The Integrity of the Qur'an
Sunni and Shi‘i Historical Narratives
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Edinburgh University Press
Publishing:31st Jan '26
£24.99
This title is due to be published on 31st January, and will be despatched as soon as possible.
This book investigates Muslim narratives on Qurʾanic distortion through a meticulous analysis of hadith. Using isnād-cum-matn analysis, Seyfeddin Kara discovers the historical origins of this disputed claim and illuminates the dynamic interplay between Sunni and Shiʿi traditionists. He demonstrates that isnād-cum-matn analysis is not only an important tool for dating hadiths but also crucial for uncovering forgeries. By identifying the individuals responsible, he provides new explanations of forgery culture in early Muslim society. Kara illuminates debates over the textual integrity and evolution of the written Qurʾanic text, offering insights into the enigmatic early history of Islam. By pushing the boundaries of isnād-cum-matn analysis, this book makes methodological advancements in the study of early Islamic history and contributes to its reconstruction on the question of the canonised Qur’an’s integrity.
In this technically complex book with its sophisticated methodology, Seyfeddin Kara persuasively argues that the Quran was compiled and fixed within two years of the Prophet Muhammad’s death, and that narratives within certain small Sunni and Twelver Shii groups about the Quran’s textual distortion are historically untenable. -- Tahera Qutbuddin, University of Oxford
Professor Kara’s book will become the work on the history of the codification of the Qur’an. It is an overdue study and offers new analysis of the data. This is the first study that takes into consideration not only Sunni sources but also Shiite sources. Kara’s work will become the standard work on the history of the Qur’anic text. -- Walid Saleh, University of Toronto
ISBN: 9781474462242
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: unknown
280 pages