Talk:Muslim Language

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A Muslim Language is that language which is spoken by a majority of Muslims in any particular society, and as such, we can say that Arabic, Swahili, Hausa, Fulani, Persian, Turkish, Urdu, Albanian etc., are examples of Muslim languages as they contain many words and terminologies that are specifically Islamic.

Arabic, on the other hand, is the language of the Quran, and any Muslim, be he Arab or non Arab, must read the Quran in Arabic, in his prayers, his (duas)supplications, and his Quran recitals. Therefore, Arabic can be considered the language that unites all Muslims in their worshipping of Allah worldwide.

There are many translations of the Quran, but these translations only make it easy for Muslims to understand the meaning of the word of Allah, and are not taken to be Quran, because Quran is the revealed word of God (Allah), and there can be no comparison between the word of God and the word of Man, and as such a Muslim is required to recite the Quran in Arabic only.

To summarize, Quran is the infallible word of God revealed in Arabic and must be read and recited in Arabic in all occassions. Arabic is the medium which Muslims use to understand well the Quran, the Sunnah of the Prophet (his traditions and sayings), and the Islamic Jurisprudence (Fiqh), and Muslims all over the world have their own languages, which they use for communication on daily basis beside using Arabic for their rites and rituals (worship).

Salim Elhaj ____________________________________________________________________________

Thus, Arabic is the holy language of Islam and the Koran is not read in translation by Muslims regardless of their native language.

This surely can't be literally true as written. The Koran is not read in translation? At all? Or is it that translations are read by non-Arabic Muslims, but with the understanding that what is being read is a mere commentary or interpretation rather than the direct word of God?

It seems to me that the latter must be closer to the truth, else how could the religion have a sizable following in non-Arabic countries? But I confess to having no actual knowledge on this point. --Jimbo Wales

I am an American expat living in the Arabian peninsula. If you're curious about the Koran and don't read Arabic, good luck. It's not easy to find one in translation, and the translations are very bad--it's like they're translated word for word, rather than thought for thought. Converts to Islam really must learn Arabic to read the Koran; Koran translation is a very small field, unlike for example Bible translation. From a historical linguistic perspective, this is one of the factors that has aided in the spread of the Arabic language.--jtnelson

Would a list of other languages spoken by large Muslim communities be out of place? --Damian Yerrick

Umm, I heard that the "koran", as the Sunni call it can be translated, but a Shia muslim would take offense to the "Qu'ran" being translated out of Arabic. So it would depend on the branch of islam, I suppose, and general statements would be inappropriate. --Alan D.

Hmmm. The Shiite professor of Islamic religion at my college uses translations and publishes in translation.... Since a majority of the Shiites are specifically non-Arabic-speaking (Iranians), I doubt this to be true. Also, the 'Koran' 'Qu'ran' differentiation is more along the lines of Pinyin/Wade Giles -- different systems. --MichaelTinkler

When I learned this in school, it was mentioned that this was a challenge for africans and iranians because they don't speak arabic. However, I think we have already established that many arabs *don't* take offense to this, so I bet we're okay! --Alan D

IIRC, Islam holds that the Koran itself can never be translated. Any translation is a translation of the meaning of the Koran - a subtle distinction that is important to them - clasqm

While I agree that a page on this subject may be appropriate, I question the list of "languages used by Muslims". It would be absurd to have a Wikipedia entry on "languages used by Christians", right?

168.143.112.xxx's special little addition earned itself a place here

Do we want curses here on Wikipedia?????? Why would anyone want to accept this? I feel personally offended. Or did I miss the joke?

This paragraph earned a special place here

Muslim language is languishing. I don't think it's "finished", and nobody's doing anything with it. Anybody care to give it a shot?

I feel that Muslim Language page can be really usefull, and a list of languages spoken by muslim people as well, but some countries have a variety of religions. In other countries islam is a minority, or a small minority; I mean, how detailed do we want to be? It shouldn't become a list of half of the languages spoken in the entire world, and it should neither include languages mainly spoken by non-muslims. I am thinking of Indonesia, for instance. Albania I feel is a border-case. I also favor to include a paragraph on the subject of the discussion above.

ba