one source credits Salim, the freed slave of Abu Hudhaifah with collecting the Qur'an into a mushaf: 
"It is reported... from Ibn Buraidah who said:
{{blockquote |The first of those to collect the Qur'an into a mushaf (codex) was Salim, the freed slave of Abu Hudhaifah.<ref>John Gilchrist, Jam' Al-Qur'an. ''The Codification of the Qur'an Text A Comprehensive Study of the Original Collection of the Qur'an Text and the Early Surviving Qur'an Manuscripts'', [MERCSA, Mondeor, 2110 Republic of South Africa, 1989], Chapter 1. "The Initial Collection of the Qur'an Text", citing as-Suyuti, ''Al-Itqan fii Ulum al-Qur'an'', p. 135).</ref>}}|group=lower-roman}}
This preservation of the Quran is considered one of the miracles of the Quran among the Islamic faithful.{{#tag:ref|For example:
*"We have, without doubt, sent down the Message; and We will assuredly guard it (from corruption)" (15:9)
"It is a miracle of the Qur'an that no change has occurred in a single word, a single [letter of the] alphabet, a single punctuation mark, or a single diacritical mark in the text of the Qur'an during the last fourteen centuries."
<ref>{{cite book |author=Mazhar Kazi |title=130 Evident Miracles in the Qur'an |location=Richmond Hill |publisher= Crescent Publishing House |date=1997 |pages= 42–43}}</ref>

*Among the things that make the Quran "a miracle and that supplements the idea or belief that Islam is the true religion. This unique feature of Quran is its protected nature where there has not been even a single change in the syllable in which it was revealed. The lines below discuss how the protected nature of Quran stands as an evidence for Islam being the true divine belief.
"We have, without doubt, sent down the Message; and We will assuredly guard it (from corruption)" (15:9)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.quranreading.com/blog/islam-true-divine-belief-because-protected-quran/ |title=Islam Is True Divine Belief Because Of Protected Quran |website=quran reading |date=17 August 2014 }}</ref> 

*"The Quran is unique because it is the only revealed book that exists today in the precise form and content in which it was originally revealed.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.whyislam.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Origin-of-the-Quran.pdf |title=The Origin of the Quran |date=October 2017 |access-date=9 November 2013}}</ref>|group=lower-roman}}

[[File:Quran by Imam ali.JPG|thumb|Quran − in [[Place:Mashhad|Mashhad]], Iran − said to be written by Ali]] 

The Shī‘ah recite the Qur'an according to the Qira’t of Hafs on authority of ‘Asim, which is the prevalent Qira’t in the Islamic world<ref>{{cite web|url=http://geocities.com/noorullahwebsite/shiites.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091027121038/http://geocities.com/noorullahwebsite/shiites.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=27 October 2009|title=Noorullah Website - Is the Qur'an Corrupted? Shi'ites View|date=27 October 2009}}</ref> and [[Religion:Shia view of the Quran|believe that the Quran]] was gathered and compiled by Muhammad during his lifetime.<ref name="Shirazi01">{{cite book |last=Shirazi |first=Muhammad |title=The Qur'an - When was it compiled? |year=2001 |publisher=Fountain Books |location=London,UK |pages=5, 7}}</ref><ref name="Shirazi03">{{cite book |last=Shirazi |first=Muhammad |title=The Shi'a and their Beliefs |year=2008 |publisher=Fountain Books |location=London,UK |page=29}}</ref> Abu al-Qasim al-Khoei presents [[Religion:Mushaf of Ali|Mushaf of Ali]] as a special [[Religion:Tafsir|tafsir]] containing divinely revealed Qur'anic commentaries, which differ in content and order from the commonly used Qur'an.<ref>{{cite book|editor1-last=Brunner|editor1-first=Rainer|editor2-last=Ende|editor2-first=Werner|title=The Twelver Shia in Modern Times: Religious Culture and Political History|date=1 January 2001|publisher=BRILL|isbn=9789004118034|page=187|edition=illustrated}}</ref>

It is claimed that the Shia had more than 1,000 [[Religion:Hadith|hadith]]s ascribed to the Shia Imams which indicate the distortion of the Quran<ref>{{cite journal|author1=HADDADIAN ABDORREZA|author2=MOADDAB SEYYED REZA|title=A STUDY ON TRADITIONS OF DISTORTION IN AYYASHI EXEGESIS|journal=Hadith Studies|volume=4|issue=8|pages=141–166}}</ref>  and according to Etan Kohlberg, this belief about Quran was common among Shiites in the early centuries of Islam.<ref>{{cite journal|author1=Ahmad ibn Muhammad al-Sayyari|editor1-last=Kohlberg|editor1-first=Etan|editor2-last=Amir-Moezzi|editor2-first=Mohammad Ali|title=Revelation and Falsification: The Kitab al-qira'at of Ahmad b. Muhammad al-Sayyari: Critical Edition with an Introduction and Notes by Etan Kohlberg and Mohammad Ali Amir-Moezzi|journal=Texts and Studies on the Qurʼān |date=2009 |volume=4 |page=vii |url=https://archive.org/details/KitabAlQiratOfAhmadB.MuhammadAlSayyari|publisher=BRILL|issn=1567-2808}}</ref> In his view, Ibn Babawayh was the first major Twelver author "to adopt a position identical to that of the Sunnis" and the change was a result of the "rise to power of the Sunni 'Abbasid caliphate," whence belief in the corruption of the Quran became untenable vis-a-vis the position of Sunni “orthodoxy”.<ref>Kohlberg & Amir-Moezzi 2009, p.24-26-27</ref> Alleged distortions to have been carried out to remove any references to the rights of Ali, the Imams and their supporters and the disapproval of enemies, such as Umayyads and Abbasids.<ref>Kohlberg & Amir-Moezzi 2009, pp.20, 24</ref>

Other personal copies of the Quran might have existed including Ibn Mas'ud's and Ubay ibn Ka'b's codex, none of which exist today.<ref name="Britannica" /><ref name="Tabatabae1988p99"/><ref name="leaman">{{cite book|editor-last=Leaman|editor-first=Oliver|url=https://archive.org/details/quranencyclopedi2006unse|title=The Qur'an: an Encyclopedia|publisher=Routledge|year=2006|isbn=978-0-415-32639-1|location=New York|url-access=registration}}

* For God in the Quran (Allah), see "Allah", by Zeki Saritoprak, pp. 33–40.
* For eschatology, see "Eschatology," by Zeki Saritoprak, pp. 194–99.
* For searching the Arabic text on the internet and writing, see "Cyberspace and the Qur'an", by Andrew Rippin, pp. 159–63.
* For calligraphy, see by "Calligraphy and the Qur'an" by Oliver Leaman, pp. 130–35.
* For translation, see "Translation and the Qur'an," by Afnan Fatani, pp. 657–69.
* For recitation, see "Art and the Qur'an" by Tamara Sonn, pp. 71–81; and "Reading", by Stefan Wild, pp. 532–35.</ref>

==Academic research==
Since Muslims could regard criticism of the Qur'an as a crime of apostasy punishable by death under [[Religion:Sharia|sharia]], it seemed impossible to conduct studies on the Qur'an that went beyond textual criticism.<ref>Religions of the world Lewis M. Hopfe&nbsp;– 1979 "Some Muslims have suggested and practiced textual criticism of the Quran in a manner similar to that practiced by Christians and Jews on their bibles. No one has yet suggested the higher criticism of the Quran."</ref><ref>Egypt's culture wars: politics and practice&nbsp;– Page 278 Samia Mehrez&nbsp;– 2008 Middle East report: Issues 218–222; Issues 224–225 Middle East Research & Information Project, JSTOR (Organization)&nbsp;– 2001 Shahine filed to divorce Abu Zayd from his wife, on the grounds that Abu Zayd's textual criticism of the Quran made him an apostate, and hence unfit to marry a Muslim. Abu Zayd and his wife eventually relocated to the Netherlands</ref>  Until the early 1970s,<ref name=FMDQiRS2008:30>Donner, "Quran in Recent Scholarship", 2008: p.30</ref> non-Muslim scholars of Islam —while not accepting traditional explanations for divine intervention— accepted the above-mentioned traditional origin story in most details.<ref name=jecampo>{{cite book|last=Campo|first=Juan E.|title=Encyclopedia of Islam|year=2009|publisher=Facts On File|isbn=978-0-8160-5454-1|pages=570–574}}</ref>
[[File:Birmingham_mushaf_Bismillah.png|thumb|290x290px|The basmala as written on the [[Religion:Birmingham Quran manuscript|Birmingham mus'haf manuscript]], one of the oldest surviving copies of the Qur'an. Rasm: "ٮسم الله الرحمں الرحىم".]]
[[Organization:University of Chicago|University of Chicago]] professor Fred Donner states that:<ref>{{cite journal|last=Donner|first=Fred M.|date=2014|title=Review: Textual Criticism and Qurʾān Manuscripts, by Keith E. Small|journal=Journal of Near Eastern Studies|volume=73|issue=1|pages=166–169|doi=10.1086/674909}}</ref><blockquote>[T]here was a very early attempt to establish a uniform consonantal text of the Qurʾān from what was probably a wider and more varied group of related texts in early transmission.… After the creation of this standardized canonical text, earlier authoritative texts were suppressed, and all extant manuscripts—despite their numerous variants—seem to date to a time after this standard consonantal text was established.</blockquote>Although most variant readings of the text of the Quran have ceased to be transmitted, some still are.<ref name="melchert2" /><ref>Ibn Warraq, ''Which Koran? Variants, Manuscript, Linguistics'', p. 45. Prometheus Books, 2011. {{ISBN|1-59102-430-7}}</ref> There has been no critical text produced on which a scholarly reconstruction of the Quranic text could be based.{{#tag:ref|For both the claim that variant readings are still transmitted and the claim that no such critical edition has been produced, see Gilliot, C., "Creation of a fixed text" <ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |last=Gilliot |first=C. |chapter=Creation of a fixed text |editor-last=McAuliffe |editor-first=Jane Dammen |encyclopedia=The Cambridge Companion to the Qur'ān |publisher=Cambridge University Press |date=2006 |page=52}}</ref>|group=lower-roman}} 

[[File:Sana'a1 Stanford '07 recto.jpg|thumb|right|200px|A page from the [[Religion:Sana'a manuscript|Stanford '07 binary manuscript]] contains verses 265-271 of Surah Al-Baqara. The double layer reveals additions to the original text and differences with today's Quran.]]

In 1972, in a mosque in the city of [[Place:Sana'a|Sana'a]], Yemen, manuscripts “consisting of 12.000 pieces” were discovered that were later proven to be the oldest Quranic text known to exist at the time. The [[Religion:Sana'a manuscript|Sana'a manuscript]]s contain palimpsests, manuscript pages from which the text has been washed off to make the parchment reusable again—a practice which was common in ancient times due to the scarcity of writing material. However, the faint washed-off underlying text ({{lang|la|scriptio inferior}}) is still barely visible.<ref name=jqs1>{{cite journal|title='The Qur'an: Text, Interpretation and Translation' Third Biannual SOAS Conference, 16–17 October 2003|journal=Journal of Qur'anic Studies|date=April 2004|volume=6|issue=1|pages=143–145|doi=10.3366/jqs.2004.6.1.143}}</ref> Studies using [[Physics:Radiocarbon dating|radiocarbon dating]] indicate that the parchments are dated to the period before 671 CE with a 99 percent probability.<ref name=bergmann>{{cite journal|last=Bergmann|first=Uwe|author2=Sadeghi, Behnam |title=The Codex of a Companion of the Prophet and the Qurān of the Prophet|journal=Arabica|date=September 2010|volume=57|issue=4|pages=343–436|doi=10.1163/157005810X504518}}</ref><ref name=sadeghi>{{cite journal|last=Sadeghi|first=Behnam|author2=Goudarzi, Mohsen |title=Ṣan'ā' 1 and the Origins of the Qur'ān|journal=Der Islam|date=March 2012|volume=87|issue=1–2|pages=1–129|doi=10.1515/islam-2011-0025|s2cid=164120434}}</ref> The German scholar [[Religion:Gerd R. Puin|Gerd R. Puin]] has been investigating these Quran fragments for years. His research team made 35,000 microfilm photographs of the manuscripts, which he dated to the early part of the 8th century. Puin has noted unconventional verse orderings, minor textual variations, and rare styles of orthography, and suggested that some of the parchments were palimpsests which had been reused. Puin believed that this implied an evolving text as opposed to a fixed one.<ref name="LESTER-1999">{{cite journal |last1=Lester |first1=Toby |title=What Is the Koran? |journal=Atlantic |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1999/01/what-is-the-koran/304024/ |access-date=24 September 2019|date=January 1999 }}</ref> 

In 2015, [[Religion:Birmingham Quran manuscript|a single folio of a very early Quran]], dating back to 1370 years earlier, was discovered in the library of the [[Organization:University of Birmingham|University of Birmingham]], England. According to the tests carried out by the Oxford University Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit, "with a probability of more than 95%, the parchment was from between 568 and 645". The manuscript is written in Hijazi script, an early form of written Arabic.<ref name=oldest>{{cite news|last1=Coughlan|first1=Sean|title='Oldest' Koran fragments found in Birmingham University|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-33436021|access-date=22 July 2015|agency=BBC}}</ref> This possibly was one of the earliest extant exemplars of the Quran, but as the tests allow a range of possible dates, it cannot be said with certainty which of the existing versions is the oldest.<ref name=oldest /> Saudi scholar Saud al-Sarhan has expressed doubt over the age of the fragments as they contain dots and chapter separators that are believed to have originated later.<ref>{{cite news | newspaper = New York Times | title = A Find in Britain: Quran Fragments Perhaps as Old as Islam | author = Dan Bilefsky | date = 22 July 2015 | access-date = 28 July 2015 | url= https://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/23/world/europe/quran-fragments-university-birmingham.html?_r=0}}</ref> The Birmingham manuscript holds significance amongst scholarship because of its early dating and potential overlap with the dominant tradition over the lifetime of [[Biography:Muhammad|Muhammad]] {{circa|lk=no| 570}} to 632 CE<ref name=Goldman>Elizabeth Goldman (1995), p. 63, gives 8 June 632, the dominant Islamic tradition. Many earlier (mainly non-Islamic) traditions refer to him as still alive at the time of the [[History:Muslim conquest of the Levant|invasion of Palestine]]. See Stephen J. Shoemaker, ''The Death of a Prophet: The End of Muhammad's Life and the Beginnings of Islam,''{{page needed|date=August 2014}} University of Pennsylvania Press, 2011.</ref> 
and used as evidence to support conventional wisdom and to refute the [[Religion:Revisionist school of Islamic studies|revisionists' views]] on the history of the writing of the Quran.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.huffingtonpost.com/joseph-e-b-lumbard/new-light-on-the-history-_b_7864930.html |title=New Light on the History of the Quranic Text? |date=24 July 2015 |work=The Huffington Post |access-date=27 July 2015}}</ref>

== Significance in Islam ==
{{Islam |texts}}
Although there are some works and [[Religion:Islamic schools and branches|followers]] claimed to have been written down by Allah under divine inspiration/guidance after the Quran, in Islamic world{{refn|group=Note|The Revealed Sermon''' or (Arabic:'''Khutba Ilhamiyya''') is considered a divine revelation to Ahmadi Muslims.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.alislam.org/library/links/00000005.html|title=Miraculous Knowledge of Arabic|publisher=Alislam, The Review of Religions, July 1993|accessdate=15 October 2010}}</ref><ref name="Introduction"/>}}; according to most Muslims, Muhammad was the prophet of end times and Quran was the last text sent by Allah to humanity through [[Unsolved:Angel|angel]]s and the last link in the chain of revelation. [[Biography:Gabriel|Gabriel]] was sent to Muhammad from time to time for this task and the revelation ended with him.<ref name = LivRlgP338 /><ref name="autogenerated1">Watton, Victor (1993), ''A student's approach to world religions: Islam'', Hodder & Stoughton, p. 1. {{ISBN|978-0-340-58795-9}}</ref><ref name="Lambert">{{cite book |last1=Lambert |first1=Gray |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sV0mAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA287 |title=The Leaders Are Coming! |date=2013 |publisher=WestBow Press |isbn=978-1-4497-6013-7 |page=287}}</ref><ref name="Williams & Drew">{{cite book |author1=Roy H. Williams |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mygRHh6p40kC&pg=PA143 |title=Pendulum: How Past Generations Shape Our Present and Predict Our Future |author2=Michael R. Drew |date=2012 |publisher=Vanguard Press |isbn=978-1-59315-706-7 |page=143}}</ref>

[[File:Talismanic Shirt MET ISL108.jpg|thumb|right|180px|Talismanic tunic, North India-Deccan, Metropolitan Museum]]

Quran says, "With the truth we (God) have sent it down and with the truth it has come down"<ref>See:

* {{harvnb|Corbin|1993|page=12}}
* {{Cite book|last=Wild|first=Stefan|title=The Quʼran as Text|location=Leiden|publisher=Brill|year=1996|isbn=978-90-04-09300-3|pages=137, 138, 141, 147 |ref=none}} 
* {{qref|2|97|b=y}}, {{qref|17|105}}</ref> and frequently asserts in its text that it is divinely ordained.<ref name="jenssen2001">{{Cite encyclopedia |last=Jenssen |first=H. |editor-last=McAuliffe |editor-first=Jane Dammen |chapter=Arabic Language |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of the Qurʾān |date=2001 |location=Leiden |publisher=Brill |volume=1 |pages=127–35}}</ref> The Quran refers to a written pre-text, "the preserved tablet", that records God's speech even before it was sent down.<ref name="tsonn">{{cite book|last = Sonn|first = Tamara|title = Islam: a brief history|year = 2010|publisher = Wiley-Blackwell|isbn = 978-1-4051-8093-1|edition = Second}}</ref><ref>{{qref|85|22|b=y}}</ref> Due to the belief in [[Religion:Wahy|revelation]] and divine writing, the word used by Islamic literature to express the [[Social:Context (linguistics)|context]] of the Qur'anic verses is "Asbab al-Nuzul".

Revered by pious Muslims as "the holy of holies",<ref name=AGI1954:74>Guillaume, ''Islam'', 1954: p.74</ref> whose sound moves some to "tears and ecstasy",<ref name="meanings-iii">{{cite book |last1=Pickthall |first1=M.M. |title=The Glorious Qur'an |date=1981 |publisher=Iqra' Book Center|location=Chicago IL|page=vii}}</ref> it is the physical symbol of the faith, the text often used as a charm on occasions of birth, death, marriage. Traditionally, before starting [[Social:Recitation|to read the Quran]], [[Religion:Ritual purification|ablution]] is performed, one seeks refuge in Allah from the accursed [[Biography:Satan|satan]], and the reading begins by mentioning the names of Allah, Rahman and Rahim together known as [[Religion:Basmala|basmala]]. Consequently,
<blockquote> It must never rest beneath other books, but always on top of them, one must never drink or smoke when it is being read aloud, and it must be listened to in silence. It is a talisman against disease and disaster.<ref name=AGI1954:74 /><ref name=iWWINaM1995:105>Ibn Warraq, ''Why I'm Not a Muslim'', 1995: p.105</ref></blockquote>

The Quran was the word of God (Kalām Allāh) (again, a word used for [[Biography:Jesus|Jesus]] in the Quran ([[Religion:An-Nisa|An-Nisa]]: 171), and its nature and [[Religion:Quranic createdness|whether it was created]] became a matter of fierce debate among religious scholars;<ref name="Ruthven-192">{{cite book |last1=Ruthven |first1=Malise |title=Islam in the World |date=1984 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-530503-6 |page=192 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=92lQfWj6_VIC&q=uncreated+quran&pg=PA192 |access-date=28 February 2019}}</ref> and with the involvement of the political authority in the discussions, some Muslim religious scholars who stood against the political stance [[Religion:Mihna|faced]] [[Religion:Religious persecution|religious persecution]] during the [[Religion:Caliphate|caliph]] al-Ma'mun period and the following years.

Muslims believe that the present Quranic text corresponds to that revealed to Muhammad, and according to their interpretation of Quran {{qref|15|9|pl=y}}, it is protected from corruption ("Indeed, it is We who sent down the Quran and indeed, We will be its guardians").<ref>{{cite book|author1=Mir Sajjad Ali |author2=Zainab Rahman |title=Islam and Indian Muslims|year=2010|publisher=Kalpaz Publications|isbn=978-81-7835-805-5|page=21}}</ref> Muslims consider the Quran to be  a sign of the prophethood of Muhammad and the truth of the religion. For this reason, in traditional Islamic societies, great importance was given to children memorizing the Quran, and those who memorized the entire Quran were honored with the title of [[Religion:Hafiz (Quran)|hafiz]]. Even today, millions of Muslims frequently refer to the Quran to justify their actions and desires",{{#tag:ref|professor emeritus of Islamic thought at the University of Paris, Algerian Mohammed Arkoun.<ref name="what-atlantic-1999">{{cite journal |journal=Atlantic |last1=LESTER |first1=TOBY |date= January 1999  |title=What Is the Koran? | url=https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1999/01/what-is-the-koran/304024/ |access-date=8 April 2019}}</ref>  |group=lower-roman}} and see it as the source of scientific knowledge,<ref name="Guessoum-2008">{{cite journal |last1=Guessoum |first1=Nidhal |title=ThE QUR'AN, SCIENCE, AND THE (RELATED)CONTEMPORARY MUSLIM DISCOURSE |journal=Zygon |date=June 2008 |volume=43 |issue=2 |page=411+ |url=https://www.academia.edu/1447032 |access-date=15 April 2019 |issn=0591-2385|doi=10.1111/j.1467-9744.2008.00925.x |doi-access=free }}</ref> though some refer to it as [[Unsolved:Pseudoscience|weird or pseudoscience]].<ref name="SARDAR-2008">{{cite journal |last1=SARDAR |first1=ZIAUDDIN |title=Weird science |journal=New Statesman |date=21 August 2008 |url=https://www.newstatesman.com/books/2008/08/quran-muslim-scientific |access-date=15 April 2019}}</ref>

In the recent Islamic society, some words used in the Quran, such as [[Religion:Taghut|taghut]] and [[Biography:Satan|satan]], were given new and political meanings,<ref>In modern times, the term is also applied to earthly tyrannical power, as implied in [[Religion:Surah|surah]] [[Religion:An-Nisa|An-Nisa]] verse 60. Momen, Moojan. (1995). "Țāghūt". In John L. Esposito. ''The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World''. Oxford: Oxford University Press.</ref> and [[Religion:Islamism|Islamism]] began to present the rebellion against the governments implied by these expressions as a prerequisite for [[Religion:Tawhid|tawhid]] and [[Religion:Allah|faith in God]]. ([[Religion:Shahada|Shahada]] began with La ilahe illa..) According to this understanding, administrations and administrators that were not based on sharia were the taghut or the [[Philosophy:Devil|devil]] him or herself, and these systems were the taghut's order or [[Religion:Jahiliyyah|modern jahiliyyah]].<ref>William E. Shepard [https://canvas.harvard.edu/courses/1647/files/294990 SAYYID QUTB'S DOCTRINE OF JAHILIYYA] Int. J. Middle East Stud. 35 (2003), 521-545.</ref> Actions was also done with reference to the commandment '[[Religion:Enjoining good and forbidding wrong|al-amru bi-l-maʿrūfi wa-n-nahyu ʿani-l-munkari]]', a phrase frequently repeated in the Quran. In theory, [[Philosophy:Evil|evil]] consisted in doing [[Religion:Haram|what Allah prohibited]], and good consisted in doing what [[Philosophy:Fard|He commanded]],<ref>Islam has classified the values vis-a-vis the ahkams into two categories: an action or thing is considered to be bad (qabih) if it falls within the categories of makruh or haram. Those actions and things falling within the remaining three categories of mubah, mustahabb and halal are said to be good {hasan).https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/10064</ref> and some puritanist/salafist Islamic theorists such as Sayyid Qutb imposed that it was the duty of every Muslim to directly intervene against evil.<ref>Stahl, A.E. "'Offensive Jihad' in Sayyid Qutb's Ideology." International Institute for Counter-Terrorism.</ref><ref name="Qutb, 2003 pp. 63, 69">Qutb, ''Milestones'', (2003) pp. 63, 69</ref> Islamists have carried out structures ranging from non-governmental organizations and and associations to foundations and political parties, which sometimes manifest themselves with violence and terrorism against Muslims whom [[Religion:Takfir|they deem to be unbelievers]] besides non-Islamic people and groups, as well as peaceful and civil society-friendly activities, in order to transform society for [[Religion:Sharia|sharia understanding]], they believe is God's command. Through these organizations, political Islam was able to become a shareholder in power in many countries, and had the opportunity to gain [[Social:Dictatorship|absolute governing power]] in some countries such as Iran and [[Religion:Taliban|Afghanistan]]. 

=== Inimitability ===
{{Main|Religion:I'jaz}}
Inimitability of the Quran (or "{{Transliteration|ar|I'jaz}}") is the belief that no human speech can match the Quran in its content and form. The Quran is considered an inimitable miracle by Muslims, effective until the [[Religion:Day of Resurrection|Day of Resurrection]]—and, thereby, the central proof granted to [[Biography:Muhammad|Muhammad]] in authentication of his prophetic status. The concept of inimitability originates in the Quran where in five different verses opponents are [[Religion:Challenge of the Quran|challenged to produce something like the Quran]]: "If men and [[Religion:Jinn|jinn]] banded together to produce the like of this Quran they would never produce its like not though they backed one another."<ref>{{qref|17|88|b=y}}</ref> From the ninth century, numerous works appeared which studied the Quran and examined its style and content. Medieval Muslim scholars including al-Jurjani (d. 1078) and al-Baqillani (d. 1013) have written treatises on the subject, discussed its various aspects, and used linguistic approaches to study the Quran. Others argue that the Quran contains noble ideas, has inner meanings, maintained its freshness through the ages and has caused great transformations at the individual level and in history. Some scholars state that the Quran contains scientific information that agrees with modern science. The doctrine of the miraculousness of the Quran is further emphasized by Muhammad's illiteracy since the unlettered prophet could not have been suspected of composing the Quran.<ref name=leaman /><ref name=sophia>{{cite journal|last=Vasalou|first=Sophia|title=The Miraculous Eloquence of the Qur'an: General Trajectories and Individual Approaches|journal=Journal of Qur'anic Studies|year=2002|volume=4|issue=2|pages=23–53|doi=10.3366/jqs.2002.4.2.23}}</ref>

=== In worship ===
[[File:COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM Moslimmannen tijdens het gebed op vrijdag in de moskee Tulehu TMnr 20017952.jpg|thumb|While standing in prayers, worshipers recite the first chapter of the Quran, al-Fatiha, followed by any other section.]]
Surah [[Religion:Al-Fatiha|Al-Fatiha]], the first chapter of the Quran, is recited in full in every [[Religion:Rak'a|rakat]] of [[Religion:Salah|salah]] and on other occasions. This surah, which consists of seven verses, is the most often recited surah of the Quran:<ref name=Britannica />

{{Verse translation | lang = ar | italicsoff = yes | rtl1 = yes
|{{Script|Arab|بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ
ٱلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلْعَٰلَمِينَ
ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ
مَٰلِكِ يَوْمِ ٱلدِّينِ
إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ
ٱهْدِنَا ٱلصِّرَٰطَ ٱلْمُسْتَقِيمَ
صِرَٰطَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيْهِمْ غَيْرِ ٱلْمَغْضُوبِ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَا ٱلضَّآلِّينَ}}
|In the Name of Allah the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.
[All] praise is [due] to Allah, Lord of the worlds —
The Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful,
Sovereign of the Day of Recompense.
It is You we worship and You we ask for help
Guide us to the straight path—
The path of those upon whom You have bestowed favor, not of those who have evoked [Your] anger or of those who are astray.|attr1={{qref|1|1-7|b=y}}|attr2=''Sahih International'' English translation
}}

Other sections of the Quran of choice are also read in daily prayers.

Surah Al-Ikhlāṣ is second in frequency of Qur'an recitation, for according to many early authorities, [[Biography:Muhammad|Muhammad]] said that ''Ikhlāṣ'' is equivalent to one-third of the whole Quran.<ref>[[Biography:Seyyed Hossein Nasr|Seyyed Hossein Nasr]] (2015), ''The Study Quran'', HarperCollins, p. 1578.</ref>

{{Verse translation | lang = ar | italicsoff = yes | rtl1 = yes

|{{Script|Arab|
قُلۡ هُوَ ٱللَّهُ أَحَدٌ
ٱللَّهُ ٱلصَّمَدُ
لَمۡ یَلِدۡ وَلَمۡ یُولَدۡ
وَلَمۡ یَكُن لَّهُۥ كُفُوًا أَحَدُۢ 
}}

|
Say, ˹O Prophet,˺ “He is God—One ˹and Indivisible˺;
God—the Sustainer ˹needed by all˺.
He has never had offspring, nor was He born.
And there is none comparable to Him.”

|attr1= Surah Al-Ikhlāṣ {{qref|112|1-4}} | attr2=''The Clear Quran'' English translation
}}

Respect for the written text of the Quran is an important element of religious faith by many Muslims, and the Quran is treated with reverence. Based on tradition and a literal interpretation of Quran {{qref|56|79|pl=y}} ("none shall touch but those who are clean"), some Muslims believe that they must perform a ritual cleansing with water ([[Religion:Wudu|wudu]] or [[Religion:Ghusl|ghusl]]) before touching a copy of the Quran, although this view is not universal.<ref name=Britannica /> Worn-out copies of the Quran are wrapped in a cloth and stored indefinitely in a safe place, buried in a mosque or a Muslim cemetery, or burned and the ashes buried or scattered over water.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2012/02/afghan_quran_burning_protests_what_s_the_right_way_to_dispose_of_a_quran_.html|title=Afghan Quran-burning protests: What's the right way to dispose of a Quran?|website=Slate Magazine|date=22 February 2012}}</ref>

In Islam, most intellectual disciplines, including Islamic theology, [[Religion:Islamic philosophy|philosophy]], [[Religion:Sufism|mysticism]] and [[Religion:Fiqh|jurisprudence]], have been concerned with the Quran or have their foundation in its teachings.<ref name=Britannica /> Muslims believe that the preaching or reading of the Quran is rewarded with divine rewards variously called {{Transliteration|ar|ajr}}, ''[[Religion:Thawab|thawab]]'', or {{Transliteration|ar|hasanat}}.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Sengers |first1=Erik|title=Dutch and Their Gods|date=2005|page=129}}</ref>

=== In Islamic art ===
The Quran also inspired Islamic arts and specifically the so-called Quranic arts of calligraphy and illumination.<ref name=Britannica /> The Quran is never decorated with figurative images, but many Qurans have been highly decorated with decorative patterns in the margins of the page, or between the lines or at the start of suras. Islamic verses appear in many other media, on buildings and on objects of all sizes, such as [[Engineering:Mosque lamp|mosque lamp]]s, metal work, pottery and single pages of calligraphy for muraqqas or albums.

<gallery widths="210px" heights="210px">
File:Brooklyn Museum - Calligraphy - 3.jpg|Calligraphy, 18th century, Brooklyn Museum
File:Quran inscriptions on wall, Lodhi Gardens, Delhi.jpg|Quranic inscriptions, Bara Gumbad mosque, Delhi, India
File:Mosque lamp Met 91.1.1534.jpg|Typical [[Engineering:Mosque lamp|mosque lamp]], of [[Engineering:Enamelled glass|enamelled glass]], with the ''[[Religion:Verse of Light|Ayat an-Nur]]'' or "Verse of Light" (24:35)
File:Mausolées du groupe nord (Shah-i-Zinda, Samarcande) (6016470147).jpg|Quranic verses, Shahizinda mausoleum, Samarkand, Uzbekistan
File:Muhammad ibn Mustafa Izmiri - Right Side of an Illuminated Double-page Incipit - Walters W5771B - Full Page.jpg|Quran page decoration art, Ottoman period
File:4.8-17-1990-Guld-koranside-recto-og-verso.jpg|The leaves from this Quran written in gold and contoured with brown ink have a horizontal format. This is admirably suited to classical Kufic calligraphy, which became common under the early Abbasid caliphs.
File:Brooklyn Museum - Manuscript of the Qur'an.jpg|Manuscript of the Quran at the Brooklyn Museum
</gallery>

== Text and arrangement ==
{{Main|Religion:Surah|Religion:Āyah}}
[[File:FirstSurahKoran (fragment).jpg|thumb|upright=1.05|The first sura of the Quran, ''Al-Fatiha'', which consists of seven verses]]
The Quran consists of 114 chapters of varying lengths, each known as a ''sūrah''. Chapters are classified as Meccan or Medinan, depending on whether the verses were revealed before or after the migration of Muhammad to the city of Medina. However, a sūrah classified as Medinan may contain Meccan verses in it and vice versa. Sūrah titles are derived from a name or quality discussed in the text, or from the first letters or words of the sūrah. Chapters are not arranged in chronological order, rather the chapters appear to be arranged roughly in order of decreasing size. Some scholars argue the sūrahs are arranged according to a certain pattern.<ref>see {{cite book|title=Islam in South Asia: Revised, Enlarged and Updated Second Edition|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZAT1DwAAQBAJ&q=surah+arranged+theme&pg=PA580|publisher=[[Company:Brill Publishers|BRILL]]|page=580|author=Jamal Malik|date = 6 April 2020|isbn = 978-90-04-42271-1}}</ref> Each sūrah except the ninth starts with the ''[[Religion:Basmala|Bismillah]]'' ({{lang|ar|{{Script|Arab|بِسْمِ ٱللَّٰهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ}}}}), an Arabic phrase meaning 'In the name of God.' There are, however, still 114 occurrences of the ''Bismillah'' in the Quran, due to its presence in Quran {{qref|27|30|pl=y}} as the opening of Solomon's letter to the [[Biography:Queen of Sheba|Queen of Sheba]].<ref>See:
* "Kur`an, al-", ''Encyclopaedia of Islam Online''
* Allen (2000) p. 53</ref>

Each sūrah consists of several verses, known as ''āyāt'', which originally means a 'sign' or 'evidence' sent by God. The number of verses differs from sūrah to sūrah. An individual verse may be just a few letters or several lines. The total number of verses in the most popular Hafs Quran is 6,236;{{#tag:ref|Scholars disagree on the exact number but this is a disagreement over "the placing of the divisions between the verese, not on the text itself."<ref name=MCKVSI2000:119>Cook, ''The Koran'', 2000: p.119</ref> |group=lower-roman}} however, the number varies if the ''bismillahs'' are counted separately.

In addition to and independent of the division into chapters, there are various ways of dividing the Quran into parts of approximately equal length for convenience in reading. The 30 ''[[Religion:Juz'|juz']]'' (plural {{Transliteration|ar|ajzāʼ}}) can be used to read through the entire Quran in a month. Some of these parts are known by names—which are the first few words by which the {{Transliteration|ar|juzʼ}} begins. A {{Transliteration|ar|juz'}} is sometimes further divided into two ''[[Religion:Hizb|ḥizb]]'' (plural {{Transliteration|ar|aḥzāb}}), and each {{Transliteration|ar|hizb}} subdivided into four {{Transliteration|ar|rubʻ al-ahzab}}. The Quran is also divided into seven approximately equal parts, ''[[Religion:Manzil|manzil]]'' (plural {{Transliteration|ar|manāzil}}), for it to be recited in a week.<ref name="Britannica" />

A different structure is provided by semantic units resembling paragraphs and comprising roughly ten {{Transliteration|ar|āyāt}} each. Such a section is called a [[Religion:Ruku|''rukū`'']].

The ''[[Religion:Muqattaʿat|Muqattaʿat]]'' ({{lang-ar|حروف مقطعات}} {{Transliteration|ar|ḥurūf muqaṭṭaʿāt}}, 'disjoined letters, disconnected letters';<ref>{{lang-ar|مقطعات|label=none}} is the plural of a participle from {{lang-ar|[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/قطع قطع]|label=none}}, 'to cut, break'.</ref> also 'mysterious letters')<ref name="Massey2005" /> are combinations of between one and five Arabic letters figuring at the beginning of 29 out of the 114 chapters of the Quran just after the basmala.<ref name="Massey2005">{{Cite encyclopedia |last=Massey |first=Keith |editor-last=McAuliffe |editor-first=Jane Dammen |article=Mysterious Letters |chapter-url=http://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-of-the-quran/mysterious-letters-EQCOM_00128 |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of the Qurʾān |date=2002 |location=Leiden |publisher=Brill |isbn=90-04-12354-7 |doi=10.1163/1875-3922_q3_EQCOM_00128 |volume=3 |issue=205 |page=472}}</ref> The letters are also known as ''fawātih'' ({{lang|ar|فواتح}}), or 'openers', as they form the opening verse of their respective suras. Four surahs are named for their {{Transliteration|ar|muqatta'at}}: ''Ṭāʾ-Hāʾ'', ''Yāʾ-Sīn'', ''Ṣād'', and '' Qāf''. The original significance of the letters is unknown. ''[[Religion:Tafsir|Tafsir]]'' ([[Religion:Exegesis|exegesis]]) has interpreted them as abbreviations for either [[Religion:Names of God in Islam|names or qualities of God]] or for the names or content of the respective surahs. According to Rashad Khalifa, those letters are Quranic initials for a hypothetical mathematical code in the Quran, namely the [[Quran code]] or known as Code 19.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Appendix 1, One of the Great Miracles [74:35]|url=https://www.masjidtucson.org/quran/appendices/appendix1verify.html|access-date=8 June 2021|website=ICS/Masjid Tucson}}</ref>

According to one estimate the Quran consists of 77,430 words, 18,994 unique words, 12,183 [[Social:Word stem|stems]], 3,382 [[Social:Lemma (morphology)|lemmas]] and 1,685 [[Social:Root (linguistics)|roots]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Dukes|first=Kais|title=RE: Number of Unique Words in the Quran|url=http://www.mail-archive.com/comp-quran@comp.leeds.ac.uk/msg00223.html|website=The Mail Archive|access-date=29 October 2012}}</ref>

== Contents ==

The Quranic content is concerned with basic Islamic beliefs including the existence of [[Religion:God in Islam|God]] and the [[Religion:Islamic eschatology|resurrection]]. Narratives of the early prophets, ethical and legal subjects, historical events of Muhammad's time, charity and prayer also appear in the Quran. The Quranic verses contain general exhortations regarding right and wrong and historical events are related to outline general moral lessons. Verses pertaining to natural phenomena have been interpreted by Muslims as an indication of the authenticity of the Quranic message.<ref name=saeed>{{cite book|last=Saeed|first=Abdullah|title=The Qurʼan: an introduction|year=2008|publisher=Routledge|location=London|isbn=978-0-415-42124-9|page=62}}</ref> The style of the Quran has been called "allusive", with commentaries needed to explain what is being referred to—"events are referred to, but not narrated; disagreements are debated without being explained; people and places are mentioned, but rarely named."<ref name="Crone-2008">{{cite web |last1=Crone |first1=Patricia |title=What do we actually know about Mohammed? |url=https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/mohammed_3866jsp/ |website=Open Democracy |access-date=3 October 2019 |date=10 June 2008}}</ref>

=== Monotheism ===
{{Main|Religion:Tawhid}}
The central theme of the Quran is [[Philosophy:Monotheism|monotheism]]. God is depicted as living, eternal, omniscient and omnipotent (see, e.g., Quran {{qref|2|20|pl=y}}, {{qref|2|29|pl=y}}, {{qref|2|255|pl=y}}). God's omnipotence appears above all in his power to create. He is the creator of everything, of the heavens and the earth and what is between them (see, e.g., Quran {{qref|13|16|pl=y}}, {{qref|2|253|pl=y}}, {{qref|50|38|pl=y}}, etc.). All human beings are equal in their utter dependence upon God, and their well-being depends upon their acknowledging that fact and living accordingly.<ref name=watt /><ref name=saeed />
[[File:Quran rzabasi4.JPG|thumb|A 12th-century Quran manuscript at the Reza Abbasi Museum]]

The Quran uses [[Philosophy:Cosmological argument|cosmological]] and contingency arguments in various verses without referring to the terms to prove the [[Philosophy:Existence of God|existence of God]]. Therefore, the universe is originated and needs an originator, and whatever exists must have a sufficient cause for its existence. Besides, the design of the universe is frequently referred to as a point of contemplation: "It is He who has created seven heavens in harmony. You cannot see any fault in God's creation; then look again: Can you see any flaw?"<ref>{{qref|67|3|b=y|pl=y}}</ref><ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |last=Saritoprak |first=Zeki |date=2006 |article=Allah |pages=33–40 |title-link=iarchive:quranencyclopedi2006unse |encyclopedia=The Qur'an: an Encyclopedia |editor-first=Oliver |editor-last=Leaman |location=New York |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-32639-1}}</ref>

=== Eschatology ===
{{Main|Religion:Islamic eschatology}}

The doctrine of the last day and [[Unsolved:Eschatology|eschatology]] (the final fate of the universe) may be considered the second great doctrine of the Quran.<ref name=watt /> It is estimated that approximately one-third of the Quran is eschatological, dealing with the afterlife in the next world and with the day of judgment at the end of time.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |last=Buck |first=Christopher |date=2006 |article=Discovering (final destination) |title-link=iarchive:blackwellcompani00ripp 0 |encyclopedia=The Blackwell Companion to the Qur'an |edition=2a reimpr. |veditors=Rippin A, etal |publisher=Blackwell |isbn=978-1-4051-1752-4 |page=30}}</ref> There is a reference to the afterlife on most pages of the Quran and belief in the afterlife is often referred to in conjunction with belief in God as in the common expression: "Believe in God and the last day."<ref name=haleem>{{cite book|last=Haleem|first=Muhammad Abdel|title=Understanding the Qur'an: themes and style|year=2005|publisher=I.B. Tauris |isbn=978-1-86064-650-8|page=82|url=https://archive.org/details/understandingqur00abde/page/82}}</ref> A number of suras such as 44, 56, 75, 78, 81 and 101 are directly related to the afterlife and its preparations. Some suras indicate the closeness of the event and warn people to be prepared for the imminent day. For instance, the first verses of Sura 22, which deal with the mighty earthquake and the situations of people on that day, represent this style of divine address: "O People! Be respectful to your Lord. The earthquake of the Hour is a mighty thing."<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |last=Saritoprak |first=Zeki |date=2006 |chapter=Eschatology |pages=194–99 |title-link=iarchive:quranencyclopedi2006unse |encyclopedia=The Qur'an: an Encyclopedia |editor-link=Oliver Leaman |editor-first=Oliver |editor-last=Leaman |location=New York |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-32639-1}}</ref>

The Quran is often vivid in its depiction of what will happen at the end time. Watt describes the Quranic view of End Time:<ref name=watt /><blockquote>The climax of history, when the present world comes to an end, is referred to in various ways. It is 'the Day of Judgment,' 'the Last Day,' 'the Day of Resurrection,' or simply 'the Hour.' Less frequently it is 'the Day of Distinction' (when the good are separated from the evil), 'the Day of the Gathering' (of men to the presence of God) or 'the Day of the Meeting' (of men with God). The Hour comes suddenly. It is heralded by a shout, by a thunderclap, or by the blast of a trumpet. A cosmic upheaval then takes place. The mountains dissolve into dust, the seas boil up, the sun is darkened, the stars fall and the sky is rolled up. God appears as Judge, but his presence is hinted at rather than described.… The central interest, of course, is in the gathering of all mankind before the Judge. Human beings of all ages, restored to life, join the throng. To the scoffing objection of the unbelievers that former generations had been dead a long time and were now dust and mouldering bones, the reply is that God is nevertheless able to restore them to life.</blockquote>The Quran does not assert a natural [[Unsolved:Immortality|immortality]] of the human [[Philosophy:Soul|soul]], since man's existence is dependent on the will of God: when he wills, he causes man to die; and when he wills, he raises him to life again in a bodily [[Unsolved:Resurrection|resurrection]].<ref name=rcmartin />

=== Prophets ===
According to the Quran, God communicated with man and made his will known through signs and revelations. Prophets, or 'Messengers of God', received revelations and delivered them to humanity. The message has been identical and for all humankind. "Nothing is said to you that was not said to the messengers before you, that your lord has at his Command forgiveness as well as a most Grievous Penalty."<ref>{{qref|41|43|b=y}}</ref> The revelation does not come directly from God to the prophets. Angels acting as God's messengers deliver the divine revelation to them. This comes out in Quran {{qref|42|51|pl=y}}, in which it is stated: "It is not for any mortal that God should speak to them, except by revelation, or from behind a veil, or by sending a messenger to reveal by his permission whatsoever He will."<ref name=rippin /><ref name=rcmartin>{{cite book |first=Farid |last=Esack |editor-last=Martin |editor-first=Richard C.|title=Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim world |year=2003 |publisher=Macmillan Reference |isbn=978-0-02-865603-8 |pages=568–562 |url=https://books.google.com/books?isbn=0028656032 |edition=Online-Ausg.}}</ref>

=== Ethico-religious concepts ===
[[File:Second Sura from the Qur'an.jpg|thumb|alt=Verse about the month of Ramadan, second sura, verse 185. from a Quran manuscript dated to 1510|Verse about the month of Ramadan (second sura, verse 185) from a Quran manuscript dated to 1510]]
Belief is a fundamental aspect of morality in the Quran, and scholars have tried to determine the semantic contents of "belief" and "believer" in the Quran.<ref name=toshihiko>{{cite book|last=Izutsu|first=Toshihiko|title=Ethico-religious concepts in the Qur'an |date=2007-06-06 |orig-date=2002 |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press|isbn=978-0-7735-2427-9|page=184|edition=Repr.}}</ref> The ethico-legal concepts and exhortations dealing with righteous conduct are linked to a profound awareness of God, thereby emphasizing the importance of faith, accountability, and the belief in each human's ultimate encounter with God. People are invited to perform acts of charity, especially for the needy. Believers who "spend of their wealth by night and by day, in secret and in public" are promised that they "shall have their reward with their Lord; on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve."<ref>{{qref|2|274|b=y}}</ref> It also affirms family life by legislating on matters of marriage, divorce, and inheritance. A number of practices, such as usury and gambling, are prohibited. The Quran is one of the fundamental sources of Islamic law (''[[Religion:Sharia|sharia]]''). Some formal religious practices receive significant attention in the Quran including the formal prayers (''salat'') and fasting in the month of [[Religion:Ramadan|Ramadan]]. As for the manner in which the prayer is to be conducted, the Quran refers to prostration.<ref name=jecampo /><ref name=rcmartin /> The term for charity, ''[[Religion:Zakat|zakat]]'', literally means purification. Charity, according to the Quran, is a means of self-purification.<ref name=tsonn /><ref>{{qref|9|103|b=y}}</ref>

=== Encouragement for the sciences ===
The astrophysicist Nidhal Guessoum, while being highly critical of pseudo-scientific claims made about the Quran, has highlighted the encouragement for sciences that the Quran provides by developing "the concept of knowledge". He writes:<ref name="Nidhal2011">{{harvnb|Guessoum|2011}}</ref>{{Rp|174}}<blockquote>The Qur'an draws attention to the danger of conjecturing without evidence (''And follow not that of which you have not the (certain) knowledge of...'' 17:36) and in several different verses asks Muslims to require proofs (''Say: Bring your proof if you are truthful'' 2:111), both in matters of theological belief and in natural science.</blockquote>Guessoum cites Ghaleb Hasan on the definition of "proof" according to the Quran being "clear and strong... convincing evidence or argument." Also, such a proof cannot rely on an argument from authority, citing verse 5:104. Lastly, both assertions and rejections require a proof, according to verse 4:174.<ref name="Nidhal2011" />{{Rp|56}} [[Biography:Ismail al-Faruqi|Ismail al-Faruqi]] and [[Biography:Taha Jabir Alalwani|Taha Jabir Alalwani]] are of the view that any reawakening of the Muslim civilization must start with the Quran; however, the biggest obstacle on this route is the "centuries old heritage of tafseer (exegesis) and other classical disciplines" which inhibit a "universal, epidemiological and systematic conception" of the Quran's message.<ref name="Nidhal2011" />{{Rp|117–8}} The philosopher [[Biography:Muhammad Iqbal|Muhammad Iqbal]], considered the Quran's methodology and epistemology to be empirical and rational.<ref name="Nidhal2011" />{{Rp|58–9}}

There are around 750 verses{{which|date=December 2016}} in the Quran dealing with natural phenomena. In many of these verses the study of nature is ''"encouraged and highly recommended"'', and historical Islamic scientists like [[Biography:Al-Biruni|Al-Biruni]] and [[Biography:Al-Battani|Al-Battani]] derived their inspiration from verses of the Quran.{{additional citation needed|date=December 2016}} [[Biography:Mohammad Hashim Kamali|Mohammad Hashim Kamali]] has stated that "scientific observation, experimental knowledge and rationality" are the primary tools with which humanity can achieve the goals laid out for it in the Quran.<ref name="Nidhal2011" />{{Rp|63}} [[Biography:Ziauddin Sardar|Ziauddin Sardar]] built a case for Muslims having developed the foundations of modern science, by highlighting the repeated calls of the Quran to observe and reflect upon natural phenomenon.<ref name="Nidhal2011" />{{Rp|75}}

The physicist [[Biography:Abdus Salam|Abdus Salam]], in his Nobel Prize banquet address, quoted a well known verse from the Quran ({{qref|67|3-4}}) and then stated: "This in effect is the faith of all physicists: the deeper we seek, the more is our wonder excited, the more is the dazzlement of our gaze."<ref name="Nidhal2011" />{{Rp|131}} One of Salam's core beliefs was that there is no contradiction between Islam and the discoveries that science allows humanity to make about nature and the universe. Salam also held the opinion that the Quran and the Islamic spirit of study and rational reflection was the source of extraordinary civilizational development.<ref name="Nidhal2011" />{{Rp|132}} Salam highlights, in particular, the work of Ibn al-Haytham and [[Biography:Al-Biruni|Al-Biruni]] as the pioneers of empiricism who introduced the experimental approach, breaking with Aristotle's influence and thus giving birth to modern science. Salam was also careful to differentiate between metaphysics and physics, and advised against empirically probing certain matters on which "physics is silent and will remain so," such as the doctrine of "creation from nothing" which in Salam's view is outside the limits of science and thus "gives way" to religious considerations.<ref name="Nidhal2011" />{{Rp|134}}

== Literary style ==
[[File:Touba3.jpg|thumb|upright=0.9|Boys studying the Quran in Touba, Senegal]]
The Quran's message is conveyed with various literary structures and devices. In the original Arabic, the suras and verses employ [[Social:Phonetics|phonetic]] and thematic structures that assist the audience's efforts to recall the message of the text. Muslims{{Who|date=February 2010}} assert (according to the Quran itself) that the Quranic content and style is inimitable.<ref name="Issa">{{Citation |last=Boullata |first=Issa J |editor-last=McAuliffe |editor-first=Jane Dammen |chapter=Literary Structure of Quran |title=Encyclopedia of the Qurʾān |date=2002 |location=Leiden |publisher=Brill |isbn=90-04-12354-7 |volume=3 |pages=192, 204}}</ref>

The language of the Quran has been described as "rhymed prose" as it partakes of both poetry and prose; however, this description runs the risk of failing to convey the rhythmic quality of Quranic language, which is more poetic in some parts and more prose-like in others. Rhyme, while found throughout the Quran, is conspicuous in many of the earlier Meccan suras, in which relatively short verses throw the rhyming words into prominence. The effectiveness of such a form is evident for instance in Sura 81, and there can be no doubt that these passages impressed the conscience of the hearers. Frequently a change of rhyme from one set of verses to another signals a change in the subject of discussion. Later sections also preserve this form but the style is more expository.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |last=Mir |first=Mustansir |date=2006 |title=Language |encyclopedia=The Blackwell Companion to the Qur'an |title-link=iarchive:blackwellcompani00ripp 0 |edition=2a reimpr. |veditors=Rippin A, etal |publisher=Blackwell |isbn=978-1-4051-1752-4 |page=93}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |first1=Herman |last1=Rosenthal |first2=A. S. |last2=Waldstein |url=http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=369&letter=K&search=Quran |access-date=2022-08-15 |website=Jewish Encyclopedia |title=Körner, Moses B. Eliezer}}</ref>

The Quranic text seems to have no beginning, middle, or end, its nonlinear structure being akin to a web or net.<ref name="Britannica" /> The textual arrangement is sometimes considered to exhibit lack of continuity, absence of any chronological or thematic order and repetitiousness.{{#tag:ref|"The final process of collection and codification of the Quran text was guided by one {{sic|?|hide=y|over-|arching}} principle: God's words must not in any way be distorted or sullied by human intervention. For this reason, no serious attempt, apparently, was made to edit the numerous revelations, organize them into thematic units, or present them in chronological order... This has given rise in the past to a great deal of criticism by European and American scholars of Islam, who find the Quran disorganized, repetitive and very difficult to read."<ref name=blomm>''Approaches to the Asian Classics'', Irene Blomm, William Theodore De Bary, Columbia University Press, 1990, p. 65</ref>|group=lower-roman}}{{#tag:ref|Samuel Pepys: "One feels it difficult to see how any mortal ever could consider this Quran as a Book written in Heaven, too good for the Earth; as a well-written book, or indeed as a book at all; and not a bewildered rhapsody; written, so far as writing goes, as badly as almost any book ever was!" <ref name=pepys>{{cite web |url=http://maxwellinstitute.byu.edu/display.php?table=review&id=21 |last=Peterson |first=Daniel C. |title=Editor's Introduction: By What Measure Shall We Mete? |date=1990 |work=FARMS Review of Books |volume=2 |issue=1 |publisher=The Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship at BYU |access-date=30 September 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080304110915/http://maxwellinstitute.byu.edu/display.php?table=review&id=21 |archive-date=4 March 2008}}</ref>|group=lower-roman}} [[Biography:Michael Sells|Michael Sells]], citing the work of the critic Norman O. Brown, acknowledges Brown's observation that the seeming disorganization of Quranic literary expression—its scattered or fragmented mode of composition in Sells's phrase—is in fact a literary device capable of delivering profound effects as if the intensity of the prophetic message were shattering the vehicle of human language in which it was being communicated.<ref name="ApproachQuran">{{Citation |last=Sells |first=Michael |date=1999 |title=Approaching the Qur'ān |publisher=White Cloud Press}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Brown |first=Norman O |date=Winter 1983–1984 |title=The Apocalypse of Islam |journal=Social Text |publisher=Duke University Press |doi=10.2307/466329 |volume=3 |issue=8 |pages=155–71|jstor=466329 }}</ref> Sells also addresses the much-discussed repetitiveness of the Quran, seeing this, too, as a literary device.

A text is [[Self-reference|self-referential]] when it speaks about itself and makes reference to itself. According to Stefan Wild, the Quran demonstrates this metatextuality by explaining, classifying, interpreting and justifying the words to be transmitted. Self-referentiality is evident in those passages where the Quran refers to itself as revelation ({{Transliteration|ar|tanzil}}), remembrance (''[[Religion:Dhikr|dhikr]]''), news ({{Transliteration|ar|naba'}}), criterion ({{Transliteration|ar|furqan}}) in a self-designating manner (explicitly asserting its Divinity, "And this is a blessed Remembrance that We have sent down; so are you now denying it?"),<ref>{{qref|21|50|b=y}}</ref> or in the frequent appearance of the "Say" tags, when Muhammad is commanded to speak (e.g., "Say: 'God's guidance is the true guidance'", "Say: 'Would you then dispute with us concerning God?'"). According to Wild the Quran is highly self-referential. The feature is more evident in early Meccan suras.<ref>{{cite book|editor-last=Wild|editor-first=Stefan|title=Self-referentiality in the Qur'an|year=2006|publisher=Harrassowitz|location=Wiesbaden|isbn=978-3-447-05383-9}}</ref>

== Interpretation ==
{{Main|Religion:Tafsir}}

[[File:Tapurian Qur'an (Al-Kusar).PNG|thumb|upright=1.25|An early interpretation of Sura 108 of the Quran]]
The Quran has sparked much commentary and explication ({{Transliteration|ar|tafsir}}), aimed at explaining the "meanings of the Quranic verses, clarifying their import and finding out their significance."<ref name="auto1">{{cite web |url=http://www.almizan.org/ |title=An Exegesis of the Holy Qur'an |website=Tafsir Al-Mizan |publisher=Tawheed Institute Australia}}</ref>

Tafsir is one of the earliest academic activities of Muslims. According to the Quran, Muhammad was the first person who described the meanings of verses for early Muslims.<ref>{{qref|2|151|b=y}}</ref> Other early exegetes included a few Companions of Muhammad, such as Abu Bakr, 'Umar ibn al-Khattab, 'Uthman ibn 'Affan, ʻAli ibn Abi Talib, 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ood, ʻAbdullah ibn Abbas, Ubayy ibn Kaʻb, Zayd ibn Thaabit, Abu Moosaa al-Ash'ari, and 'Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr.<ref>{{Cite book|last=بازمول|first=محمد|title=التهذيب والترتيب الاتقان في علوم القرآن|page=525}}</ref> Exegesis in those days was confined to the explanation of literary aspects of the verse, the background of its revelation and, occasionally, interpretation of one verse with the help of the other. If the verse was about a historical event, then sometimes a few traditions (''[[Religion:Hadith|hadith]]'') of Muhammad were narrated to make its meaning clear.<ref name="auto1" />

Because the Quran is spoken in [[Social:Classical Arabic|classical Arabic]], many of the later converts to Islam (mostly non-Arabs) did not always understand the Quranic Arabic, they did not catch allusions that were clear to early Muslims fluent in Arabic and they were concerned with reconciling apparent conflict of themes in the Quran. Commentators erudite in Arabic explained the allusions, and perhaps most importantly, explained which Quranic verses had been revealed early in Muhammad's prophetic career, as being appropriate to the very earliest Muslim community, and which had been revealed later, canceling out or "abrogating" ({{Transliteration|ar|nāsikh}}) the earlier text ({{Transliteration|ar|mansūkh}}).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://qa.sunnipath.com/issue_view.asp?HD=7&ID=2656&CATE=1|title=How can there be abrogation in the Quran?|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080608024345/http://qa.sunnipath.com/issue_view.asp?HD=7&ID=2656&CATE=1|archive-date=8 June 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mostmerciful.com/abrogation-and-substitution.htm|title=Are the verses of the Qur'an Abrogated and/or Substituted?|website=mostmerciful.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080501101528/http://www.mostmerciful.com/abrogation-and-substitution.htm|archive-date=1 May 2008}}</ref> Other scholars, however, maintain that no abrogation has taken place in the Quran.<ref>{{cite web|last=Islahi|first=Amin Ahsan|title=Abrogation in the Qur'ān|url=http://www.monthly-renaissance.com/issue/content.aspx?id=426|website=Renaissance Journal|access-date=26 April 2013}}</ref>

There have been several commentaries of the Quran by scholars of all denominations, popular ones include Tafsir ibn Kathir, Tafsir al-Jalalayn, Tafsir Al Kabir, Tafsir al-Tabari. More modern works of Tafsir include Ma'ariful Qur'an written by Mufti Muhammad Shafi and Risale-i Nur by Bediüzzaman Said Nursi.

=== Esoteric interpretation ===

Esoteric or [[Religion:Sufism|Sufi]] interpretation attempts to unveil the inner meanings of the Quran. Sufism moves beyond the apparent ({{Transliteration|ar|zahir}}) point of the verses and instead relates Quranic verses to the inner or esoteric (''[[Religion:Batin (Islam)|batin]]'') and metaphysical dimensions of consciousness and existence.<ref name=alangodlas>{{cite encyclopedia|last=Godlas|first=Alan|article=No tile given <!--editor: please find--> |encyclopedia=The Blackwell companion to the Qur'an|year=2008|publisher=Wiley-Blackwell|isbn=978-1-4051-8820-3|pages=350–362|edition=Paperback}}</ref> According to Sands, esoteric interpretations are more suggestive than declarative, they are allusions ({{Transliteration|ar|isharat}}) rather than explanations (''[[Religion:Tafsir|tafsir]]''). They indicate possibilities as much as they demonstrate the insights of each writer.<ref name=kristin>{{cite book|last=Sands|first=Kristin Zahra|title=Sufi commentaries on the Qur'an in classical Islam|year=2006|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-415-36685-4|edition=1. publ., transferred to digital print.}}</ref>

Sufi interpretation, according to Annabel Keeler, also exemplifies the use of the theme of love, as for instance can be seen in Qushayri's interpretation of the Quran:

{{Blockquote|When Moses came at the appointed time and his Lord spoke to him, he asked, "My Lord! Reveal Yourself to me so I may see You." Allah answered, "You cannot see Me! But look at the mountain. If it remains firm in its place, only then will you see Me." When his Lord appeared to the mountain, He levelled it to dust and Moses collapsed unconscious. When he recovered, he cried, "Glory be to You! I turn to You in repentance and I am the first of the believers."|{{qref|7|143|b=y}}}}

Moses, in 7:143, comes the way of those who are in love, he asks for a vision but his desire is denied, he is made to suffer by being commanded to look at other than the Beloved while the mountain is able to see God. The mountain crumbles and Moses faints at the sight of God's manifestation upon the mountain. In Qushayri's words, Moses came like thousands of men who traveled great distances, and there was nothing left to Moses of Moses. In that state of annihilation from himself, Moses was granted the unveiling of the realities. From the Sufi point of view, God is the always the beloved and the wayfarer's longing and suffering lead to realization of the truths.<ref name="keeler">{{cite journal|last=Keeler|first=Annabel|title=Sufi ''tafsir'' as a Mirror: al-Qushayri the murshid in his Lataif al-isharat|journal=Journal of Qur'anic Studies|year=2006|volume=8|issue=1|pages=1–21|doi=10.3366/jqs.2006.8.1.1}}</ref>
[[File:Men reading the Koran in Umayyad Mosque, Damascus, Syria.jpg|thumb|left|Men reading the Quran at the Umayyad Mosque, Damascus, Syria]]
Muhammad Husayn Tabatabaei says that according to the popular explanation among the later exegetes, {{Transliteration|ar|ta'wil}} indicates the particular meaning a verse is directed towards. The meaning of revelation (''[[Religion:Tanzil|tanzil]]''), as opposed to {{Transliteration|ar|ta'wil}}, is clear in its accordance to the obvious meaning of the words as they were revealed. But this explanation has become so widespread that, at present, it has become the primary meaning of {{Transliteration|ar|ta'wil}}, which originally meant 'to return' or 'the returning place'. In Tabatabaei's view, what has been rightly called {{Transliteration|ar|ta'wil}}, or [[Philosophy:Hermeneutics|hermeneutic]] interpretation of the Quran, is not concerned simply with the denotation of words. Rather, it is concerned with certain truths and realities that transcend the comprehension of the common run of men; yet it is from these truths and realities that the principles of doctrine and the practical injunctions of the Quran issue forth. Interpretation is not the meaning of the verse—rather it transpires through that meaning, in a special sort of transpiration. There is a spiritual reality—which is the main objective of ordaining a law, or the basic aim in describing a divine attribute—and then there is an actual significance that a Quranic story refers to.<ref name="Ta'wil">{{Cite web |first=Allamah |last=Tabataba'I |title=The Principles of Interpretation of the Qur'an |url=https://almizan.org/new/special/principles.asp|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081201023355/http://almizan.org/new/special/principles.asp|website=Tafseer Al-Mizan <!-- Allamah Muhammad Hussein Tabatabai -->|archive-date=1 December 2008|access-date=16 February 2021}}</ref><ref name="The Meaning">{{Cite web |first=Allamah |last=Tabatabai |author-link=Muhammad Husayn Tabatabai |title=Al-Mizan Discourses |url=https://almizan.org/Discourses/QD21.asp|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081208164643/http://almizan.org/Discourses/QD21.asp|website=Tafsir Al-Mizan <!-– Allamah Muhammad Hussein Tabatabai --> |archive-date=8 December 2008|access-date=16 February 2021}}</ref>
[[File:عکس های مراسم ترتیل خوانی یا جزء خوانی یا قرائت قرآن در ایام ماه رمضان در حرم فاطمه معصومه در شهر قم 20.jpg|thumb|250px|[[Religion:Shia Islam|Shia]] Muslim girls reciting the Quran placed atop folding lecterns (''rehal'') during Ramadan in Qom, Iran]]
According to Shia beliefs, those who are firmly rooted in knowledge like Muhammad and the imams know the secrets of the Quran. According to Tabatabaei, the statement "none knows its interpretation except God" remains valid, without any opposing or qualifying clause.<ref>{{qref|3|7|b=y}}</ref> Therefore, so far as this verse is concerned, the knowledge of the Quran's interpretation is reserved for God. But Tabatabaei uses other verses and concludes that those who are purified by God know the interpretation of the Quran to a certain extent.<ref name="The Meaning" />

According to [[Biography:Muhammad Husayn Tabatabai|Tabatabaei]], there are acceptable and unacceptable esoteric interpretations. Acceptable ''ta'wil'' refers to the meaning of a verse beyond its literal meaning; rather the implicit meaning, which ultimately is known only to [[Religion:God|God]] and can not be comprehended directly through human thought alone. The verses in question here refer to the human qualities of coming, going, sitting, satisfaction, anger and sorrow, which are apparently attributed to [[Religion:God in Islam|God]]. Unacceptable {{Transliteration|ar|ta'wil}} is where one "transfers" the apparent meaning of a verse to a different meaning by means of a proof; this method is not without obvious inconsistencies. Although this unacceptable {{Transliteration|ar|ta'wil}} has gained considerable acceptance, it is incorrect and cannot be applied to the Quranic verses. The correct interpretation is that reality a verse refers to. It is found in all verses, the decisive and the ambiguous alike; it is not a sort of a meaning of the word; it is a fact that is too sublime for words. God has dressed them with words to bring them a bit nearer to our minds; in this respect they are like proverbs that are used to create a picture in the mind, and thus help the hearer to clearly grasp the intended idea.<ref name="The Meaning" /><ref name="Tabatabaee">{{cite web|url=http://www.maaref-foundation.com/english/beliefs/quran/05.htm|title=The Qur'an Possesses Revelation and Exegesis |website=Allamah Tabatabaee |publisher=Islamic Ma'aref Foundation Institute |date=1988 |pages=37–45 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120216015310/http://www.maaref-foundation.com/english/beliefs/quran/05.htm |archive-date=16 February 2012}}</ref>

==== History of Sufi commentaries ====
One of the notable authors of esoteric interpretation prior to the 12th century is Sulami (d. 1021) without whose work the majority of very early Sufi commentaries would not have been preserved. Sulami's major commentary is a book named {{Transliteration|ar|Haqaiq al-Tafsir}} ('Truths of Exegesis') which is a compilation of commentaries of earlier Sufis. From the 11th century onwards several other works appear, including commentaries by Qushayri (d. 1074), Daylami (d. 1193), Shirazi (d. 1209) and Suhrawardi (d. 1234). These works include material from Sulami's books plus the author's contributions. Many works are written in Persian such as the works of Maybudi (d. 1135) {{Transliteration|ar|kashf al-asrar}} ('the unveiling of the secrets').<ref name=alangodlas /> [[Biography:Rumi|Rumi]] (d. 1273) wrote a vast amount of mystical poetry in his book ''Mathnawi''. Rumi makes heavy use of the Quran in his poetry, a feature that is sometimes omitted in translations of Rumi's work. A large number of Quranic passages can be found in {{Transliteration|ar|Mathnawi}}, which some consider a kind of Sufi interpretation of the Quran. Rumi's book is not exceptional for containing citations from and elaboration on the Quran, however, Rumi does mention Quran more frequently.<ref name=jmojaddedi>{{cite encyclopedia|last=Mojaddedi|first=Jawid|article=No title given <!--editor: please find tile--> |encyclopedia=The Blackwell companion to the Qur'an |year=2008 |publisher=Wiley-Blackwell |isbn=978-1-4051-8820-3 |pages=363–373 |edition=Paperback}}</ref> Simnani (d. 1336) wrote two influential works of esoteric exegesis on the Quran. He reconciled notions of God's manifestation through and in the physical world with the sentiments of Sunni Islam.<ref name=jelias>{{cite journal|last=Elias|first=Jamal|title=Sufi ''tafsir'' Reconsidered: Exploring the Development of a Genre|journal=Journal of Qur'anic Studies|year=2010|volume=12|issue=1–2|pages=41–55|doi=10.3366/jqs.2010.0104}}</ref> Comprehensive Sufi commentaries appear in the 18th century such as the work of Ismail Hakki Bursevi (d. 1725). His work {{Transliteration|ar|ruh al-Bayan}} ('the Spirit of Elucidation') is a voluminous exegesis. Written in Arabic, it combines the author's own ideas with those of his predecessors (notably Ibn Arabi and [[Biography:Al-Ghazali|Ghazali]]).<ref name=jelias />

=== Levels of meaning ===
[[File:Quran rzabasi1.JPG|thumb|9th-century Quran in the Reza Abbasi Museum]] thumb| An 11th-century North African Quran at the [[British Museum ]]
Unlike the Salafis, Shias and Sunnis as well as some other [[Religion:Islamic philosophy|Muslim philosophers]] believe the meaning of the Quran is not restricted to the literal aspect.<ref name="corbin1993">{{harvnb|Corbin|1993}}</ref>{{rp|7}} For them, it is an essential idea that the Quran also has inward aspects. Henry Corbin narrates a ''[[Religion:Hadith|hadith]]'' that goes back to [[Biography:Muhammad|Muhammad]]:

<blockquote>The Quran possesses an external appearance and a hidden depth, an exoteric meaning and an esoteric meaning. This esoteric meaning in turn conceals an esoteric meaning (this depth possesses a depth, after the image of the celestial Spheres, which are enclosed within each other). So it goes on for seven esoteric meanings (seven depths of hidden depth).<ref name="corbin1993"/>{{rp|7}}</blockquote>

According to this view, it has also become evident that the inner meaning of the Quran does not eradicate or invalidate its outward meaning. Rather, it is like the soul, which gives life to the body.<ref>{{Cite web|first=Allamah |last=Tabataba'I |url=https://almizan.org/new/special/Aspects.asp|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080705110108/http://www.almizan.org/new/special/Aspects.asp|title=The Outward and Inward Aspects of the Qur'an |website=Tafseer Al-Mizan <!-– Allamah Muhammad Hussein Tabatabai -->|archive-date=5 July 2008|access-date=16 February 2021}}</ref> Corbin considers the Quran to play a part in [[Religion:Islamic philosophy|Islamic philosophy]], because [[Philosophy:Gnosiology|gnosiology]] itself goes hand in hand with [[Religion:Prophet#Islam|prophetology]].<ref name="corbin1993"/>{{rp|13}}

Commentaries dealing with the ''[[Religion:Zahir (Islam)|zahir]]'' ('outward aspects') of the text are called {{Transliteration|ar|tafsir}}, and hermeneutic and esoteric commentaries dealing with the ''[[Religion:Batin (Islam)|batin]]'' are called ''ta'wil'' ('interpretation' or 'explanation'), which involves taking the text back to its beginning. Commentators with an esoteric slant believe that the ultimate meaning of the Quran is known only to God.<ref name="Britannica" /> In contrast, [[Religion:Bi-la kaifa|Quranic literalism]], followed by Salafis and Zahiris, is the belief that the Quran should only be taken at its apparent meaning.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Quraishi |first=Asifa |date=2007 |title=Interpreting the Qur'an and the Constitution: Similarities in the Use of Text, Tradition, and Reason in Islamic and American Jurisprudence |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.963142 |journal=SSRN Electronic Journal |doi=10.2139/ssrn.963142 |s2cid=143088125 |issn=1556-5068}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Nakissa |first=Aria |date=20 May 2019 |title=The Anthropology of Islamic Law: Education, Ethics, and Legal Interpretation at Egypt's Al-Azhar |url=https://academic.oup.com/book/35028 |access-date=29 December 2023 |website=Oxford Academic |page=258 |doi=10.1093/oso/9780190932886.001.0001|isbn=978-0-19-093288-6 }}</ref>

=== Reappropriation ===

Reappropriation is the name of the hermeneutical style of some ex-Muslims who have converted to Christianity. Their style or reinterpretation can sometimes be geared towards apologetics, with less reference to the Islamic scholarly tradition that contextualizes and systematizes the reading (e.g., by identifying some verses as abrogated). This tradition of interpretation draws on the following practices: grammatical renegotiation, renegotiation of textual preference, retrieval, and concession.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Miller|first1=Duane Alexander|title=Reappropriation: An Accommodationist Hermeneutic of Islamic Christianity|journal=St Francis Magazine|date=June 2009|volume=5|issue=3|pages=30–33|url=https://www.academia.edu/1482551|access-date=17 December 2014}}</ref>

== Translations ==
Translating the Quran has always been problematic and difficult. Many argue that the Quranic text cannot be reproduced in another language or form.<ref name="slate">{{cite web | access-date=21 November 2008 | url=http://www.slate.com/id/2204849/?from=rss | website=Slate | last=Aslan | first=Reza| title=How To Read the Quran | date=20 November 2008}}</ref> Furthermore, an Arabic word may have a [[Philosophy:Polysemy|range of meanings]] depending on the context, making an accurate translation even more difficult.<ref name=":2">{{Citation |last=Fatani |first=Afnan |date=2006 |chapter=Translation and the Qur'an |pages=657–69 |title=The Qur'an: an Encyclopedia |editor-first=Oliver |editor-last=Leaman |location=New York |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-32639-1}}</ref>

Nevertheless, the Quran has been [[Philosophy:Translation|translated]] into most [[Earth:Africa|Africa]]n, [[Earth:Asia|Asia]]n, and [[Earth:Europe|Europe]]an languages.<ref name =leaman /> The first translator of the Quran was Salman the Persian, who translated surat ''[[Religion:Al-Fatiha|al-Fatiha]]'' into [[Social:Persian language|Persian]] during the seventh century.<ref>An-Nawawi, ''Al-Majmu{{'}}'', (Cairo: Matba'at at-Tadamun n.d.), 380.</ref> Another translation of the Quran was completed in 884 in Alwar (Sindh, {{wipe|India}}, now {{wipe|Pakistan}}) by the orders of Abdullah bin Umar bin Abdul Aziz on the request of the Hindu Raja Mehruk.<ref>{{cite web|title=English Translations of the Quran|date=July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140429213509/http://www.monthlycrescent.com/understanding-the-quran/english-translations-of-the-quran/|archive-date=29 April 2014 |url=http://www.monthlycrescent.com/understanding-the-quran/english-translations-of-the-quran/ |work=Monthly Crescent}}</ref>

The first fully attested complete translations of the Quran were done between the 10th and 12th centuries in [[Social:Persian language|Persian]]. The [[Place:Samanid Empire|Samanid]] king, Mansur I (961–976), ordered a group of scholars from [[Place:Greater Khorasan|Khorasan]] to translate the Tafsir al-Tabari, originally in Arabic, into Persian. Later in the 11th century, one of the students of Abu Mansur Abdullah al-Ansari wrote a complete ''[[Religion:Tafsir|tafsir]]'' of the Quran in Persian. In the 12th century, Najm al-Din Abu Hafs al-Nasafi translated the Quran into Persian.<ref>C.E. Bosworth. Encyclopedia of Islam 2nd ed, Brill. "Al-Tabari, Abu Djafar Muhammad b. Djarir b. Yazid", Vol. 10, p. 14.</ref> The manuscripts of all three books have survived and have been published several times.{{citation needed|date=February 2015}}

Islamic tradition also holds that translations were made for Emperor Negus of Abyssinia and Byzantine Emperor Heraclius, as both received letters by Muhammad containing verses from the Quran.<ref name=":2" /> In early centuries, the permissibility of translations was not an issue, but whether one could use translations in prayer.{{citation needed|date=February 2015}}

In 1936, translations in 102 languages were known.<ref name=":2" /> In 2010, the ''Hürriyet Daily News and Economic Review'' reported that the Quran was presented in 112 languages at the 18th International Quran Exhibition in Tehran.<ref>{{Cite news
|title = More than 300 publishers visit Quran exhibition in Iran
|newspaper = Hürriyet Daily News and Economic Review
|date = 12 August 2010
|url =http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=more-than-300-publishers-visit-koran-exhibition-in-iran-2010-08-12
|access-date = <!-----12 August 2010----->
}}</ref>

Robert of Ketton's 1143 translation of the Quran for Peter the Venerable, ''Lex Mahumet pseudoprophete'', was the first into a Western language ([[Social:Latin|Latin]]).<ref>{{cite book |last= Bloom | first= Jonathan |author2=Blair, Sheila  | year=2002 | title=Islam: A Thousand Years of Faith and Power |url= https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780300094220 |url-access= registration | publisher=Yale University Press | location=New Haven | page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780300094220/page/42 42]| isbn= 978-0-300-09422-0 }}</ref>
Alexander Ross offered the first English version in 1649, from the French translation of {{Lang|fr|L'Alcoran de Mahomet}} (1647) by Andre du Ryer. In 1734, George Sale produced the first scholarly translation of the Quran into English; another was produced by Richard Bell in 1937, and yet another by Arthur John Arberry in 1955. All these translators were non-Muslims. There have been numerous translations by Muslims. Popular modern English translations by Muslims include The Oxford World Classic's translation by Muhammad Abdel Haleem, The Clear Quran by Mustafa Khattab, Sahih International's translation, among various others.

As with translations of the Bible, the English translators have sometimes favored archaic English words and constructions over their more modern or conventional equivalents; for example, two widely read translators, Abdullah Yusuf Ali and Marmaduke Pickthall, use the plural and singular ''ye'' and ''thou'' instead of the more common ''you''.<ref>{{cite web|title=Al-i-Imran (The Family of Imran) Part 1 |website=Read Quran Online|url=http://readquranonline.info/surah003.html|access-date=21 November 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101118015724/http://www.readquranonline.info/surah003.html|archive-date=18 November 2010}}</ref>

The oldest Gurmukhi translation of the Quran Sharif has been found in village Lande<!--Also spelled Landhe--> of Moga district of Punjab which was printed in 1911.<ref>{{cite news |first=Amaninder |last=Pal |date=5 May 2016 |orig-date=4 April |url=http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/punjab/gurmukhi-translation-of-quran-traced-to-moga-village/232193.html |title=Gurmukhi translation of Quran traced to Moga village |work=The Tribune |access-date=26 August 2016}}</ref>

<gallery mode="packed" widths="200px" heights="200px">
Page from the Qur'an of Sultan Ibrahim (TKS EH 209).jpg|1091 Quranic text in bold script with Persian translation and commentary in a lighter script<ref>{{Cite web|author=Alya Karame|title=Qur'ans from the Eastern Islamic World between the 4th/10th and 6th/12th Centuries |url=https://era.ed.ac.uk/bitstream/handle/1842/28999/Karame2018%20text.pdf?sequence=2&isAllowed=y |website=The University of Edinburgh |page=109|language=en}}</ref>
File:Ilkhanid Quran.jpg|Arabic Quran with interlinear Persian translation from the Ilkhanid Era
File:Alcoran de Mahomet 1647.jpg|The first printed Quran in a European vernacular language: {{Lang|fr|L'Alcoran de Mahomet}}, André du Ryer, 1647
File:Koran by Megerlein 1772.jpg|Title page of the first German translation (1772) of the Quran
File:Chinese quran.jpg|Verses 33 and 34 of surat Yā Sīn in this Chinese translation of the Quran
</gallery>

== Recitation ==
=== Rules of recitation ===
The proper recitation of the Quran is the subject of a separate discipline named ''[[Religion:Tajwid|tajwid]]'' which determines in detail how the Quran should be recited, how each individual syllable is to be pronounced, the need to pay attention to the places where there should be a pause, to elisions, where the pronunciation should be long or short, where letters should be sounded together and where they should be kept separate, etc. It may be said that this discipline studies the laws and methods of the proper recitation of the Quran and covers three main areas: the proper pronunciation of consonants and vowels (the articulation of the Quranic [[Social:Phoneme|phoneme]]s), the rules of pause in recitation and of resumption of recitation, and the musical and melodious features of recitation.<ref name=":3">{{Citation |date=2006 |title=The Qur'an: an Encyclopedia |editor-first=Oliver |editor-last=Leaman |location=New York |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-32639-1}}:{{Bulleted list|"Art and the Qur'an" by Tamara Sonn, pp. 71–81;|"Reading," by Stefan Wild, pp. 532–35.}}</ref>

In order to avoid incorrect pronunciation, reciters follow a program of training with a qualified teacher. The two most popular texts used as references for {{Transliteration|ar|tajwid}} rules are Matn al-Jazariyyah by Ibn al-Jazari<ref name="ilm-gate-jazari">{{cite web |last1=Thānawi |first1=Qāri Izhār |title=The Great Imām of Qirā'ah: Muhammad Ibn al-Jazari |url=https://www.ilmgate.org/the-great-imam-of-qiraah-muhammad-ibn-al-jazari/ |website=IlmGate |access-date=9 September 2020 |date=21 January 2019}}</ref> and Tuhfat al-Atfal by Sulayman al-Jamzuri.

The recitations of a few Egyptian reciters, like El Minshawy, Al-Hussary, Abdul Basit, Mustafa Ismail, were highly influential in the development of current styles of recitation.<ref name="big41">{{Cite web|url=https://www.thedawoodibohras.com/2018/02/02/khalaf-from-hamzah-a-look-at-the-features-of-recitation-of-al-quran-by-shahzada-husain-bhaisaheb/|title=Khalaf from Hamzah – A look at the features of recitation of al-Qur'an by Shahzada Husain Bhaisaheb|date=2 February 2018|orig-date=28 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200519004648/https://www.thedawoodibohras.com/2018/02/02/khalaf-from-hamzah-a-look-at-the-features-of-recitation-of-al-quran-by-shahzada-husain-bhaisaheb/|archive-date=19 May 2020|author=Taha Shoeb|work=The Dawoodi Bohras}}</ref><ref name=big42>{{Cite web|title=A Meeting with the Egyptian Giants, al-Minshāwī, al-Huṣrī, Muṣṭafā Ismāʿīl and ʿAbdul-Bāsit ʿAbdus-Ṣamad|work=islam21c.com|author=Ejaz Taj|url=https://www.islam21c.com/islamic-thought/shaykh-khalil-abdul-rahman-al-qari-a-quranic-legacy/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200518025709/https://www.islam21c.com/islamic-thought/shaykh-khalil-abdul-rahman-al-qari-a-quranic-legacy/|archive-date=18 May 2020|access-date=18 May 2020|date=6 September 2018}}</ref><ref name="big44">{{cite book |editor-last1=Nooshin |editor-first1=Laundan |first1=Michael |last1=Frishkopf |date=28 December 2009|title=In Music and Play of Power in the Middle East |chapter-url=https://pdfslide.net/documents/mediated-quranic-recitation-and-the-contestation-of-islam-in-.html |chapter=Mediated Qur'anic Recitation and the Contestation of Islam in Contemporary Egypt |language=en |location=London |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-7546-3457-7 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200519171344/https://pdfslide.net/documents/mediated-quranic-recitation-and-the-contestation-of-islam-in-.html |archive-date=19 May 2020|via=pdfslide.net}}</ref>{{rp|83}} Southeast Asia is well known for world-class recitation, evidenced in the popularity of the woman reciters such as Maria Ulfah of [[Place:Jakarta|Jakarta]].<ref name=":3" /> Today, crowds fill auditoriums for public [[Religion:International Quran Recital Competition|Quran recitation competition]]s.<ref name="big43">{{Cite web|url=https://iqna.ir/en/news/3471344/best-quran-recitation-competition-for-students-planned-in-egypt|title=Best Quran Recitation Competition for Students Planned in Egypt|date=4 May 2020|website=iqna.ir|archive-date=19 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200519023215/https://iqna.ir/en/news/3471344/best-quran-recitation-competition-for-students-planned-in-egypt}}</ref><ref name=Esposito/>

There are two types of recitation:

# {{Transliteration|ar|Murattal}} is at a slower pace, used for study and practice.
# ''[[Religion:Mujawwad|Mujawwad]]'' refers to a slow recitation that deploys heightened technical artistry and melodic modulation, as in public performances by trained experts. It is directed to and dependent upon an audience for the {{Transliteration|ar|mujawwad}} reciter seeks to involve the listeners.<ref name="nelson">{{cite book|last=Nelson|first=Kristina|title=The art of reciting the Qur'an|year=2001|publisher=American Univ. in Cairo Press|location=Cairo [u.a.]|isbn=978-977-424-594-7|edition=New}}</ref>

=== Variant readings ===
[[File:Qur'an folio 11th century kufic.jpg|thumb|upright=1.15|Page of the Quran with vocalization marks]]
Vocalization markers indicating specific vowel sounds ([[Religion:Arabic diacritics|''tashkeel'']]) were introduced into the text of the Qur'an during the lifetimes of the last [[Religion:Companions of the Prophet|Sahabah]].<ref name=":0" /> The first Quranic manuscripts lacked these marks, enabling multiple possible recitations to be conveyed by the same written text. The 10th-century Muslim scholar from [[Place:Baghdad|Baghdad]], Ibn Mujāhid, is famous for establishing seven acceptable textual readings of the Quran. He studied various readings and their trustworthiness and chose seven 8th-century readers from the cities of [[Place:Mecca|Mecca]], [[Place:Medina|Medina]], Kufa, [[Place:Basra|Basra]] and [[Place:Damascus|Damascus]]. Ibn Mujahid did not explain why he chose [[Religion:Seven readers|seven readers]], rather than six or ten, but this may be related to a prophetic tradition (Muhammad's saying) reporting that the Quran had been revealed in seven ''[[Religion:Ahruf|ahruf]]'' (meaning seven letters or modes). Today, the most popular readings are those transmitted by Ḥafṣ (d. 796) and [[Religion:Warsh|Warsh]] (d. 812) which are according to two of Ibn Mujahid's reciters, Aasim ibn Abi al-Najud (Kufa, d. 745) and Nafi' al-Madani (Medina, d. 785), respectively. The influential standard [[Religion:History of the Quran#1924 Cairo edition|Quran of Cairo]] uses an elaborate system of modified vowel-signs and a set of additional symbols for minute details and is based on ʻAsim's recitation, the 8th-century recitation of Kufa. This edition has become the standard for modern printings of the Quran.<ref name=rippin /><ref name=melchert2>{{cite journal|last=Melchert|first=Christopher|title=Ibn Mujahid and the Establishment of Seven Qur'anic Readings|journal=Studia Islamica|year=2000|issue=91|pages=5–22|doi=10.2307/1596266|jstor=1596266}}</ref>

The variant readings of the Quran are one type of textual variant.<ref>{{harvnb|Rippin|2006}}:{{Bulleted list|"Written Transmission," by François Déroche, pp. 172–87.|"Recitation," by Anna M. Gade, pp. 481–93}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book| last = Small| first = Keith E.| publisher = Lexington Books| isbn = 978-0-7391-4291-2| title = Textual Criticism and Qur'an Manuscripts| date = 2011 |pages=109–111}}</ref> According to Melchert (2008), the majority of disagreements have to do with vowels to supply, most of them in turn not conceivably reflecting dialectal differences and about one in eight disagreements has to do with whether to place dots above or below the line.<ref name=Melchert>{{cite journal|last=Melchert|first=Christopher|title=The Relation of the [[Religion:Ten recitations|Ten Readings]] to One Another|journal=Journal of Quranic Studies|year=2008|volume=10|issue=2|pages=73–87|doi=10.3366/e1465359109000424}}</ref>

Nasser categorizes variant readings into various subtypes, including internal vowels, long vowels, gemination (''shaddah''), assimilation and alternation.<ref name=nasser>{{cite book|last=Hekmat Nasser|first=Shady|title=The Transmission of the Variant Readings of the Quran: The Problem of Tawatur and the Emergence of Shawdhdh|year=2012|publisher=Brill Academic Pub|isbn=978-90-04-24081-0}}</ref>

Occasionally, an early Quran shows compatibility with a particular reading. A Syrian manuscript from the 8th century is shown to have been written according to the reading of Ibn Amir ad-Dimashqi.<ref name=dutton>{{cite journal|last=Dutton|first=Yasin|title=An Early Mushaf According To The Reading Of Ibn ʻAmir|journal=Journal of Qur'anic Studies|year=2001|volume=3|issue=2|pages=71–89|doi=10.3366/jqs.2001.3.1.71}}</ref> Another study suggests that this manuscript bears the vocalization of himsi region.<ref name=rabb>{{cite journal|last=Rabb|first=Intisar|title=Non-Canonical Readings of the Qur'an: Recognition and Authenticity (The Ḥimṣī Reading)|journal=Journal of Qur'anic Studies|year=2006|volume=8|issue=2|pages=88–127|doi=10.3366/jqs.2006.8.2.84}}</ref>

== Writing and printing ==
=== Writing ===
Before printing was widely adopted in the 19th century, the Quran was transmitted in manuscripts made by calligraphers and copyists. The earliest manuscripts were written in ''Ḥijāzī''-typescript. The ''Hijazi'' style manuscripts nevertheless confirm that transmission of the Quran in writing began at an early stage. Probably in the ninth century, scripts began to feature thicker strokes, which are traditionally known as ''Kufic'' scripts. Toward the end of the ninth century, new scripts began to appear in copies of the Quran and replace earlier scripts. The reason for discontinuation in the use of the earlier style was that it took too long to produce and the demand for copies was increasing. Copyists would therefore choose simpler writing styles. Beginning in the 11th century, the styles of writing employed were primarily the ''naskh'', ''muhaqqaq'', ''rayḥānī'' and, on rarer occasions, the ''thuluth'' script. ''Naskh'' was in very widespread use. In North Africa and Iberia, the ''Maghribī'' style was popular. More distinct is the ''Bihari'' script which was used solely in the north of India. ''Nastaʻlīq'' style was also rarely used in Persian world.<ref name=":4">{{Cite encyclopedia |last=Déroche |first=François |date=2006 |article=Written Transmission |encyclopedia=The Blackwell Companion to the Qur'an |title-link=iarchive:blackwellcompani00ripp 0 |edition=2a reimpr. |editor-last1=Rippin |editor-first1=Andrew |display-editors=etal |publisher=Blackwell |isbn=978-1-4051-1752-4 |pages=172–87}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |author-link1=Peter Riddell |last1=Riddell |first1=Peter G. |last2=Street |first2=Tony |last3=Johns |first3=Anthony Hearle |date=1997 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H3nHpsDBm6QC&pg=PA170 |title=Islam: essays on scripture, thought and society: a festschrift in honour of Anthony H. Johns |pages=170–74 |location=Leiden |publisher=Brill |isbn=978-90-04-10692-5}}</ref>

In the beginning, the Quran was not written with dots or [[Religion:Arabic diacritics|tashkeel]]. These features were added to the text during the lifetimes of the last of the [[Religion:Companions of the Prophet|Sahabah]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Ibn Taymiyyah|first=Ahmed <!-- |last=ابن تيمية|first=أحمد| --> |trans-title=Total Fatwas |title=Majmue Alfatawaa |script-title=ar:مجموع الفتاوى|page=12/576}}</ref> Since it would have been too costly for most Muslims to purchase a manuscript, copies of the Quran were held in mosques in order to make them accessible to people. These copies frequently took the form of a series of 30 parts or ''juzʼ''. In terms of productivity, the Ottoman copyists provide the best example. This was in response to widespread demand, unpopularity of printing methods and for aesthetic reasons.<ref>{{cite book |first=Suraiya |last=Faroqhi |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cQ8ZLZh9WjwC&pg=PA95 |title=Subjects of the Sultan: culture and daily life in the Ottoman Empire |pages=134–136 |publisher=I.B. Tauris |date=2005 |isbn=978-1-85043-760-4}}</ref><ref name="MatbaaBosworth1989"/>

Whilst the majority of Islamic scribes were men, some women also worked as scholars and copyists; one such woman who made a copy of this text was the Moroccan jurist, Amina, bint al-Hajj ʿAbd al-Latif.<ref name=":02">{{Cite encyclopedia |last=James |first=David |editor-first1=Emmanuel K |editor-first2=Henry Louis |editor-last1=Akyeampong |editor-last2=Gates |title=Amina bint al-Hajj ʿAbd al-Latif |date=2011-01-01 |url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195382075.001.0001/acref-9780195382075-e-0171 |encyclopedia=Dictionary of African Biography |publisher=Oxford University Press |language=en |doi=10.1093/acref/9780195382075.001.0001 |isbn=978-0-19-538207-5 |access-date=2022-07-01}}</ref>
<gallery mode="packed" widths="200" heights="200">
File:Brooklyn Museum - Folio from the "Blue" Qur'an.jpg|Folio from the [[Religion:Blue Quran|"Blue" Quran]] at the Brooklyn Museum
File:Folio from a Koran (8th-9th century).jpg|''Kufic'' script, eighth or ninth century
File:Qur'anic Manuscript - Maghribi script.jpg|''Maghribi'' script, 13th–14th centuries
File:Muhaqqaq script.gif|''Muhaqqaq'' script, 14th–15th centuries
File:Shikastah script.jpg|''Shikasta nastaliq'' script, 18th–19th centuries
</gallery>

=== Printing ===
[[File:Quran divided into 6 books.jpg|thumb|Quran divided into six books, published by Dar Ibn Kathir, Damascus-Beirut]]
Wood-block printing of extracts from the Quran is on record as early as the 10th century.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.muslimheritage.com/topics/default.cfm?ArticleID=940|title=Muslim Printing Before Gutenberg|website=muslimheritage.com}}</ref>

Arabic movable type printing was ordered by Pope Julius II (r. 1503–1512) for distribution among Middle Eastern Christians.<ref>{{harvnb|Krek|1979|p=203}}</ref> The first complete Quran printed with movable type was produced in Venice in 1537–1538 for the [[Place:Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] market by Paganino Paganini and Alessandro Paganini.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://archive.aramcoworld.com/issue/200802/east.meets.west.in.venice.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131102232102/http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/200802/east.meets.west.in.venice.htm|title=Saudi Aramco World: East Meets West in Venice|archive-date=2 November 2013|website=archive.aramcoworld.com|access-date=16 February 2021}}</ref><ref name="Nuovo">{{cite journal |last1=Nuovo |first1=Angela |title=A Lost Arabic Koran Rediscovered |journal=The Library |date=1990 |volume=s6-12 |issue=4 |pages=273–292 |doi=10.1093/library/s6-12.4.273}}</ref> But this Quran was not used as it contained a large number of errors.<ref name="madainpaganini">{{cite web |title=Paganini Quran |url=https://madainproject.com/paganini_quran |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200506131717/https://madainproject.com/paganini_quran |archive-date=6 May 2020 |website=Madain Project |access-date=6 May 2020}}</ref> Two more editions include those published by the pastor Abraham Hinckelmann in [[Place:Hamburg|Hamburg]] in 1694,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://exhibitions.cul.columbia.edu/exhibits/show/quran/qurans/printed|title=The Quran in East and West: Manuscripts and Printed Books|website=Columbia University Libraries Online Exhibitions|language=en-US|access-date=3 April 2017}}</ref> and by Italian priest Ludovico Maracci in Padua in 1698 with Latin translation and commentary.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://exhibitions.cul.columbia.edu/exhibits/show/quran/item/6131|title=Alcorani textus universus ex correctioribus Arabum exemplaribus summa fide, atque pulcherrimis characteribus descriptus, vol. 2, p. i|website=Columbia University Libraries Online Exhibitions|language=en-US|access-date=3 April 2017}}</ref>

Printed copies of the Quran during this period met with strong opposition from [[Religion:Ulama|Muslim legal scholars]]: printing anything in Arabic was prohibited in the Ottoman empire between 1483 and 1726—initially, even on penalty of death.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Faroqhi |first=Suraiya |date=2005 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cQ8ZLZh9WjwC&pg=PA95 |title=Subjects of the Sultan: culture and daily life in the Ottoman Empire |publisher=I.B. Tauris |isbn=978-1-85043-760-4 |pages=134–36}}</ref><ref name="MatbaaBosworth1989">{{Cite encyclopedia |editor-last=Bosworth |editor-first=Clifford Edmund |date=1989 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PvwUAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA803 |article=Matba'a |encyclopedia=The Encyclopaedia of Islam: Fascicules 111–112 : Masrah Mawlid |location=Leiden |publisher=E. J. Brill |page=803|isbn=90-04-09239-0 }}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Watson|1968|p=435}}; {{harvnb|Clogg|1979|p=67}}</ref> The Ottoman ban on printing in Arabic script was lifted in 1726 for non-religious texts only upon the request of Ibrahim Muteferrika, who printed his first book in 1729. Except for books in Hebrew and European languages, which were unrestricted, very few books, and no religious texts, were printed in the Ottoman Empire for another century.{{#tag:ref|"the major Ottoman printing houses published a combined total of only 142 books in more than a century of printing between 1727 and 1838. When taken in conjunction with the fact that only a minuscule number of copies of each book were printed, this statistic demonstrates that the introduction of the printing press did not transform Ottoman cultural life until the emergence of vibrant print media in the middle of the nineteenth century" <ref>{{Cite book |first=Şükrü |last=Hanioğlu |title=A Brief History of the Late Ottoman Empire |publisher=Princeton University Press |date=2010}}</ref>|group=lower-roman}}

In 1786, Catherine the Great of Russia, sponsored a printing press for "Tatar and Turkish orthography" in Saint Petersburg, with one Mullah Osman Ismail responsible for producing the Arabic types. A Quran was printed with this press in 1787, reprinted in 1790 and 1793 in Saint Petersburg, and in 1803 in Kazan.{{#tag:ref|"at imperial expense, a 'Tatar and Turkish Typography' was established in St. Petersburg; a domestic scholar, Mullah Osman Ismail, was responsible for the manufacture of the types. One of the first products of this printing house was the Qur'ān. Through the doctor and writer, Johann Georg v. Zimmermann (d. 1795), who was befriended by Catherine II, a copy of the publication arrived in the Göttingen University library. Its director, the philologist Christian Gottlob Heyne (d. 1812), presented the work immediately in the ''Göttingische Anzeigen von gelehrten Sachen'' (28 July 1788); therein he pointed especially to the beauty of the Arabic types. To the Arabic text marginal glosses have been added that consist predominantly of reading variants. The imprint was reproduced unchanged in 1790 and 1793 in St. Petersburg (cf. Schnurrer, Bibliotheca arabica, no. 384); later, after the transfer of the printing house to Kazan, editions appeared in different formats and with varying presentation <ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |author=Dorn |editor-last=McAuliffe |editor-first=Jane Dammen |article=Chronologisches Verzeichnis, 371 |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of the Qurʾān |date=2002 |location=Leiden |publisher=Brill |isbn=90-04-12354-7 |volume=3 |page=251}}</ref>
For the 1803 Kazan edition:
Chauvin, V.C. Bib. des ouvrages arabes, vol. X, 95;
Schnurrer, C.F. von. Bibliotheca Arabica, 385.
Original held by Bayerische Staatsbibliothek – Munich, Germany, [[Shelfmark|shelfmark]] BSB A.or.554.|group=lower-roman}} The first edition printed in Iran appeared in Tehran (1828), a translation in Turkish was printed in Cairo in 1842, and the first officially sanctioned Ottoman edition was finally printed in Constantinople between 1875 and 1877 as a two-volume set, during the First Constitutional Era.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Palgrave Dictionary of Transnational History: From the mid-19th century to the present day |last1=Iriye |first1=A. |last2=Saunier |first2=P. |publisher=Springer |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-349-74030-7 |page=627}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=The Politics of Language and Nationalism in Modern Central Europe|last=Kamusella|first=T.|publisher=Springer|year=2012|isbn=978-0-230-58347-4|pages=265–266}}</ref>

Gustav Flügel published an edition of the Quran in 1834 in Leipzig, which remained authoritative in Europe for close to a century, until Cairo's [[Organization:Al-Azhar University|Al-Azhar University]] published an edition of the Quran in 1924. This edition was the result of a long preparation, as it standardized Quranic orthography, and it remains the basis of later editions.<ref name=":4" />

== Criticism ==
{{Main|Religion:Criticism of the Quran}}

Regarding the claim of divine origin, critics refer to preexisting sources, not only taken from the Bible, supposed to be older revelations of God, but also from [[Religion:Heresy in Christianity|heretic]], apocryphic and talmudic sources, such as The [[Religion:Syriac Infancy Gospel|Syriac Infancy Gospel]] and [[Religion:Gospel of James|Gospel of James]]. The Quran acknowledges that accusations of borrowing popular ancient fables were being made against Muhammad.<ref>{{Qref|25|5|b=y}}</ref> Due to rejection of [[Religion:Crucifixion of Jesus|Crucifixion of Jesus]] in the Quran, some scholars also suspect Manichaean, a dualistic religion believing in two eternal forces, influences on the Quran. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has a program that will rewrite the Quran, and have also banned Quran mobile apps.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.businessinsider.com/china-removed-popular-quran-apps-with-one-million-chinese-users-bbc-2021-10?amp | title=China removed popular Quran apps, with one million Chinese users; BBC | website=Business Insider }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://ahvalnews.com/uighurs/china-rewrite-quran-bible-amid-crackdown-uighur-minority|title=China to rewrite Quran, Bible amid crackdown on Uighur minority|website=ahvalnews.com|date=25 December 2019}}</ref>

== Relationship with other literature ==
[[File:Large Koran.jpg|thumb|right|upright=0.7|Page from a Quran ({{lang|ar-Latn|'Umar-i Aqta'|italic=no}}). [[Religion:Iran|Iran]], Afghanistan, Timurid dynasty, {{circa|1400}}. Opaque watercolor, ink and gold on paper in the {{lang|ar-Latn|Muqaqqaq|italic=no}} script. {{convert|170|×|109|cm|in}}. Historical region: Uzbekistan.]]
Some non-Muslim groups such as the [[Social:Baháʼí Faith|Baháʼí Faith]] and [[Philosophy:Druze|Druze]] view the Quran as holy. In the Baháʼí Faith, the Quran is accepted as authentic revelation from God along with the revelations of the other world religions, Islam being a stage within the divine process of progressive revelation. [[Biography:Baháʼu'lláh|Bahá'u'lláh]], the Prophet-Founder of the Baháʼí Faith, testified to the validity of the Quran, writing, say: "Perused ye not the Qur'án? Read it, that haply ye may find the Truth, for this Book is verily the Straight Path. This is the Way of God unto all who are in the heavens and all who are on the earth."<ref>{{Cite web|title=The Kitáb-i-Íqán |website=Bahá'í Reference Library |url=https://www.bahai.org/library/authoritative-texts/bahaullah/kitab-i-iqan/5#335712027|access-date=6 August 2021}}</ref> [[Philosophy:Unitarian Universalism|Unitarian Universalists]] may also seek inspiration from the Quran. It has been suggested that the Quran has some narrative similarities to the [[Religion:Diatessaron|Diatessaron]], [[Religion:Gospel of James|Protoevangelium of James]], [[Religion:Infancy Gospel of Thomas|Infancy Gospel of Thomas]], [[Religion:Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew|Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew]] and the [[Religion:Syriac Infancy Gospel|Arabic Infancy Gospel]].<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |last=Griffith |first=Signey |date=2008 |title=Christian Lore and the Arabic Qur'an |article-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DbtkpgGn4CEC&dq=apocrypha+qur%27an+Diatessaron&pg=PA112 |encyclopedia=The Qurʼān in its Historical Context |editor-first=Gabriel S. |editor-last=Reynolds |publisher=Psychology Press |page=112|isbn=978-0-203-93960-4 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |title=New Catholic Encyclopedia |title-link=New Catholic Encyclopaedia |volume=7 |location=Washington, DC |publisher=The Catholic University of America |date=1967 |page=677}}</ref> One scholar has suggested that the Diatessaron, as a [[Religion:Gospel harmony|gospel harmony]], may have led to the conception that the Christian Gospel is one text.<ref>{{Cite book |first=Ibn |last=Rawandi |date=2002 |article=On pre-Islamic Christian strophic poetical texts in the Koran |title-link=What the Koran Really Says |title=What the Koran Really Says: Language, Text and Commentary |editor-first=Ibn |editor-last=Warraq |publisher=Prometheus Books |isbn=978-1-57392-945-5}}</ref>

=== The Bible ===
{{Rquote|right|He has revealed to you ˹O Prophet˺ the Book in truth, confirming what came before it, as He revealed the Torah and the Gospel previously, as a guide for people, and ˹also˺ revealed the Standard ˹to distinguish between right and wrong˺.<ref>3:3 نزل عليك الكتاب بالحق مصدقا لما بين يديه وانزل التوراة والانجيل</ref>|{{qref|3|3-4}}}}

The Quran attributes its relationship with former books (the Torah and the [[Religion:Gospel|Gospel]]s) to their unique origin, saying all of them have been revealed by the one God.<ref>{{qref|2|285|b=y}}</ref>

According to [[Biography:Christoph Luxenberg|Christoph Luxenberg]] (in ''[[Religion:The Syro-Aramaic Reading of the Koran|The Syro-Aramaic Reading of the Koran]]'') the Quran's language was similar to the Syriac language.<ref>{{cite book|last=Luxenberg|first=Christoph|title=The Syro-Aramaic reading of the Koran: a contribution to the decoding of the language of the Koran|publisher=H. Schiler |location=Berlin |year=2007 |isbn=978-3-89930-088-8}}</ref> The Quran recounts stories of many of the people and events recounted in [[Religion:Judaism|Jewish]] and [[Religion:Christianity|Christian]] sacred books ([[Religion:Hebrew Bible|Tanakh]], [[Religion:Bible|Bible]]) and devotional literature ([[Religion:Apocrypha|Apocrypha]], [[Religion:Midrash|Midrash]]), although it differs in many details. [[Biography:Adam|Adam]], Enoch, Noah, Eber, Shelah, [[Biography:Abraham|Abraham]], Lot, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Job, Jethro, David, [[Biography:Solomon|Solomon]], Elijah, Elisha, Jonah, Aaron, [[Biography:Moses|Moses]], Zechariah, [[Biography:John the Baptist|John the Baptist]] and [[Biography:Jesus|Jesus]] are mentioned in the Quran as prophets of God (see Prophets of Islam). In fact, Moses is mentioned more in the Quran than any other individual.<ref name=Keeler>{{Cite encyclopedia |first=Annabel |last=Keeler |chapter=Moses from a Muslim Perspective |editor-last1=Solomon |editor-first1=Norman |editor-last2=Harries |editor-first2=Richard |editor-last3=Winter |editor-first3=Tim |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9A4JZ8CSJJwC&q=Moses&pg=PA55 |encyclopedia=Abraham's children: Jews, Christians and Muslims in conversation |publisher=T&T Clark |date=2005 |pages=55–66|isbn=978-0-567-08171-1 }}</ref> Jesus is mentioned more often in the Quran than Muhammad (by name—Muhammad is often alluded to as "The Prophet" or "The Apostle"), while Mary is mentioned in the Quran more than in the [[Religion:New Testament|New Testament]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Esposito |first=John L |date=2010 |title=The Future of Islam |url=https://archive.org/details/futureofislam0000espo/page/40 |location=US |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-516521-0 |page=40 |quote=Christians are often surprised to discover that Jesus is mentioned by name in the Quran more than Muhammad and that Mary is mentioned more times in the Quran than in the New Testament. Both Jesus and Mary play important roles not only in the Quran but also in Muslim piety and spirituality.}}</ref>

=== Arab writing ===
After the Quran, and the general rise of Islam, the Arabic alphabet developed rapidly into an art form.<ref name =leaman /> The Arabic grammarian Sibawayh wrote one of the earliest books on Arabic grammar, referred to as "Al-Kitab", which relied heavily on the language in the Quran. Wadad Kadi, Professor of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at [[Organization:University of Chicago|University of Chicago]], and Mustansir Mir, Professor of Islamic studies at [[Organization:Youngstown State University|Youngstown State University]], state that the Quran exerted a particular influence on Arabic literature's diction, themes, metaphors, motifs and symbols and added new expressions and new meanings to old, pre-Islamic words that would become ubiquitous.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |last1=Kadi |first1=Wadad |last2=Mir |first2=Mustansir |editor-last=McAuliffe |editor-first=Jane Dammen |article=Literature and the Quran |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of the Qurʾān |date=2002 |location=Leiden |publisher=Brill |isbn=90-04-12354-7 |volume=3 |pages=213, 216}}</ref>

== See also ==
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
* [[Religion:Criticism of the Quran|Criticism of the Quran]]
* [[Software:Digital Quran|Digital Quran]]
* [[Religion:Hadith al-Thaqalayn|Hadith al-Thaqalayn]]
* [[Religion:Historical reliability of the Quran|Historical reliability of the Quran]]
* [[Religion:Islamic schools and branches|Islamic schools and branches]]
* List of chapters in the Quran
* List of translations of the Quran
* Quran and miracles
* [[Quran code]]
* Quran translations
* [[Religion:Schools of Islamic theology|Schools of Islamic theology]]
* ''[[Religion:The True Furqan|The True Furqan]]''
* [[Religion:Violence in the Quran|Violence in the Quran]]
* Women in the Quran
{{Div col end}}

== References ==
=== Notes ===
{{Reflist|35em|group=lower-roman}}

=== Citations ===
{{Reflist}}

=== Sources ===
* {{Cite book|last=Allen|first=Roger|title=An Introduction to Arabic literature|year=2000|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-77657-8}}
* {{cite journal |last=Clogg |first=Richard |date=1979 |title=An Attempt to Revive Turkish Printing in Istanbul in 1779 |journal=International Journal of Middle East Studies |volume=10 |number=1 |pages=67–70 |doi=10.1017/s0020743800053320 |s2cid=159835641}}
*{{cite book |last1=Cook |first1=Michael |title=The Koran; A Very Short Introduction |date=2000 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-285344-8 |url=https://archive.org/details/koranveryshorti00cook |url-access=registration |access-date=24 September 2019 |ref=MCKVSI2000}}
* {{Cite book|last=Corbin|first=Henry|title=History of Islamic Philosophy |translator-first1=Liadain |translator-last1=Sherrard |translator-first2=Philip |translator-last2=Sherrard |translator-link2=Philip Sherrard |location=London |publisher=Kegan Paul International in association with Islamic Publications for The Institute of Ismaili Studies|year=1993|orig-date=1964 (in French)|isbn=978-0-7103-0416-2}}
* {{Cite book|last1=Esposito|first1=John|last2=Haddad|first2=Yvonne Yazbeck|author-link2=Yvonne Haddad|title=Muslims on the Americanization Path?|year=2000|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-513526-8|url=https://archive.org/details/muslimsonamerica00yvon}}
*{{cite book|first=Nidhal |last=Guessoum|title=Islam's Quantum Question: Reconciling Muslim Tradition and Modern Science|page=174|publisher=I.B. Tauris|isbn=978-1-84885-517-5|date=2011}}
* {{cite journal |first=Miroslav |last=Krek |date=1979 |title=The Enigma of the First Arabic Book Printed from Movable Type |journal=Journal of Near Eastern Studies |volume=38 |number=3 |pages=203–212 |doi=10.1086/372742|s2cid=162374182 }} 
* {{Cite book|last=Kugle|first=Scott Alan|title=Rebel Between Spirit And Law: Ahmad Zarruq, Sainthood, And Authority in Islam|publisher=Indiana University Press|year=2006|isbn=978-0-253-34711-4}}
* {{Cite book|last=Nasr|first=Seyyed Hossein|title=Islam: Religion, History and Civilization|location=San Francisco|publisher=Harper|date=2003|isbn=978-0-06-050714-5|url=https://archive.org/details/islamreligionhis00nasr_0}}
* {{Cite journal|last=Peters|first=Francis E.|title=The Quest of the Historical Muhammad|journal=International Journal of Middle East Studies|volume=23|issue=3|pages=291–315|date=August 1991|doi=10.1017/S0020743800056312|s2cid=162433825 }}
* {{Cite book|last=Peters|first=Francis E.|title=The Monotheists: Jews, Christians and Muslims in Conflict and Competition|publisher=Princeton University Press|year=2003|isbn=978-0-691-12373-8|author-mask=2}}
* {{cite journal |last=Watson |first=William J. |date=1968 |title=İbrāhīm Müteferriḳa and Turkish Incunabula |journal=Journal of the American Oriental Society |volume=88 |number=3 |pages=435–441 |doi=10.2307/596868 |jstor=596868}}

== Further reading ==
{{refbegin|30em}}

=== Introductory texts ===
* {{Cite book|publisher=Edinburgh University Press|isbn=978-0-7486-0597-2|last1=Bell|first1=Richard|first2=William Montgomery |last2=Watt|title=Bell's introduction to the Qurʼān|year=1970|}}
* {{cite book|last1=Cook|first1=Michael|title=The Koran : A Very Short Introduction|date=2000|publisher=Oxford University Press|url=https://archive.org/details/koranveryshorti00cook|isbn=0192853449|ref=MCKaVSI2000}}
* {{cite book|last=Hawting|first=G.R.|title=Approaches to the Qur'ān|year=1993|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-415-05755-4|edition=1}}
* {{cite book|last=Hixon|first=Lex|title=The heart of the Qurʼan: an introduction to Islamic spirituality|year=2003|publisher=Quest|isbn=978-0-8356-0822-0|edition=2}}
* {{Cite encyclopedia |last=Nasr |first=Seyyed Hossein |title=Qurʾān |year=2007 |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica Online |url=http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-68890/Quran |access-date=2007-11-04}}
* {{Cite book|edition=Second|publisher=University Of Chicago Press|isbn=978-0-226-70286-5|last=Rahman|first=Fazlur|title=Major Themes of the Qur'an|year=2009|orig-date=1989}}
* {{cite book|editor-last1=Rippin |editor-first1=Andrew |display-editors=etal |title=The Blackwell companion to the Qur'an |year=2006 |publisher=Blackwell |isbn=978-1-4051-1752-4 |url=https://archive.org/details/blackwellcompani00ripp_0}}
* {{Cite book |last=Robinson |first=Neal |date=2002 |title=Discovering the Qur'an |publisher=Georgetown University Press |isbn=978-1-58901-024-6}}
* {{Cite book |last=Sells |first=Michael |date=15 November 1999 |title=Approaching the Qur'ān: The Early Revelations |edition=Book & CD |publisher=White Cloud Press |isbn=978-1-883991-26-5}}
* {{Cite book|last=Tabatabae|first=Mohammad Hosayn|title=The Qur'an in Islam: Its Impact and Influence on the Life of Muslims|publisher=Routledge|year=1988|isbn=978-0-7103-0266-3|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/quraninislamitsi0000taba}}
* {{Cite book|last=Wild|first=Stefan|title=The Quʼran as Text|location=Leiden|publisher=Brill|year=1996|isbn=978-90-04-09300-3}}

=== Traditional Quranic commentaries (tafsir) ===
* {{Cite book |author=Al-Tabari |chapter=Jāmiʻ al-bayān ʻan taʼwīl al-qurʼān |orig-date=Cairo 1955–69 |others=transl. J. Cooper (ed.) |title=The Commentary on the Qurʼān |publisher=Oxford University Press |date=1987 |isbn=978-0-19-920142-6}}
* {{Cite book|last=Tabatabae|first=Sayyid Mohammad Hosayn|title=Tafsir al-Mizan|title-link=Tafsir al-Mizan}}

=== Topical studies ===
* {{Cite book|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-36470-6|last=McAuliffe|first=Jane Dammen|title=Qurʼānic Christians: an analysis of classical and modern exegesis|location=New York|year=1991|}}
* {{Cite book|last1=Siljander|first1=Mark D.|first2=John David|last2=Mann|title=A Deadly Misunderstanding: a Congressman's Quest to Bridge the Muslim-Christian Divide|location=New York|publisher=Harper One|year=2008|isbn=978-0-06-143828-8}}
* {{Cite book |last=Stowasser |first=Barbara Freyer |title=Women in the Qur'an, Traditions and Interpretation |publisher=Oxford University Press |edition=Reprint |date=1 June 1996 |isbn=978-0-19-511148-4}}

=== Literary criticism ===
* {{Cite book|edition=First|publisher=UK Islamic Academy|isbn=978-1-872531-65-6|author=M.M. Al-Azami|title=The History of The Qur'anic Text: From Revelation to Compilation: A Comparative Study with the Old and New Testaments|year=2003|}}
* {{Cite book |editor-last=Boullata |editor-first=Issa J |date=2000 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SdgaD-7C6TkC |title=Literary Structures of Religious Meaning in the Qur'ān |publisher=Curzon Press |isbn=0-7007-1256-9}}.
* {{Cite book |last=Luling |first=Gunter |date=2003 |title=A challenge to Islam for reformation: the rediscovery and reliable reconstruction of a comprehensive pre-Islamic Christian hymnal hidden in the Koran under earliest Islamic reinterpretations |location=New Delhi |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-1952-8}}
* {{Cite book |last=Luxenberg |first=Christoph |orig-date=2004 |title-link=The Syro-Aramaic Reading of the Koran |title=The Syro-Aramaic Reading of the Koran: a contribution to the decoding of the language of the Koran |location=Berlin |publisher=Verlag Hans Schiler |date=2007 |isbn=978-3-89930-088-8}}
* {{Cite book |last=Puin |first=Gerd R. |chapter=Observations on Early Quran Manuscripts in Sana'a |title=The Qurʾan as Text |editor-first=Stefan |editor-last=Wild |location=Leiden|publisher=E.J. Brill |date=1996 |pages=107–11}}
* {{Cite book |last=Wansbrough |first=John |title=Quranic Studies |publisher=Oxford University Press |date=1977}}

=== Encyclopedias ===
* {{Cite book|edition=First|publisher=Brill Academic Publishers|isbn=978-90-04-11465-4|veditors=McAuliffe JD, etal |title=Encyclopaedia of the Qur'an|date=2001 <!--2001-2006-->|title-link=Encyclopaedia of the Qur'an}}
* {{Cite book|edition=First|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-415-77529-8|veditors=Leaman O, etal |title=The Qur'an: An Encyclopedia|date=2005}}
* {{Cite book|edition=First|publisher=Center for Islamic Sciences|isbn=978-1-926620-00-8|veditors=Iqbal M, etal <!-- Muzaffar Iqbal --> |title=The Integrated Encyclopedia of the Qur'an|date=2013|url=http://www.iequran.com}}

=== Academic journals ===
* ''[[Religion:Journal of Qur'anic Studies|Journal of Qur'anic Studies]]'' ({{ISSN|1465-3591}}), published by the School of Oriental and African Studies
* ''[http://jqrs.qurancomplex.gov.sa/en/ Journal of Qur'anic Research and Studies]'', published by King Fahd Qur'an Printing Complex
{{refend}}

== External links ==

=== Reference material ===
* [https://www.bl.uk/sacred-texts/themes/islam The British Library: Discovering Sacred Texts – Islam]

=== Manuscripts ===
* [http://cudl.lib.cam.ac.uk/collections/islamic Several digitised Qurans in the Cambridge University Digital Library]
* [http://openn.library.upenn.edu/Data/0031/html/2017_232_1.html 2017-232-1 al-Qurʼān. / القرآن at OPenn]

=== Quran browsers and translation ===
* [http://quranmajeedpdf.com/ Quran Pdf]
* [http://al-quran.info/ Al-Quran.info]
* [https://quran-archive.org/ Quran Archive – Texts and Studies on the Quran]
* [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3atext%3a2002.02.0006 Quran text and translation] at [[Organization:Tufts University|Tufts University]]
* [http://tanzil.net/ Tanzil&nbsp;– Online Quran Navigator]
* [http://quran.com/ Quran.com]
* [http://www.yabiladi.com/coran/ Multilingual Quran (Arabic, English, French, German, Dutch, Spanish, Italian)]
* [https://www.uni-frankfurt.de/44967176/Koran-Transliteration.pdf Latin script transliterated Qur'an. Hans Zirker. University of Frankfurt.]


[[Category:Quran| ]]
[[Category:Islamic theology]]
[[Category:Islamic texts]]
[[Category:Religious texts]]
[[Category:Islamic terminology]]

{{Sourceattribution|Quran}}