القرآن
al-Qur’ān
The recited scripture of Islam, revealed to Muhammad and kept in memory and in writing.
What it means
“Quran” means “recitation”. It has 114 chapters (suras) and is recited in Arabic in prayer. Its first revelation was the command “Read” (96:1). Muslims believe it is God’s word, preserved: “We have sent down the Reminder, and We will guard it” (15:9).
From the beginning it was kept in two ways at once: memorised by the community and written down. Under Abu Bakr the written leaves were gathered in one place, and under Uthman standard copies were prepared and sent to the main cities.
Often misunderstood as
That the Quran was edited, lost in part or rewritten by Uthman.
What the sources say
Reports of the collection are in Sahih al-Bukhari, which names Zayd ibn Thabit as the scribe. On the manuscripts, a Quran leaf in the University of Birmingham’s collection was radiocarbon dated to between 568 and 645 CE, with a probability of 95.4 per cent, which is within or very near the Prophet’s lifetime. Muslims also point to the unbroken chain of recitation, taught from teacher to student to this day.