The Holy Book of Islam

The holy book of Islam is al-qur'anu l-karîm. That is the Arabic word for what is commonly written as 'Koran', 'Quran', or 'Qur'an' in English. Apparently, for some unknown reason, only the latter is the correct English translation.

The University of Virginia refers on-line to al-qur'anu l-karîm, as the Koran and has turned it into an electronic version: The Koran at the Electronic Text Center, University of Virginia. The University of Michigan also has an electronic version of the Koran which is searchable at its website.

The University of Southern California has three translations of the Qur'an at its website, where they note: "any translation of the Qur'an immediately ceases to be the literal word of Allah, and hence cannot be equated with the Qur'an in its original Arabic form. In fact, each of the translations on this site is actually an interpretation which has been translated. The first-time reader is strongly advised to read the introduction to the translations we have made available. Corrections and suggestions are appreciated."

Catholic Encylopedia has a synopsis of the "Koran", from a Roman Catholic viewpoint of course, which is described as; "The sacred book of the Muslims, by whom it is regarded as the revelation of God. Supplemented by the so-called Hadith, or traditions, it is the foundation of Islam and the final authority in dogma and belief, in jurisprudence, worship, ethics, and in social, family, and individual conduct."

There is a site called Holy Quran Resource Group which has information on the Quran.

Scott Ott at Scrapple Face has an interesting post on the various names used for the Holy Book of Islam. Actually, I think he hits the nail on the head.

"Muslims Riot Over Spelling of 'Koran' in U.S. Media" by Scott Ott, (2005-05-17)
-- As many as 25 people died and dozens more were injured during riots in Afghanistan today which erupted over what one Muslim cleric called "the U.S. media's desecration-by-mispelling" of the name of Islam's most holy book. Indeed, American editors have failed to reach consensus on how to render the holy book's name. Some spell it with a 'K' others with a 'Q' and -- perhaps most offensive to Muslim sensibilities -- some insert a meaningless apostrophe in the middle of the word.

First published by Edna Barney, Tuesday, May 17th, 2005.