Notes on Translation and Contributors
Note on Translation
This volume brings together twelve essays originally written in Arabic, Persian, Turkish, and Indonesian. Each essay represents not only the voice of its author but also the interpretive tradition, historical context, and intellectual framework from which it emerges. The act of translation, therefore, involved more than the transfer of language; it required careful judgment, cultural sensitivity, and a deep engagement with the ideas being expressed.
The translators sought to render the texts in English in a way that is clear and readable to the extent possible, while remaining faithful to the substance and tone of the originals. In cases where no exact equivalent existed in English, terms were selected that most closely captured the intended meaning. Where necessary, explanatory notes in square brackets or brief footnotes have been provided to clarify some concepts and references that may not be familiar to readers.
Translation was never approached as a purely literal exercise. The translators prioritized the communication of ideas and arguments over word-for-word equivalence. At times, the essays included expressions, assumptions, or formulations that might appear unusual or unfamiliar to English-speaking audiences. These have been retained to preserve the integrity of the original text and to reflect the authorâs voice and intellectual context as accurately as possible. No parts of the original essays were omitted in the process of translation. Every effort was made to maintain the toneâwhether scholarly, polemical, reflective, or criticalâof each contribution.
Throughout this process, the translatorsâ aim has been to preserve the richness and integrity of the original writings. We recognize that all translation involves interpretation, particularly in a field as nuanced and contextually embedded as QurʾÄnic hermeneutics. As such, this volume is also a testament to the dynamic engagement between languages, traditions, and scholarly communities.
About the Editor
Abdullah Saeed is the Sultan of Oman Professor of Arab and Islamic Studies and Redmond Barry Distinguished Professor at the University of Melbourne, Australia. He has a BA from the Islamic University of Medina and MA and Ph.D. from the University of Melbourne. His teaching and research focus is on contemporary QurʾÄnic hermeneutics, Islamic reformist thought, and Muslim engagement with issues of religious pluralism and human rights.
Abdullah Saeedâs publications include Interpreting the Qurʾan: Towards a Contemporary Approach (Routledge, 2006); Reading the Qurʾan in the Twenty-First Century: A Contextualist Approach (Routledge, 2013); The Qurʾan: An Introduction (Routledge, 2008); Contemporary Approaches to the Qurʾan and its Interpretation in Iran (co-authored with Ali Akbar, Routledge, 2020); and Islamic Banking and Interest: A Study of the Prohibition of Riba and its Contemporary Interpretation (Brill, 1996). He is also editor of Approaches to the Qurâan in Contemporary Indonesia (Oxford University Press, 2005).
About the Translators
Dr Said Hassan is an Assistant Professor at the American University of Sharjah. He earned his Ph.D. from UCLA in 2011. He has held various academic positions, including Visiting Assistant Professor at Georgetown University in 2012, Visiting Fellow at the Institute for Islamic Studies (IAIN) Sultan Maulana Hasanuddin, Indonesia, in 2014, Visiting Fellow at the Berlin Graduate School Muslim Cultures and Societies, Freie Universität, Berlin, in 2014, and Assistant Professor at Taibah University, KSA, during 2018â2023, and at Al-Azhar University in 2012â2018. His publications include: Said F. Hassan, Fiqh al-Aqalliyyat: History, Development, and Progress (Palgrave Macmillan, 2013); Khaled Abou El Fadl, Ahmad Atif Ahmad, and Said Hassan (eds.), Handbook of Islamic Law (Routledge, 2019); Ray Jureidini and Said Hassan (eds.), Migration and Islamic Ethics: Issues of Residence, Naturalization, and Citizenship (Brill, 2019); Ray Jureidini, Said Hassan, and Dalal Aassouli, Food Security and Islamic Ethics: Rights, Policies and Vulnerable Groups (Edward Elgar, 2025). His translation contributions include: Jarrett Blaustein et al. The Emerald Handbook of Crime, Justice and Sustainable Development, trans Said Hassan. Reviewed by Falih bin Salim Al-Qahtani (Naif Arab University for Security Sciences Press, 2024).
Dr Ali Akbar is a researcher and sessional lecturer at the University of Melbourne where he received his Ph.D. in Islamic studies. He is a native speaker of Persian and an expert in the field of Islamic studies and focuses on contemporary Islamic thought and Middle East politics. Some of his publications are in Persian. His works in English include: Ali Akbar, Contemporary Perspectives on Revelation and Qurâanic Hermeneutics: An Analysis of Four Discourses (Edinburgh University Press, 2020); Ali Akbar and Abdullah Saeed, Contemporary Approaches to the QurʾÄn and Its Interpretation in Iran (Routledge, 2019); Zahid Ahmed and Ali Akbar, Iranâs Soft Power in Afghanistan and Pakistan (Edinburgh University Press, 2023). He has also published extensively in journals such as Culture and Religion, The Muslim World, Religions, British Journal of Middle East Studies, Oxford Journal of Law and Religion, and Third Word Quarterly.
Rowan Gould is an Australian researcher, educator, and consultant. He is a cofounder and director of Mosaic Connections, a consultancy specializing in intercultural education and exchange, with a focus on Muslim communities in Southeast Asia. Rowan was born in Jakarta, Indonesia, and is fluent in Bahasa Indonesia. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Law (Hons) from the University of Melbourne, and a Master of Islamic Studies from the same institution, with a thesis on The Philological Vision of TafsÄ«r in the Late Medieval Period: The Introduction to AbÅ« ḤayyÄn al-AndalusÄ«âs (d. 745/1344) al-Baḥr al-Muḥīá¹. Rowan was a researcher and sessional lecturer in the Department of Arabic and Islamic Studies at the University of Melbourne in 2007â2019. He is fluent in Indonesian and has proficiency in Arabic, French, and Spanish. He is a former CEO and board member of the Islamic Council of Victoria.
Dr Ismail Kurun is a philosopher focusing on social and political philosophy and Islamic philosophy. He has a Ph.D. in Philosophy and Religious Studies from Ankara University (2021) with a dissertation on Avicennaâs epistemology. He is currently a Ph.D. Candidate in Philosophy at Vanderbilt University and is working on liberal theory and Islam. He has published on liberalism, Islamic philosophy, and Middle East politics, including The Theological Origins of Liberalism (Lexington Books, 2016) and âAvicennaâs Intuitionist Rationalism,â History of Philosophy Quarterly, 38(4) (2021): 317â336. He has translated academic papers in Arabic, English, and Turkish.
About the Authors
To help readers situate each contribution, a detailed biographical note is provided at the beginning of every chapter under the subtitle âAbout the Authorâ. These notes go beyond formal affiliations and academic titles. They offer some insights into the authorâs intellectual formation, key scholarly contributions, and, where relevant, works written about them by other scholars. In this way, the biographical information serves not only as introductions but also as guides to understanding the broader context of the arguments advanced in each essay. As these detailed biographical profiles appear with each contribution, a consolidated list is not repeated here.