It is a well-established fact nowadays that modernity impacts Islam, but there has not been much focus on how modernity impacts the QurâÄn, the foundational text of Islam and the verbatim word of God. This book argues that the early Muslim QurâÄn translations into English are attempts to reconcile the QurâÄn with modernity by producing translations that encompass modern concepts and interpretations of the QurâÄn. Are these modern concepts and interpretations valid or they alter the word of God? This is the main question that the book attempts to answer, particularly that these early translations have affected and still affect QurâÄn translation.
El-Hussein Aly was Professor of Translation Studies at Helwan University, Egypt and a teacher of Arabic at Indiana University, USA. He had a Ph.D. in Translation Studies in 2007 from Helwan University, Egypt, and a Ph.D. in Near Eastern Languages and Cultures from Indiana University in 2023. His publications include âWomen in Qurâan English Translations: Critical Intertextual, Intratextual, and Contextual Analysesâ, Journal of Islamic and Muslim Studies 3.1 (2018).
Acknowledgements List of Illustrations and Tables Preface
1 The Early European QurʾÄn Translation Project
â1âAttacking the Holy Book of the Turks
â2âThe Genuine Interest in Understanding Islam
â3âThe Scientific Turn of the Study of the QurʾÄn
â4âThe Sacred Books of the East
â5âEuropean QurʾÄn Translation: Assessment in Context
2 Translation as Reform
â1âColonization, India, and the Need for Reform
â2âThe Birth of Reform and the Indian QurʾÄn Translation Project
3 The Rise of Muslim Translations
â1âInterpretation of the QurʾÄn by the QurʾÄn and the Bible
â2âChronological Translation
â3âCollaborative Translation
4 Indian Muslim Translations: An Apex
â1âExtensive Notes
â2âPoetic Form
5 Interconnectedness of QurʾÄn Translations
â1âSpirituality in YÅ«suf Ê¿Aliâs Translation
â2âThe Spiral of Influence in QurʾÄn Translations
6 Toward a Modernist Interpretation of the QurʾÄn
â1âThe Pluralist QurʾÄn
â2âPeaceful Jihad
7 Modernism, Traditionalism, and the Social Function of QurʾÄn Translation
â1âRationality
â2âScience
â3âWomen
8 Alternative Modernities of QurʾÄn Translation
â1âThe Journey of the Indian QurʾÄn Translations in Europe and America
â2âPolitics, Religion and QurʾÄn Translation in Egypt
â3âAl-Azharâs Translation: Al-Montakhab
â4âState-Sponsored QurʾÄn Translation in Saudi Arabia
â5âAlternative Modernities: QurʾÄn Translation Form and Content
Conclusion
â1âThe Interconnectedness of the Past and the Present: Tradition and Modernity as a Continuum
â2âThe Relationality of QurʾÄn Translations
â3âAssessment of QurʾÄn Translation in Context
â4âQurʾÄn Translation, Interpretation, and Adaptation
Bibliography Index
All-level undergraduate students, post-graduate students, researchers, and academics. No specialized background is needed to read and understand the book. Relevant subject areas include Islamic Studies, Religious Studies, Middle Eastern Studies, and Translation Studies.