The Importance of Quran
Dr. Nuha al Shaar
Arabic 301- Arabic Prose until end of 3rd Century
Sally Al Nazer-36794
Essay Assignment
The importance of the Quran in influencing the literary Arabic genres
Quran is a very influential masterpiece in terms of religion, Islamic sciences and other Arab literary genres. In fact, Quran was not only restricted to spreading and prompting Arabic as a critical language to Muslims, but also Quran influenced the Arabic literature as we can highlight some differences between the pre Islamic and Islamic Arabic literary genres, such as the differences in poets. Thus, the unique relationship between Arabic and Quran is framed by the importance of the Qur’an in influencing the literary history of Arab-Islamic civilization and the various literary genres.
Quran is the sacred text of Islam; it was orally recited to the prophet and remained orally transmitted throughout the lifetime of the prophet Muhammad and his companions. As Gabriel recited Quran to Mohammed, the followers found it unnecessary to write down the Quranic verses since they were memorizing and retaining them. However, the necessity to transfer Quran from oral to written was after the death of Muhammad when Quran was no longer recited to him. Another reason to write down Quran was due to the Yamama battle where numerous numbers of Muslims were killed. Also, the diversity of language among new Muslims was a threat of losing Arabic as Islam expanded further. Consequently, Quran was first written down in Mushaf and later on many copies were made from this Mushaf and spread out through all the Islamic regions. And by this way, the sanctity of Quran was preserved and unified among all the Islamic regions.
It is certainly true that Quran became part of the classical Arabic literature. Actually, it is the first example of an Arabic prose, although Quran is neither prose nor poetry. Yet, prose and narrative characteristics can be traced in the surahs such as surat yousef which is the longest narrative
Arabic 301- Arabic Prose until end of 3rd Century
Sally Al Nazer-36794
Essay Assignment
The importance of the Quran in influencing the literary Arabic genres
Quran is a very influential masterpiece in terms of religion, Islamic sciences and other Arab literary genres. In fact, Quran was not only restricted to spreading and prompting Arabic as a critical language to Muslims, but also Quran influenced the Arabic literature as we can highlight some differences between the pre Islamic and Islamic Arabic literary genres, such as the differences in poets. Thus, the unique relationship between Arabic and Quran is framed by the importance of the Qur’an in influencing the literary history of Arab-Islamic civilization and the various literary genres.
Quran is the sacred text of Islam; it was orally recited to the prophet and remained orally transmitted throughout the lifetime of the prophet Muhammad and his companions. As Gabriel recited Quran to Mohammed, the followers found it unnecessary to write down the Quranic verses since they were memorizing and retaining them. However, the necessity to transfer Quran from oral to written was after the death of Muhammad when Quran was no longer recited to him. Another reason to write down Quran was due to the Yamama battle where numerous numbers of Muslims were killed. Also, the diversity of language among new Muslims was a threat of losing Arabic as Islam expanded further. Consequently, Quran was first written down in Mushaf and later on many copies were made from this Mushaf and spread out through all the Islamic regions. And by this way, the sanctity of Quran was preserved and unified among all the Islamic regions.
It is certainly true that Quran became part of the classical Arabic literature. Actually, it is the first example of an Arabic prose, although Quran is neither prose nor poetry. Yet, prose and narrative characteristics can be traced in the surahs such as surat yousef which is the longest narrative
References: 1. Roger, A. (2000). Introduction to Arabic literature. NY: Cambridge University Press 2. About the Quran. (n.d.). jewishvirtuallibrary.org. Retrieved from http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Bible/Quran.html 3. The inimitable Quran. (n.d.). theinimitablequran.com. Retrieved from http://www.theinimitablequran.com/fivemajorarguments.html 4. Kadi, W. & Mir, M. (2012). Literature and the Quran. Brill Online Reference Works Retrieved from <http://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedi ofthe- quran/literature-and-the-quran-COM_00109> 5. Qutbuddin,T. (2008). The Evolution of early Arabic oration. Classical Arabic humanities in their own terms. nelc.uchicago.edu.Retrieved from http://nelc.uchicago.edu/sites/nelc.uchicago.edu/files/5.%202008%20Evolution% 20of%20Early%20Arabic%20Oration%20article.pdf