![Der Koran by Friedrich Eberhard Boysen 1775](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c9/Der_Koran_by_Friedrich_Eberhard_Boysen_1775.jpg)
Translations of the Qurʻan are considered interpretations of the scripture of
Islam in languages other than
Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...
. The
Qurʻan was originally written in the Arabic language and has been translated into most major African, Asian and European languages.
Islamic theology
Translation of the Qurʻan from Arabic into other languages has always been a difficult issue in Islamic theology. Because Muslims revere the Qurʻan as miraculous and inimitable (''iʻjaz al-Qurʻan''), they argue that the Qurʻanic text should not be isolated from its true language or written form, at least not without keeping the Arabic text with it. Furthermore, an Arabic word, like a
Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
or
Aramaic
The Aramaic languages, short Aramaic ( syc, ܐܪܡܝܐ, Arāmāyā; oar, 𐤀𐤓𐤌𐤉𐤀; arc, 𐡀𐡓𐡌𐡉𐡀; tmr, אֲרָמִית), are a language family containing many varieties (languages and dialects) that originated in ...
word, may have a
range of meanings depending on the context – a feature present in all
Semitic languages
The Semitic languages are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They are spoken by more than 330 million people across much of West Asia, the Horn of Africa, and latterly North Africa, Malta, West Africa, Chad, and in large immigra ...
, when compared to English, Latin, and
Romance languages
The Romance languages, sometimes referred to as Latin languages or Neo-Latin languages, are the various modern languages that evolved from Vulgar Latin. They are the only extant subgroup of the Italic languages in the Indo-European language ...
– making an accurate translation even more difficult.
According to Islamic theology, the Qurʻan is a
revelation
In religion and theology, revelation is the revealing or disclosing of some form of truth or knowledge through communication with a deity or other supernatural entity or entities.
Background
Inspiration – such as that bestowed by God on the ...
very specifically in Arabic, and so it should only be recited in
Quranic Arabic
Classical Arabic ( ar, links=no, ٱلْعَرَبِيَّةُ ٱلْفُصْحَىٰ, al-ʿarabīyah al-fuṣḥā) or Quranic Arabic is the standardized literary form of Arabic used from the 7th century and throughout the Middle Ages, most notab ...
. Translations into other languages are necessarily the work of humans and so, according to Muslims, no longer possess the uniquely sacred character of the Arabic original. Since these translations necessarily subtly change the meaning, they are often called "interpretations"
or "translation
of the meanings" (with "meanings" being ambiguous between the meanings of the various passages and the multiple possible meanings with which each word taken in isolation can be associated, and with the latter connotation amounting to an acknowledgement that the so-called translation is but one possible interpretation and is not claimed to be the full equivalent of the original). For instance,
Pickthall called his translation ''
The Meaning of the Glorious Koran'' rather than simply ''The Koran''.
The task of translation of the Qurʻan is not an easy one; some native Arab speakers will confirm that some Qurʻanic passages are difficult to understand even in the original Arabic script. A part of this is the innate difficulty of any translation; in Arabic, as in other languages, a single word can have a variety of meanings.
There is always an element of human judgement involved in understanding and translating a text. This factor is made more complex by the fact that the usage of words has changed a great deal between classical and modern Arabic. As a result, even Qurʻanic verses which seem perfectly clear to native Arab speakers accustomed to modern vocabulary and usage may not represent the original meaning of the verse.
The original meaning of a Qurʻanic passage will also be dependent on the historical circumstances of the prophet
Muhammad
Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the mo ...
's life and the early community in which it originated. Investigating that context usually requires a detailed knowledge of
hadith
Ḥadīth ( or ; ar, حديث, , , , , , , literally "talk" or "discourse") or Athar ( ar, أثر, , literally "remnant"/"effect") refers to what the majority of Muslims believe to be a record of the words, actions, and the silent approva ...
and
sirah, which are themselves vast and complex texts. This introduces an additional element of uncertainty that cannot be eliminated by any linguistic rules of translation.
History
The first translation of the Qurʻan was performed by
Salman the Persian
Salman the Persian or Salmān al-Fārsī ( ar, سَلْمَان ٱلْفَارِسِيّ), born Rūzbeh Khoshnūdān ( fa, ), was a Persian companion (Sahaba) of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. He was raised as a Zoroastrian in Sasanian Persia, ...
, who translated
surah
A ''surah'' (; ar, سورة, sūrah, , ), is the equivalent of "chapter" in the Qur'an. There are 114 ''surahs'' in the Quran, each divided into '' ayats'' (verses). The chapters or ''surahs'' are of unequal length; the shortest surah (''Al-Ka ...
al-Fatiha into the
Middle Persian
Middle Persian or Pahlavi, also known by its endonym Pārsīk or Pārsīg () in its later form, is a Western Middle Iranian language which became the literary language of the Sasanian Empire. For some time after the Sasanian collapse, Middle ...
in the early seventh century. According to Islamic tradition contained in the
hadith
Ḥadīth ( or ; ar, حديث, , , , , , , literally "talk" or "discourse") or Athar ( ar, أثر, , literally "remnant"/"effect") refers to what the majority of Muslims believe to be a record of the words, actions, and the silent approva ...
, the
Negus
Negus (Negeuce, Negoose) ( gez, ንጉሥ, ' ; cf. ti, ነጋሲ ' ) is a title in the Ethiopian Semitic languages. It denotes a monarch, of the
Ethiopian Empire
The Ethiopian Empire (), also formerly known by the exonym Abyssinia, or just simply known as Ethiopia (; Amharic and Tigrinya: ኢትዮጵያ , , Oromo: Itoophiyaa, Somali: Itoobiya, Afar: ''Itiyoophiyaa''), was an empire that histori ...
and the
Byzantine Emperor
This is a list of the Byzantine emperors from the foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD, which marks the conventional start of the Byzantine Empire, Eastern Roman Empire, to Fall of Constantinople, its fall to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. On ...
Heraclius received letters from Muhammad containing verses from the Qurʻan. However, during Muhammad's lifetime, no passage from the Qurʻan was ever translated into these languages nor any other.
The second known translation was into Greek and was used by
Nicetas Byzantius, a scholar from
Constantinople
la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه
, alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...
, in his 'Refutation of Qurʻan' written between 855 and 870. However, we know nothing about who and for what purpose had made this translation. It is that it was a complete translation.
The first fully attested complete translations of the Qurʻan were done between the 10th and 12th centuries into
Classical Persian
Persian (), also known by its endonym Farsi (, ', ), is a Western Iranian language belonging to the Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian subdivision of the Indo-European languages. Persian is a pluricentric language predominantly spoken and u ...
. The
Samanid emperor,
Mansur I (961–976), ordered a group of scholars from
Khorasan to translate the ''
Tafsir al-Tabari
''Jāmiʿ al-bayān ʿan taʾwīl āy al-Qurʾān'' (, also written with ''fī'' in place of ''ʿan''), popularly ''Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī'' ( ar, تفسير الطبري), is a Sunni ''tafsir'' by the Persian scholar Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari (8 ...
'', originally in Arabic, into Persian. Later in the 11th century, one of the students of
Khwaja Abdullah Ansari
Abu Ismaïl Abdullah al-Harawi al-Ansari or Abdullah Ansari of Herat (1006–1088) ( fa, خواجه عبدالله انصاری) also known as ''Pir-i Herat'' () "Sage of Herat", was a Muslim Sufi saint who lived in the 11th century in Herat (m ...
wrote a complete
tafsir
Tafsir ( ar, تفسير, tafsīr ) refers to exegesis, usually of the Quran. An author of a ''tafsir'' is a ' ( ar, مُفسّر; plural: ar, مفسّرون, mufassirūn). A Quranic ''tafsir'' attempts to provide elucidation, explanation, in ...
of the Qurʻan in Persian. In the 12th century,
Najm al-Din 'Umar al-Nasafi
Najm ad-Dīn Abū Ḥafṣ 'Umar ibn Muḥammad an-Nasafī ( ar, نجم الدين أبو حفص عمر بن محمد النسفي; 1067–1142) was a Muslim jurist, theologian, mufassir, muhaddith and historian. A Persian scholar born in pr ...
translated the Qurʻan into Persian. The manuscripts of all three books have survived and have been published several times.
In 1936, translations in 102 languages were known.
European languages
Latin
Robertus Ketenensis produced the first Latin translation of the Qurʻan in 1143.
His version was entitled ''
Lex Mahumet pseudoprophete
''Lex Mahumet pseudoprophete'' ( en, Law of Muhammad the pseudo-prophet/false prophet) is the translation of the Qur'an into Medieval Latin by Robert of Ketton ( 1110 – 1160 AD). It is the earliest translation of the Qur'an into a Western langua ...
'' ("The law of
Mahomet the false prophet"). The translation was made at the behest of
Peter the Venerable,
abbot of Cluny
The Abbot of Cluny was the head of the powerful monastery of the Abbey of Cluny in medieval France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, o ...
, and currently exists in the Bibliothèque de l'Arsenal in Paris. According to modern scholars, the translation tended to "exaggerate harmless text to give it a nasty or licentious sting" and preferred improbable and unpleasant meanings over likely and decent ones. Ketenensis' work was republished in 1543 in three editions by
Theodore Bibliander at
Basel
, french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese
, neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...
along with Cluni corpus and other Christian propaganda. All editions contained a preface by
Martin Luther
Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation and the namesake of Lutherani ...
. Many later European "translations" of the Qurʻan merely translated Ketenensis' Latin version into their own language, as opposed to translating the Qurʻan directly from Arabic. As a result, early European translations of the Qurʻan were erroneous and distorted.
In the early thirteenth century,
Mark of Toledo Mark of Toledo ( fl. 1193-1216) was a Spanish physician and a canon of Toledo. Biography
He produced one of the earliest translations of the Qur'an into Latin while working at the Toledo School of Translators. He also translated Hippocrates' ''De a ...
made another, more literal, translation into Latin, which survives in several manuscripts. In the fifteenth century, Juan of Segovia produced another translation in collaboration with the Mudejar writer, Isa of Segovia. Only the prologue survives. In the sixteenth century, Juan Gabriel Terrolensis aided Cardenal Eguida da Viterbo in another translation into Latin. In the early seventeenth century, another translation was made, attributed to Cyril Lucaris.
Louis Maracci
Ludovico Marracci (6 October 1612 – 5 February 1700), also known by Luigi Marracci, was an Italians, Italian Oriental studies, Oriental scholar and professor of Arabic in the Sapienza University of Rome, College of Wisdom at Rome.
He is chiefly ...
(1612–1700), a teacher of Arabic at the
Sapienza University of Rome
The Sapienza University of Rome ( it, Sapienza – Università di Roma), also called simply Sapienza or the University of Rome, and formally the Università degli Studi di Roma "La Sapienza", is a public research university located in Rome, Ita ...
and confessor to
Pope Innocent XI, issued a second Latin translation in 1698 in
Padua
Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...
. His edition contains the Qurʻan's Arabic text with a Latin translation, annotations to further understanding and – embued by the time's spirit of controversy – an essay titled "Refutation of the Qurʻan", where Marracci disproves Islam from the then Catholic point of view. Despite the ''Refutation''s anti-Islamic tendency, Marracci's translation is accurate, suitably commented, and quotes many Islamic sources.
Marracci's translation too became the source of other European translations (one in France by Savory, and one in German by Nerreter). These later translations were quite inauthentic, and one even claimed to be published in
Mecca
Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow ...
in 1165 AH.
Modern languages
The first translation in a modern European language was in
Castilian Spanish
In English, Castilian Spanish can mean the variety of Peninsular Spanish spoken in northern and central Spain, the standard form of Spanish, or Spanish from Spain in general. In Spanish, the term (Castilian) can either refer to the Spanish langu ...
or
Aragonese by the convert Juan Andrés (or so he claims in his Confusión o Confutación de la secta mahomética y del alcorán) but this translation is lost. A few dozen Qurʻan verses into Castilian are found within the Confusión itself. There were lost translations in
Catalan
Catalan may refer to:
Catalonia
From, or related to Catalonia:
* Catalan language, a Romance language
* Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia
Places
* 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...
, one of them by Francesc Pons Saclota in 1382, the other appeared in
Perpignan in 1384. Another Romance translation was made into Italian, 1547 by Andrea Arrivabene, derived from Ketenensis'. The Italian translation was used to derive the first German translation
Salomon Schweigger
Salomon Schweigger (also spelled Solomon Schweiger) (30 March 1551 – 21 June 1622) was a German Lutheran theologian, minister, anthropologist and orientalist of the 16th century. He provided a valuable insight during his travels in the B ...
in 1616 in
Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
, which in turn was used to derive the first Dutch translation in 1641.
The first French translation came out in 1647, and again in 1775, issued by
André du Ryer
André Du Ryer, Lord of La Garde-Malezair (b. Marcigny, Bourgogne, c. 1580; d. 1660 or 1672) was a French orientalist who produced the third western translation of the Qur'an.
Biography
Du Ryer was diplomatic envoy to Constantinople and Frenc ...
. The Du Ryer translation also fathered many re-translations, most notably an English version by
Alexander Ross in 1649. Ross' version was used to derive several others: a Dutch version by Glazemaker, a German version by Lange.
Adyghe
*The first
Adyghe translation of the Quran was done by
Ishak Mashbash. A
Kabardian edition was also published. It was translated from Russian.
Modern Greek
The first Modern Greek translation was done by Gerasimos Pentakis in 1886, after receiving royal approval from
George I of Greece
George I ( Greek: Γεώργιος Α΄, ''Geórgios I''; 24 December 1845 – 18 March 1913) was King of Greece from 30 March 1863 until his assassination in 1913.
Originally a Danish prince, he was born in Copenhagen, and seemed destined for ...
. A second edition was published in 1928. Another three were published in 1958, 1980 and 2002, the most recent was done from Persa Koumoutsi. There is also an online translation. In Greek, there is also the 9th century translation of
Nicetas Byzantios referred earlier in the article.
French
![Alcoran de Mahomet 1647](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6d/Alcoran_de_Mahomet_1647.jpg)
L'Alcoran de Mahomet / translaté d'Arabe François par le Sieur Du Ryer, Sieur de la Garde Malezair., 1647, 1649, 1672, 1683, 1719, 1734, 1770, 1775, by André Du Ryer, was the first French translation. This was followed two centuries later in Paris by the 1840 translation by
Kasimirski who was an interpreter for the French Persian legation. Then in the mid-twentieth century, a new translation was done by
Régis Blachère
Régis Blachère (30 June 1900 – 7 August 1973) was a French orientalist and translator of the Qur'an.
Bibliography
*1975: ''Analecta'', Institut français de Damas, Damas, 1975.
*2002: ''Le Coran'', Presses universitaires de France, (Que s ...
a French Orientalist followed a few years later in 1959 by the first translation by a Muslim into the French Language from the original Arabic. This work of
Muhammad Hamidullah
Muhammad Hamidullah ( ur, محمد حمیداللہ, translit=Muḥammad Ḥamīdullāh; 19 February 1908 – 17 December 2002) was a scholar of hadiths (''muhaddith)'' and Islamic law ( faqih) and a prolific academic author. A polymath with com ...
continues to be reprinted and published in Paris and Lebanon as it is regarded as the most linguistically accurate of all translations although critics may complain there is some loss of the spirit of the Arabic original.
Russian
In 1716,
Pyotr Postinkov published the first translation of the Quran in Russian based in the french translation of André du Ryer.
Gordiy Sablukov published the first Russian translation of the Quran from the Arabic original text in 1873. Nearly 20 translations in Russian have been published.
Spanish
There are four complete translations of the Qurʻan in modern Spanish that are commonly available.
* Julio Cortes translation 'El Coran' is widely available in North America, being published by New York-based ''Tahrike Tarsile Qurʻan'' publishing house.
* Ahmed Abboud and Rafael Castellanos, two converts to Islam of Argentine origin, published 'El Sagrado Coran' (El Nilo, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 1953).
* Kamel Mustafa Hallak fine deluxe hardback print 'El Coran Sagrado' is printed by Maryland-based ''Amana Publications''.
* Abdel Ghani Melara Navio a Spaniard who converted to Islam in 1979, his 'Traduccion-Comentario Del Noble Coran' was originally published by ''Darussalam Publications'', Riyadh, in December 1997. The ''King Fahd Printing Complex'' has its own version of this translation, with editing by Omar Kaddoura and Isa Amer Quevedo.
English
![Lifeofmahomet](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/Lifeofmahomet.jpg)
The earliest known translation of the Qurʻan in any European language was the Latin works by
Robert of Ketton
Robert of Ketton, known in Latin as Rodbertus Ketenensis ( 1141–1157), was an English astronomer, translator, priest and diplomat active in Spain. He translated several works of Arabic into Latin, including the first translation of the Quran int ...
at the behest of the
Abbot of Cluny
The Abbot of Cluny was the head of the powerful monastery of the Abbey of Cluny in medieval France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, o ...
in c. 1143. This translation remained the only one until 1649 when the first English language translation was done by
Alexander Ross, chaplain to King Charles I, who translated from a French work ''L'Alcoran de Mahomet'' by du Ryer. In 1734,
George Sale produced the first translation of the Qurʻan direct from Arabic into English but reflecting his missionary stance. Since then, there have been English translations by the clergyman
John Medows Rodwell
John Medows Rodwell (1808–1900) was a friend of Charles Darwin while both matriculated at Cambridge. He became an English clergyman of the Church of England and an Islamic studies scholar. He served as Rector of St.Peter's, Saffron Hill, Londo ...
in 1861, and
Edward Henry Palmer
Edward Henry Palmer (7 August 184010 August 1882), known as E. H. Palmer, was an English orientalist and explorer.
Biography
Youth and education
Palmer was born in Green Street, Cambridge the son of a private schoolmaster. He was orphaned a ...
in 1880, both showing in their works several mistakes of mistranslation and misinterpretation, which brings into question their primary aim. These were followed by
Richard Bell in 1937 and
Arthur John Arberry
Arthur John Arberry (12 May 1905, in Portsmouth – 2 October 1969, in Cambridge) FBA was a British scholar of Arabic literature, Persian studies, and Islamic studies. He was educated at Portsmouth Grammar School and Pembroke College, Cambri ...
in the 1950s.
''The Qurʻan'' (1910) by Dr.
Mirza Abul Fazl
Mirza Abul Fazl ( bn, মির্জা আবুল ফজল; 1865 - 1956), was a native of East Bengal, now independent Bangladesh, later moved to Allahabad, India.
Life
Mirza was the great grandson of Haji Ali Shirazi. His genealogical tre ...
(1865–1956), a native of
East Bengal
ur,
, common_name = East Bengal
, status = Province of the Dominion of Pakistan
, p1 = Bengal Presidency
, flag_p1 = Flag of British Bengal.svg
, s1 = East ...
(now
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...
), later moved to
Allahabad, India. He was the first Muslim to present a translation of the Qurʻan into English along with the original Arabic text. Among the contemporary Muslim scholars, Dr. Abul Fazl was a pioneer who took interest in the study of the chronological order of the Qurʻan and drew the attention of Muslim scholars to its importance.
With the increasing population of English-speaking Muslims around the start of the 20th century, three Muslim translations of the Qurʻan into English made their first appearance. The first was
Muhammad Ali's 1917 translation, which is composed from an
Ahmadiyya
Ahmadiyya (, ), officially the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community or the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama'at (AMJ, ar, الجماعة الإسلامية الأحمدية, al-Jamāʿah al-Islāmīyah al-Aḥmadīyah; ur, , translit=Jamā'at Aḥmadiyyah Musl ...
perspective, with some small parts being rejected as unorthodox by the vast majority of Muslims. This was followed in 1930 by the English convert to Islam
Marmaduke Pickthall
Muhammad Marmaduke Pickthall (born Marmaduke William Pickthall; 7 April 187519 May 1936) was an English Islamic scholar noted for his 1930 English translation of the Quran, called ''The Meaning of the Glorious Koran''. His translation of the Qur ...
's more literalist translation.
Soon thereafter in 1934,
Abdullah Yusuf Ali
Abdullah Yusuf Ali, CBE, MA, LL.M, FRSA, FRSL (; ur, عبداللہ یوسف علی; 14 April 1872 – 10 December 1953) was an Indian-British barrister who wrote a number of books about Islam including an exegesis of the Qur'an. A sup ...
, published his translation, featuring copious explanatory annotation – over 6000 notes, generally being around 95% of the text on a given page, to supplement the main text of the translation. This translation has gone through over 30 printings by several different publishing houses, and is one of the most popular amongst English-speaking Muslims, alongside the Pickthall and Saudi-sponsored Hilali-Khan translations.
With few new English translations over the 1950–1980 period, these three Muslim translations were to flourish and cement reputations that were to ensure their survival into the 21st century, finding favor among readers often in newly revised updated editions. Orientalist Arthur Arberry's 1955 translation and native
Iraqi Jew
The history of the Jews in Iraq ( he, יְהוּדִים בָּבְלִים, ', ; ar, اليهود العراقيون, ) is documented from the time of the Babylonian captivity c. 586 BC. Iraqi Jews constitute one of the world's oldest and mos ...
N. J. Dawood's unorthodox translation in 1956 were to be the only major works to appear in the post-war period. A. J. Arberry's ''
The Koran Interpreted'' remains the scholarly standard for English translations, and is widely used by academics.
The English translation of
Kanzul Iman is called ''The Treasure of Faith'', which is translated by Farid Ul Haq. It is in simple, easy-to-understand modern-day English. Explanations are given in brackets to avoid ambiguity, provide better understanding and references to similar verses elsewhere.
Dr. Syed Abdul Latif's translation published in 1967, is regarded highly by some. He was a professor of English at
Osmania University
Osmania University is a collegiate university, collegiate Public university, public State university (India), state university located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. Mir Osman Ali Khan, the 7th Nizam of Hyderabad in 1918 , He released a farma ...
, Hyderabad. It was nevertheless short-lived due to criticism of his foregoing accuracy for the price of fluency.
''The Message of the Qurʻan: Presented in Perspective'' (1974) was published by
Hashim Amir Ali
Hashim Amir Ali (Urdu: هاشم أمير على), (8 May 1903 - 1987), was an Islamic scholar and author.
Life
In 1938 Ali came under the influence of Mirza Abul Fazl, who aroused his interest in and reverence for the Qur'an. He was a scholar ...
. He translated the Qurʻan into English and arranged it according to chronological order. Dr. Hashim Amir-Ali (1903-c. 1987) was a native of Salar Jung,
Hyderabad State in the
Deccan Plateau
The large Deccan Plateau in southern India is located between the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats, and is loosely defined as the peninsular region between these ranges that is south of the Narmada river. To the north, it is bounded by th ...
. In 1938, he came under the influence of Dr. Abul Fazl and took a deep interest in the study of the Qurʻan, and was aware of the significance of the chronological order of the passages contained in it.
Another Jewish convert to Islam,
Muhammad Asad
Muhammad Asad, ( ar, محمد أسد , ur, , born Leopold Weiss; 2 July 1900 – 20 February 1992) was an Austro-Hungarian-born Pakistani journalist, traveler, writer, linguist, political theorist and diplomat. He was a Jew but, later conve ...
's monumental work ''
The Message of The Qur'an
''The Message of The Qur'an'' is an English translation and interpretation of the 1924 Cairo edition of the Qur'an by Muhammad Asad, an Austrian Jew who converted to Islam. It is considered one of the most influential Quranic translations of the ...
'' made its appearance for the first time in 1980.
Professor
Ahmed Ali's ''Al-Qurʻan: A Contemporary Translation'' (Akrash Publishing, Karachi, 1984, Reprinted by Oxford University Press, Delhi, 1987;
Princeton University Press
Princeton University Press is an independent publisher with close connections to Princeton University. Its mission is to disseminate scholarship within academia and society at large.
The press was founded by Whitney Darrow, with the financia ...
, New Jersey, 1988, with 9th reprinting 2001).
Fazlur Rahman Malik
Fazlur Rahman Malik ( ur, ; September 21, 1919 – July 26, 1988), commonly known as Fazlur Rahman, was a modernist scholar and Islamic philosopher from today's Pakistan. Fazlur Rahman is renowned as a prominent liberal reformer of Islam, who ...
of the University of Chicago writes, "It brings out the original rhythms of the Qurʻanic language and the cadences. It also departs from traditional translations in that it gives more refined and differentiated shades of important concepts". According to
Francis Edward Peters Francis Edward Peters, SJ (June 23, 1927 – April 30, 2020), who generally published as F. E. Peters, was Professor Emeritus of History, Religion and Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies at New York University (NYU). He died on April 30, 2020 in hosp ...
of New York University, "Ahmed Ali's work is clear, direct, and elegant – a combination of stylistic virtues seldom found in translations of the Qurʻan. His is the best I have read".
At the cusp of the 1980s, the
1973 oil crisis, the
Iranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution ( fa, انقلاب ایران, Enqelâb-e Irân, ), also known as the Islamic Revolution ( fa, انقلاب اسلامی, Enqelâb-e Eslâmī), was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dyna ...
, the
Nation of Islam and a new wave of cold-war generated Muslim immigrants to Europe and North America brought Islam squarely into the public limelight for the first time in Western Europe and North America. This resulted in a wave of translations as Western publishers tried to capitalize on the new demand for English translations of the Qurʻan.
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...
and
Penguin Books
Penguin Books is a British publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers The Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the following year.[T. B. Irving
Thomas Ballantyne Irving (1914–2002), also known as Al-Hajj Ta'lim Ali Abu Nasr, was a Canadian- American Muslim author, professor, activist and scholar who produced the first American English translation of the Qur'an.
Early life and educatio ...]
's 'modern English' translation (1985) was a major Muslim effort during that time.
''Qurʻan: The Final Testament'', Islamic Productions, Tucson, Arizona, (1989) was published by
Rashad Khalifa
Rashad Khalifa ( ar, رشاد خليفة; November 19, 1935 – January 31, 1990) was an Egyptian-American biochemist, closely associated with the United Submitters International (USI), an organization which promotes the practice and study of Q ...
(; 19 November 1935 – 31 January 1990) Khalifa wrote that he was a
messenger of God and that the archangel Gabriel 'most assertively' told him that chapter 36, verse 3, of the Qurʻan, 'specifically' referred to him. He is referred to as God's Messenger of the Covenant by his followers. He wrote that the Qurʻan contains a mathematical structure based on the number 19. He made the controversial claim that the last two verses of chapter nine in the Qurʻan were not canonical, telling his followers to reject them. He reasoned that the verses disrupted an otherwise flawless nineteen-based pattern and were sacrilegious since they appeared to endorse worship of Muhammad. Khalifa's research received little attention in the West. In 1980, Martin Gardner mentioned it in ''
Scientific American
''Scientific American'', informally abbreviated ''SciAm'' or sometimes ''SA'', is an American popular science magazine. Many famous scientists, including Albert Einstein and Nikola Tesla, have contributed articles to it. In print since 1845, it ...
''. Gardner later wrote a more extensive and critical review of Khalifa and his work.
The arrival of the 1990s ushered in the phenomenon of an extensive English-speaking Muslim population well-settled in Western Europe and North America. As a result, several major Muslim translations emerged to meet the ensuing demand. One of them was published in 1990, and it is by the first woman to translate the Qurʻan into English, Amatul Rahman Omar, together with her husband, Abdul Mannan Omar. In 1991 appeared an English translation under the title: ''The Clarion Call Of The Eternal Qur-aan'', by Muhammad Khalilur Rahman (b. 1906–1988),
Dhaka
Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city i ...
, Bangladesh. He was the eldest son of Shamsul Ulama Moulana Muhammad Ishaque of Burdwan, West Bengal, India, – a former lecturer of Dhaka University.
In 1996 the Saudi government financed a new translation "the
Hilali-Khan Qurʻan" which was distributed free worldwide by the Saudi government. It has been criticized for being in line with their particular interpretation.
The ''
Saheeh International
The Saheeh International translation is an English-language translation of the Quran that has been used by Islam's most conservative adherents. Published by the Publishing House (dar), ''dar Abul Qasim'', Saudi Arabia, it is one of the world's mos ...
'' Qurʻan translation was published in 1997 in Sa'udi Arabia by three women converts. It remains extremely popular.
In 1999, a fresh translation of the Qurʻan into English entitled ''The Noble Qurʻan – A New Rendering of its Meaning in English'' by Abdalhaqq and the American
Aisha Bewley
Aisha Abdurrahman Bewley (born 1948) is a convert to Islam and author or translator of many books on Islam. The WorldCat union catalog lists her as author or translator for "73 works in 172 publications in 3 languages and 855 library holdings". ...
was published by Bookwork, with revised editions being published in 2005 and 2011.
In 2000, ''
The Majestic Qur'an: An English Rendition of Its Meanings'' was published by a committee of four Turkish
Sunni scholars who have divided the work as follows:
Nureddin Uzunoğlu translated
Surahs (chapters) 1 to 8; Tevfik Rüştü Topuzoğlu: 9 to 20;
Ali Özek: 21 to 39; Mehmet Maksutoğlu: 40 to 114. The translation comes with an extensive commentary and annotations in modern
standard English, makes it easier to understand than the older translations.
''The Qurʻan in Persian and English'' (Bilingual Edition, 2001) features an English translation by the Iranian poet and author
Tahereh Saffarzadeh. This was the third translation of the Qurʻan into English by a woman, after Amatul Rahman Omar, and Aisha Bewley – and the first bilingual translation of the Qurʻan.
In 2003, the English translation of the 8-volume ''
Ma'ariful Qur'an
''Ma'ariful Qur'an'' ( ur, ) is an eight-volume ''tafsir'' (exegesis) of the Quran written by Islamic scholar Mufti Muhammad Shafi (1897–1976). Originally written in Urdu, it is the most prominent work of its author.
Background
About the ...
'' was completed and the translation of the Qurʻan used for it was newly done by
Muhammad Taqi Usmani
Muhammad Taqi Usmani (born 5 October 1943) is a Pakistani Islamic scholar and former judge who is the current president of the Wifaq ul Madaris Al-Arabia and the vice president and Hadith professor of the Darul Uloom Karachi. An intellectual ...
in collaboration with his brother Wali Raazi Usmani and his teachers, Professors Hasan Askari and Muhammad Shameem.
In 2004, a new translation of the Qurʻan by
Muhammad Abdel-Haleem
Muhammad A. S. Abdel Haleem (, born 1930), , is an Egyptian Islamic studies scholar and the King Fahd Professor of Islamic Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London (SOAS)SOAS StaffMuhammad Abdel Haleem/ref> i ...
was also published, with revised editions being published in 2005 and 2008.
In 2006, ''
The Qur'an with Annotated Interpretation in Modern English'' by
Ali Ünal was published. The work is more like a simplified
tafsir
Tafsir ( ar, تفسير, tafsīr ) refers to exegesis, usually of the Quran. An author of a ''tafsir'' is a ' ( ar, مُفسّر; plural: ar, مفسّرون, mufassirūn). A Quranic ''tafsir'' attempts to provide elucidation, explanation, in ...
(Qur'anic exegesis) than a translation. He uses
modern English, and adds short notes between brackets amidst the translation when needed.
In 2007, ''Qurʻan: a Reformist Translation'' by
Edip Yüksel
Edip Yüksel (born December 20, 1957 in Güroymak, Turkey) is an American-Kurdish activist and prominent figure in the Quranism movement. He is a colleague and friend of the late Rashad Khalifa.
Biography
Yüksel comes from a Kurdish family ...
, Layth Saleh al-Shaiban, and Martha Schulte-Nafeh, was published.
In 2007, ''The Meanings of the Noble Qurʻan with Explanatory Notes'' by
Muhammad Taqi Usmani
Muhammad Taqi Usmani (born 5 October 1943) is a Pakistani Islamic scholar and former judge who is the current president of the Wifaq ul Madaris Al-Arabia and the vice president and Hadith professor of the Darul Uloom Karachi. An intellectual ...
was published. It has been published in 2 volumes at first and later, in a single volume. He also translated the Qurʻan in simple Urdu, making him a translator of the Qurʻan in dual languages.
In 2007 ''The Sublime Qurʻan'' appeared by
Laleh Bakhtiar
Laleh Mehree Bakhtiar (born Mary Nell Bakhtiar; July 29, 1938 – October 18, 2020) was an Iranian-American Islamic and Sufi scholar, author, translator, and clinical psychologist.
Bakhtiar was the first American woman to translate the Quran in ...
; it is the second translation of the Qurʻan by an American woman.
In 2009,
Wahiduddin Khan
Wahiduddin Khan (1 January 1925 – 21 April 2021), known with the honorific "Maulana", was an Indian Islamic scholar and peace activist and author known for having written a commentary on the Quran and having translated it into contemporary E ...
translated the Qurʻan in English, which was published by Goodword Books entitled ''The Qurʻan: Translation and Commentary with Parallel Arabic Text''. This translation is considered as the easiest to understand due to simple and modern English. The pocket-size version of this translation with only English text is widely distributed as part of dawah work.
A rhymed verse edition of the entire Qurʻan rendered in English by Thomas McElwain in 2010 includes rhymed commentary under the hardback title ''The Beloved and I, Volume Five'', and the paperback title ''The Beloved and I: Contemplations on the Qurʻan''.
In 2015,
Mustafa Khattab
Mustafa Khattab is a Canadian–Egyptian Muslim scholar, author, youth mentor, public speaker, imam, and university chaplain. He holds a professional ijâzah in the Ḥafṣ style of recitation. He is known for his translation of the Quran in ...
of Al-Azhar University completed ''The Clear Qurʻan: A Thematic English Translation'', after three years of collaboration with a team of scholars, editors, and proof-readers. Noted for its clarity, accuracy, and flow, this work is believed to be the first English translation done in Canada.
A Turkish Scholar Hakkı Yılmaz worked on the Qurʻan through the root meanings of the Arabic words and published a study called ''Tebyin-ül Qurʻan'', and he also published a Division by Division Interpretation in the Order of Revelation in Turkish. His work was translated into English.
In 2018,
Musharraf Hussain released ''The Majestic Quran: A Plain English Translation'', a reader-friendly presentation of the translation of the Qurʻan aiming to help readers understand the topic being read, and learn the moving and transformative message of the Qurʻan. There are 1500 sections with headings. Approved by
Dar al-Ifta' al-Misriyya
Egypt's Dar al-Ifta ( ar, دار الإفتاء المصرية ) is an Egypt, Egyptian Islamic advisory, justiciary and governmental body established as a centre for Islam and Islamic legal research in Egypt in 1313 Hijri year, AH / 1895 Common ...
(Egyptian institute of Fatwas).
In 2021, Talal Itani released ''Quran in English: Super-easy to read. For ages 9 to 99.'' A Quran translation for children and adults.
In 2022
QuranSage English Translation & Interpretation
Asian languages
Sindhi
Sindhi was the first language to translate the Quran into Arabic language later also Sindhi script was changed to Arabic Script Akhund Azaz Allah Muttalawi (Urdu: آخوند أعزاز الله) (Sindhi: مولانا اعزاز اللہ )was a Muslim theologian from Sindh. Akhund Azaz is considered to be the first person who translated the Qurʻan from Arabic to Sindhi. According to Sindhi tradition the first translation was made by in 270 AH / 883 CE by an Arab scholar. later it was translated into the Sindhi language by Imam Abul Hassan bin Mohammad Sadiq Al-Sindhi Al-Ma
Urdu
Shah Abdul Qadir, son of
Shah Abdul Aziz
Shah Abdul Aziz Muhaddith Dehlavi (11 October 1746 – 5 June 1824; ) was Muhaddith (scholar of Hadith) and Mujadid Sufi and reformer from India. He was of the Naqshbandi Sufi order which emerged from a tradition of violent backlash against the ...
Dehlawi, produced the first Urdu translation in 1826.
A wide accepted translation of Quran was done by Imam Ahmed Raza Khan in 1911 named as Kanzul Iman. One of the authentic translations of the Qurʻan in
was done by
Abul A'la Maududi
Abul A'la al-Maududi ( ur, , translit=Abū al-Aʿlā al-Mawdūdī; – ) was an Islamic scholar, Islamist ideologue, Muslim philosopher, jurist, historian, journalist, activist and scholar active in British India and later, following the part ...
and was named
Tafhimu'l-Qur'an. Molana Ashiq Elahi Merathi also translated the Qurʻan in Urdu.
Tafseer e Merathi is a renowned translation of Qurʻan along with tarsier and Shan e Nazool in Urdu by
Ashiq Ilahi Bulandshahri, In 1961 ''Mafhoom-ul-Quran'' was written by
Ghulam Ahmed Perwez. In 1985,
Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
Wahiduddin Khan (1 January 1925 – 21 April 2021), known with the honorific "Maulana", was an Indian Islamic scholar and peace activist and author known for having written a commentary on the Quran and having translated it into contemporary ...
wrote the Urdu commentary titled
Tazkirul Quran. Irfan-ul-Qurʻan is an Urdu translation by
Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri
Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri ( ur, ; born 19 February 1951) is a Pakistani–Canadian Islamic scholar and former politician who founded Minhaj-ul-Quran International and Pakistan Awami Tehreek.
He was also a professor of international co ...
.
utalaeh Qurʻan مطالعہ قرآنby ABDULLAH, 2014, is an Urdu Translation .
Bengali
Girish Chandra Sen
Girish Chandra Sen ( – 15 August 1910) was a Bengali religious scholar and translator. He was a Brahmo Samaj missionary and known for being the first publisher of the '' Qur’an'' into Bengali language in 1886.
Early life
Sen was born in a ...
, a
Brahmo Samaj
Brahmo Samaj ( bn, ব্রহ্ম সমাজ, Brahmô Sômaj, ) is the societal component of Brahmoism, which began as a monotheistic reformist movement of the Hindu religion that appeared during the Bengal Renaissance.
It was one of t ...
missionary, was the first person to produce a complete translation of the Qurʻan into the
Bengali language
Bengali ( ), generally known by its endonym Bangla (, ), is an Indo-Aryan language native to the Bengal region of South Asia. It is the official, national, and most widely spoken language of Bangladesh and the second most widely spoken o ...
in 1886, although an incomplete translation was made by Amiruddin Basunia in 1808. Abbas Ali of Candipur,
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fou ...
was the first Muslim to translate the entire Qurʻan into the Bengali language.
It is also said that Mohammad Noymuddin of
Tangail
Tangail ( bn, টাঙ্গাইল, ), is a major city within the Dhaka Division in central Bangladesh. It sits on the bank of the Louhajang River, north-west of Dhaka, the nation's capital. It is considered to be the main urban area of ...
translated the first ten chapters of the Qurʻan into Bengali.
Besides many translated Qurʻanic exegesis are available in Bengali language.
Mohammad Akram Khan
Mohammad Akram Khan ( bn, মোহাম্মদ আকরম খাঁ; 1868 – 18 August 1968) was a Bengali journalist, politician and Islamic scholar. He was the founder of Dhaka's first Bengali newspaper, '' The Azad''. He was among the ...
translated the 30th chapter of the Quran with commentary in 1926. In 1938, Muhammad Naqibullah Khan published a Bengali translation.
Muhiuddin Khan
Muhiuddin Khan ( bn, মুহিউদ্দিন খান; 1935–2016) was an Islamic scholar from Bangladesh and editor of ''Monthly Madina''. Khan was also a Quranic commentator, journalist, poet, writer and translator. He translated for t ...
was also a known Bangladeshi who translated the Maʻarif al-Qurʻan into Bengali.
Hindi and Gujarati
Kanzul Iman was also translated into the
Hindi
Hindi ( Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...
, followed by
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
,
Gujarati
Gujarati may refer to:
* something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India
* Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat
* Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them
* Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub ...
.
Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
Wahiduddin Khan (1 January 1925 – 21 April 2021), known with the honorific "Maulana", was an Indian Islamic scholar and peace activist and author known for having written a commentary on the Quran and having translated it into contemporary ...
has also translated the Quran into Hindi.
Tamil
Translated as Fathhur-Rahma Fi Tarjimati Tafsir al-Qurʻan (Qurʻan translation) By Sheikh Mustafa (1836 – 25 July 1888)Beruwala Sri Lanka;
Later on Abdul Hameed Bhakavi Tamil Nadu- India
Turkish
The earliest Quranic translation in the Turkish or Turkic language dates back to the 11th century. One of his later translation works is the copy written in the Khorezmian Turkic language in 1363, which is registered in Istanbul's Suleymaniye Library, Hekimoğlu Ali Paşa mosque No:2. This translation in Khorezmian Turkic, like other translations of the Qur'an, is important for language studies. Because the sanctity of the text that is subject to translation will cause the translator to behave more carefully, the errors encountered in the text are not included in such works. Besides, attention was paid to the religious terminology to be understood by the public and that is why Turkic words are given weight. G. Sağol worked on the translation in question.
Muhammed Hamdi Yazır worked on
tafsir
Tafsir ( ar, تفسير, tafsīr ) refers to exegesis, usually of the Quran. An author of a ''tafsir'' is a ' ( ar, مُفسّر; plural: ar, مفسّرون, mufassirūn). A Quranic ''tafsir'' attempts to provide elucidation, explanation, in ...
(Qurʻanic exegesis) in the
Maturidi
Māturīdī theology or Māturīdism ( ar, الماتريدية: ''al-Māturīdiyyah'') is one of the main Sunnī schools of Islamic theology, founded by the Persian Muslim scholar, Ḥanafī jurist, reformer (''Mujaddid''), and scholastic ...
context, and published his ''
Hakk Dīni Kur'an
Dili'' in
Turkish in 1935.
![Elmalı 35 baskısı](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/Elmal%C4%B1_35_bask%C4%B1s%C4%B1.jpg)
In 1999, the Turkish translation of the Qurʻan, MESAJ by
Edip Yüksel
Edip Yüksel (born December 20, 1957 in Güroymak, Turkey) is an American-Kurdish activist and prominent figure in the Quranism movement. He is a colleague and friend of the late Rashad Khalifa.
Biography
Yüksel comes from a Kurdish family ...
was published, about seven years after the publication of his book, ''Türkçe Kuran Çevirilerindeki Hatalar'' ("Errors in Turkish Translations of the Qurʻan"). The translation is a
Quranist translation, similar to the translation by
Yaşar Nuri Öztürk
Yaşar Nuri Öztürk (February 5, 1951 – June 22, 2016) was a Turkish Islamic scholar, university professor of Islamic theology, lawyer, columnist and a former member of Turkish parliament. He has been described as a Quranist and has given many ...
, and does not consider hadith and sectarian traditional jurisprudence as an authority in understanding the Qurʻan. It differs greatly from Sunni and Shia traditions in the translation of numerous crucial words and verses.
Hakkı Yılmaz worked on the Qurʻan through the root meanings of the Arabic words and published a study called Tebyin-ül Qurʻan. And he also published a Division by Division Interpretation in the Order of Revelation.
Hebrew
The translation of the Qur'an to Hebrew by Oz Yona and his staff was published by Goodword books in 2019.
Japanese
The first translation into Japanese was done by
Sakamoto Ken-ichi in 1920. Sakamoto worked from
Rodwell's English translation.
Takahashi Goro,
Bunpachiro (Ahmad) Ariga and
Mizuho Yamaguchi produced Japan's second translation in 1938. The first translation from the Arabic was done by
Toshihiko Izutsu
was a Japanese scholar who specialized in Islamic studies and comparative religion. He took an interest in linguistics at a young age, and came to know more than thirty languages, including Arabic, Hebrew, Turkish, Persian, Sanskrit, Pali, Hin ...
in 1945. In 1950, another translation appeared by
Shūmei Ōkawa
was a Japanese nationalist and Pan-Asianist writer, known for his publications on Japanese history, philosophy of religion, Indian philosophy, and colonialism.
Background
Ōkawa was born in Sakata, Yamagata, Japan in 1886. He graduated fro ...
. Other translations have appeared more recently by
Ban Yasunari and
Osamu Ikeda in 1970 and by Umar
Ryoichi Mita
, also known as Umar Mita, was a Japanese Muslim who is considered the first-ever Muslim to translate the Quran into the Japanese language.
Biography
Mita moved to China at the age of 24 and lived there for almost three decades straight (he ...
in 1972.
Chinese
It is claimed that
Yusuf Ma Dexin
Yusuf Ma Dexin (also ''Ma Tesing''; 1794–1874) was a Hui Chinese Hanafi- Maturidi scholar from Yunnan, known for his fluency and proficiency in both Arabic and Persian, and for his knowledge of Islam. He also went by the Chinese name Ma Fu ...
(1794–1874) is the first translator of the Qurʻan into Chinese. However, the first complete translations into Chinese did not appear until 1927, although Islam had been present in China since the
Tang dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdom ...
(618–907).
Wang Jingzhai Wang Jingzhai (; 1879 - 1949) was a well-known Muslim scholar during the Republic of China period. He was the first or possibly second person to translate the entire Qur'an into Chinese, with the exact time attributed to either 1927 or 1932. He be ...
was one of the first Chinese Muslims to translate the Qurʻan. His translation, the Gǔlánjīng yìjiě, appeared in either 1927 or 1932, with new revised versions being issued in 1943 and 1946. The translation by
Lǐ Tiězhēng, a non-Muslim, was not from the original Arabic, but from
John Medows Rodwell
John Medows Rodwell (1808–1900) was a friend of Charles Darwin while both matriculated at Cambridge. He became an English clergyman of the Church of England and an Islamic studies scholar. He served as Rector of St.Peter's, Saffron Hill, Londo ...
's English via
Sakamoto Ken-ichi's Japanese. A second non-Muslim translation appeared in 1931, edited by Jī Juémí. Other translations appeared in 1943, by
Liú Jǐnbiāo, and 1947, by Yáng Zhòngmíng. The most popular version today is the Gǔlánjīng, translated by
Mǎ Jiān, parts of which appeared between 1949 and 1951, with the full edition being published posthumously only in 1981.
Tóng Dàozhāng, a Muslim Chinese American, produced a modern translation, entitled Gǔlánjīng, in 1989. The most recent translation appeared in Taipei in 1996, the Qīngzhēn xīliú – Gǔlánjīng xīnyì, translated by Shěn Xiázhǔn, but it has not found favor with Muslims.
The latest translation 古兰经暨 中文译注 was translated and published by
Yunus Chiao Shien Ma
Yunus ibn Matta ( ar, يُونُس ٱبْن مَتّىٰ, Yūnus ibn Mattā) is a prophet and messenger of God (Allah). Yunus is traditionally viewed as highly important in Islam as a prophet who was faithful to God and delivered his messages. ...
in 2016 in Taipei .
Indonesian languages
The Qurʻan has also been translated to
Acehnese,
Buginese,
Gorontalo
Gorontalo ( Gorontaloan: ''Hulontalo'') is a province of Indonesia on the island of Sulawesi. Located on the Minahasa Peninsula, Gorontalo was formerly part of the province of North Sulawesi until its inauguration as a separate province on 5 D ...
,
Javanese,
Sundanese
Sundanese may refer to:
* Sundanese people
* Sundanese language
* Sundanese script
Standard Sundanese script (''Aksara Sunda Baku'', ) is a writing system which is used by the Sundanese people. It is built based on Old Sundanese script (' ...
, and
Indonesian
Indonesian is anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It may refer to:
* Indonesians, citizens of Indonesia
** Native Indonesians, diverse groups of local inhabitants of the archipelago
** Indonesian ...
of
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
, the most populous Muslim country in the world. Translation into Acehnese was done by Mahijiddin Yusuf in 1995; into Buginese by Daude Ismaile and Nuh Daeng Manompo in 1982; into Gorontalo by Lukman Katili in 2008; into Javanese by Ngarpah (1913), Kyai Bisyri Mustafa Rembang (1964), and K. H. R. Muhamad Adnan; in Sundanese by A.A. Dallan, H. Qamaruddin Shaleh, Jus Rusamsi in 1965; and in Indonesian at least in three versions: A Dt. Madjoindo, H.M Kasim Bakery, Imam M. Nur Idris, A. Hassan,
Mahmud Yunus, H.S. Fachruddin, H., Hamidy (all in the 1960s), Mohammad Diponegoro, Bachtiar Surin (all in the 1970s), and Departemen Agama Republik Indonesia (Indonesian Department of Religious Affair).
Nuclear Malayo-Polynesian languages
William Shellabear
William Girdlestone Shellabear (1862–1947) was a "pioneer" scholar and missionary in British Malaya (today, part of Malaysia). He was known for both his appreciation of Muslim society and also his translation of the Bible into the Malay langu ...
(1862–1948) a British scholar and missionary in Malaysia, after translating the Bible into the
Malay language
Malay (; ms, Bahasa Melayu, links=no, Jawi alphabet, Jawi: , Rejang script, Rencong: ) is an Austronesian languages, Austronesian language that is an official language of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore, and that is also spo ...
began a translation of the Qurʻan, but died in 1948 without finishing it.
Tagalog
In 1982, Abdul Rakman H. Bruce translated the quran in
Tagalog which is locally known as "Ang Banal na Kuran".
African languages
*Translation of the Qurʻan to
Swahili by Sheikh
Ali Muhsin al-Barwani.
*Translation of the Qurʻan to
Hausa
Hausa may refer to:
* Hausa people, an ethnic group of West Africa
* Hausa language, spoken in West Africa
* Hausa Kingdoms, a historical collection of Hausa city-states
* Hausa (horse) or Dongola horse, an African breed of riding horse
See also
...
by Sheikh Muhamud Gumi.
*Translation of the Qurʻan to
Yoruba
The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute ...
by Sheikh Adam Abdullah Al-Ilory.
*Translation of the Qurʻan to
Dagbanli by Sheikh M. Baba Gbetobu.
Esperanto
After the fall of the Shah,
Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran called on Muslims to learn
Esperanto. Shortly thereafter, an official Esperanto translation of the Qurʻan was produced by the state.
Muztar Abbasi also translated the Qurʻan into Esperanto and wrote a biography of Muhammad and several other books in Esperanto and Urdu.
In 1970, Professor Italo Chiussi, an Ahmadi, translated the Qurʻan into Esperanto.
See also
*
List of translations of the Quran
*
History of the Qur'an
*
Literary translation
Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''transl ...
*
Tafsir
Tafsir ( ar, تفسير, tafsīr ) refers to exegesis, usually of the Quran. An author of a ''tafsir'' is a ' ( ar, مُفسّر; plural: ar, مفسّرون, mufassirūn). A Quranic ''tafsir'' attempts to provide elucidation, explanation, in ...
References
Further reading
*
Ali, Muhammad Mohar (2004).
The Qurʻan and the Orientalists'.
Jamiat Ihyaa Minhaaj al-Sunnah Jamiat Ihyaa Minhaaj al-Sunnah (Movement of the Revival of the Prophet's Way) also JIMAS, is a Muslim charity in the United Kingdom. Its headquarters is in Ipswich. It produces pamphlets, videos, classes, provides speakers, and holds conferences on ...
(JIMAS), Ipswich, United Kingdom. .
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* Pearson, J.D., ‟Bibliography of Translations of the Qur'ān into European Languages", in: A.F.L. Beeston et al. (eds), ''Arabic Literature to the End of the Umayyad Period'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983), pp. 502–520.
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External links
English Quran translationsQuran Archive - Texts and Studies on the Quran.
Gujarati Quran Ashanul Bayan અહસનુલ બયાન Clear Audio Translations of the QurʻanEnglish Qurʻan translations side-by-side with audioAl-QuranQuran
translation project
A translation project is a project that deals with the activity of translating.
From a technical point of view, a translation project is closely related to the project management of the translation process. But, from an intercultural point of vi ...
IslamAwakenedEnglish Qurʻan translations compared verse-by-verse
Learn Quran Online with Tajweed*
George Grigore
George Grigore (born 2 February 1958) is a Romanian writer, essayist, translator, professor, researcher in Middle Eastern Studies. Biography
George Grigore was born in the village of Grindu, Ialomița (southeastern Romania), on 2 February 1958. ...
Les contraires – al-aDdad – dans le Coran et leur equivalence dans les traductions, Bucarest, 2004Bangla QuranEnglish Qurʻan with AudioLearn Quran translation in English
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