Some Facts about the Qur'an

 

The Qur'an, whose name means "recitation" in Arabic, is the sacred text of Islam and the highest authority in both religious and legal matters.

 

Muslims believe the Qur'an to be a flawless record of the Angel Gabriel's revelations to Muhammad from 610 until his death in 632 AD. It is also believed to be a perfect copy of a heavenly Qur'an that has existed eternally (a small sect rejects this doctrine because it is seen as interfering with the sole divinity of God.)

 

The Qur'an's name is derived from the Gabriel's initial command to Muhammad to "Recite!" Recitation is a fundamental concept associated with the Qur'an. The first followers of the Prophet memorized his recitation in order to recite it to others, following an established Arabic method for preserving poetry.

 

The revelation was put in writing shortly after Muhammad's death to preserve the content from corruption, but it is still regarded as most authentic when recited aloud. Professional reciters of the Qur'an (qurra') are held in very high esteem, and have often been influential in deciding matters of doctrine or policy.

 

The Qur'an is roughly the length of the Christian New Testament. It is divided into 114 surahs (chapters) of widely varying length, which, with the exception of the opening surah (fatihah), are generally arranged from longest to shortest. As the shortest chapters seem to date from the earlier period of Muhammad's revelation, this arrangement results in a reverse chronological order.

 

Each surah has a heading, which usually incorporates the following elements:

A title (e.g. "The Bee," "The Cow") taken from a prominent word in the Surah, but one that does not usually represent its overall contents.

The basmalah, a formula prayer (e.g. "In the name of God the Merciful, the Compassionate")

An indication as to whether it was received at Mecca or Medina

The number of verses in the Surah

In 29 of the Surahs, fawatih, or "detached letters" of unclear significance. They may be abbreviations, initials of owners of early manuscripts, or have some esoteric meaning.

The verses (ayat, "signs") also vary in length, with the shortest usually found in the earlier surahs. In these verses, the form closely resembles the rhymed prose of the seers (kahins) of Muhammad's time. The later verses are more detailed and less poetic.

 

Most of the Qur'an is written in the first person plural, with God as the speaker. When Muhammad himself speaks, his words are introduced by "Say," to clarify he is being commanded by Allah to speak.

 

The vocabulary of the Qur'an is overwhelmingly Arabic, but some terms are borrowed from Hebrew and Syriac, cultures with which Muhammad was familiar. Such words include injil (gospel), taurat (law, Torah), Iblis (Devil), amana (to believe) and salat (prayer).

 

References

Helmer Ringgren, "Qur'an." Encyclopaedia Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica Premium Service. 2004.

"Qur'an." Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of World Religions.

"Qur'an." The Oxford Concise Dictionary of World Religions.

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