Short answer: the Quran is the holy book of Islam. Muslims believe it is the literal word of God (Allah), revealed in Arabic to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ through the angel Jibril (Gabriel) over about 23 years, from 610 to 632 CE. The name means "the recitation". It has 114 chapters called surahs, and Muslims recite from it in every prayer. Older English books spell it Koran; Quran or Qur'an is closer to the Arabic.
What the word Quran means
Al-Qur'an comes from the Arabic verb qara'a, to read or recite. So the Quran is "the recitation", a text meant first to be heard and recited aloud. The very first word revealed was a command to recite: iqra.
ٱقْرَأْ بِٱسْمِ رَبِّكَ ٱلَّذِى خَلَقَ ﴿١﴾ خَلَقَ ٱلْإِنسَٰنَ مِنْ عَلَقٍ ﴿٢﴾ ٱقْرَأْ وَرَبُّكَ ٱلْأَكْرَمُ ﴿٣﴾ ٱلَّذِى عَلَّمَ بِٱلْقَلَمِ ﴿٤﴾ عَلَّمَ ٱلْإِنسَٰنَ مَا لَمْ يَعْلَمْ ﴿٥﴾
Iqra bismi rab bikal lazee khalaq Khalaqal insaana min 'alaq Iqra wa rab bukal akram Al lazee 'allama bil qalam 'Al lamal insaana ma lam y'alam
(1) Recite in the name of your Lord who created - (2) Created man from a clinging substance. (3) Recite, and your Lord is the most Generous - (4) Who taught by the pen - (5) Taught man that which he knew not.
Quran 96:1-5 · Sahih International · Read Surah Al-Alaq
The Quran also calls itself by other names, each describing what it does: al-Kitab (the Book), al-Furqan (the Criterion that separates truth from falsehood, 25:1), al-Dhikr (the Reminder, 15:9) and al-Huda (Guidance). Near its start it describes itself like this:
ذَٰلِكَ ٱلْكِتَٰبُ لَا رَيْبَ ۛ فِيهِ ۛ هُدًۭى لِّلْمُتَّقِينَ ﴿٢﴾
Zaalikal Kitaabu laa raiba feeh; udal lilmuttaqeen
This is the Book about which there is no doubt, a guidance for those conscious of Allah -
Quran 2:2 · Sahih International · Read Surah Al-Baqarah
What Muslims believe about the Quran
- It is God's own speech, not the words of the Prophet ﷺ. He received it, recited it and explained it. His own sayings are recorded separately, in the hadith.
- It is the last revealed book. Muslims believe God also revealed the Torah to Moses, the Psalms (Zabur) to David and the Gospel (Injil) to Jesus. The Quran confirms what was true in them and is the final word.
- It is preserved. God promises to guard it (15:9). It was memorised by many Companions and written down during the Prophet's ﷺ life, then gathered into one book soon after. Our post on the history of the Quran tells that story.
- It is the Prophet's ﷺ main miracle. It challenges anyone who doubts it to produce a single chapter like it.
وَإِن كُنتُمْ فِى رَيْبٍۢ مِّمَّا نَزَّلْنَا عَلَىٰ عَبْدِنَا فَأْتُوا۟ بِسُورَةٍۢ مِّن مِّثْلِهِۦ وَٱدْعُوا۟ شُهَدَآءَكُم مِّن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ إِن كُنتُمْ صَٰدِقِينَ ﴿٢٣﴾
Wa in kuntum fee raibim mimmaa nazzalnaa 'alaa 'abdinaa fatoo bi Sooratim mim mislihee wad'oo shuhadaaa'akum min doonil laahi in kuntum saadiqeen
And if you are in doubt about what We have sent down upon Our Servant [Muhammad], then produce a surah the like thereof and call upon your witnesses other than Allah, if you should be truthful.
Quran 2:23 · Sahih International · Read Surah Al-Baqarah
How the Quran is arranged
The Quran is not arranged in the order it was revealed, and it is not a story told from start to finish. Its order was set by the Prophet ﷺ himself, who told the scribes where each new passage belonged. Scholars agree on this for the order of the verses. Most also hold that the order of the surahs came from him, while some said the Companions arranged parts of it.
| Unit | Arabic | How many | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chapter | Surah | 114 | From Al-Fatiha (7 verses) and Al-Baqarah (286, the longest) to An-Nas. The shortest is Al-Kawthar, with 3. |
| Verse | Ayah | 6,236 | The count in the most widely printed copies. Other early counts differ slightly because of where a verse is said to end, not because of any difference in the text. |
| Thirtieth part | Juz (para) | 30 | Equal parts for reading, so the whole Quran can be read in a month, one juz a day. |
| Half of a juz | Hizb | 60 | Smaller reading portions, marked in the margin. |
Every surah except one (At-Tawbah) opens with Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim, "In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful". Surahs are described as Makki, revealed in Makkah before the Hijrah, or Madani, revealed in Madinah after it. Makki surahs are usually shorter and focus on faith, God's oneness and the afterlife. Madani surahs are often longer and include laws for family, trade and community life. You can browse all of them on the surah list, and see more numbers in Quran facts.
What the Quran talks about
- God: His oneness, His names and attributes, His mercy and justice. See Who is Allah?
- The prophets: the stories of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Jesus and others, told for their lessons. Surah Yusuf tells the story of Joseph in one long chapter. See the prophets.
- The afterlife: death, resurrection, judgement, Paradise and Hell.
- Worship: prayer, fasting, zakat and Hajj.
- Law and society: marriage, inheritance, trade, justice and the rights of the weak.
- Character: honesty, patience, gratitude, kindness to parents, humility.
- Signs in nature: the heavens, the earth, rain, plants and the human body, as pointers to their Creator. See miracles of the Quran.
Arabic and translations
The Quran was revealed in Arabic, and only the Arabic text is the Quran itself (12:2). A translation is a human attempt to carry the meaning into another language, so Muslims call it "a translation of the meanings of the Quran". English readers often use Sahih International, the translation quoted on AmalKit, or the translations of Abdel Haleem or Mufti Taqi Usmani. Many read a translation alongside a short commentary (tafsir) to understand the context of each passage.
In the prayer itself, the recitation has to be in Arabic:
In the Hanafi school, the recitation in salah must be in Arabic for anyone able to say it. Imam Abu Hanifa is reported to have first allowed a translation and then to have taken that view back, and the school's fatwa is that a translation does not count as recitation in the prayer. A new Muslim who cannot yet recite anything says what they can of dhikr and learns Al-Fatiha as soon as possible.
Other madhhabs
- Shafi'i
- Arabic only. Someone who cannot yet recite Al-Fatiha recites other verses they know, or else says set phrases of dhikr, while learning.
- Maliki
- Arabic only, as in the other schools.
- Hanbali
- Arabic only. Like the Shafi'is, they give a fallback of dhikr for someone still learning.
That is one reason Muslims all over the world, whatever their language, learn at least the short surahs in Arabic. If you are starting from zero, our Al-Fatiha word-by-word trainer and the Noorani Qaida lessons are made for you.
Respecting the Quran
Muslims treat the written Quran, the mushaf, with care: clean hands, a clean place, and never on the floor. Scholars of the four schools also require wudu to touch it, citing 56:79 ("None touch it except the purified") and the letter the Prophet ﷺ sent with Amr ibn Hazm.
Hanafi: wudu is required to touch the Arabic text of the mushaf, but you may recite from memory without wudu. A person in the state of janabah (needing ghusl), and a woman in her period, should not recite the Quran, though they may say duas and dhikr that come from it with the intention of dua. Many contemporary scholars allow touching a phone or tablet screen showing the Quran without wudu, since the device is not the mushaf.
Other madhhabs
- Shafi'i
- Close to the Hanafi view on wudu and janabah: no touching without wudu, and no reciting while in janabah or menstruation.
- Maliki
- Wudu is needed to touch the mushaf, with an allowance for teachers and students. A woman in her period may recite from memory.
- Hanbali
- Wudu is needed to touch the mushaf, and someone in janabah does not recite. Some Hanbalis allow a menstruating woman to recite when she fears forgetting.
The reward for reading it
مَنْ قَرَأَ حَرْفًا مِنْ كِتَابِ اللَّهِ فَلَهُ بِهِ حَسَنَةٌ، وَالْحَسَنَةُ بِعَشْرِ أَمْثَالِهَا، لاَ أَقُولُ الم حَرْفٌ، وَلَكِنْ أَلِفٌ حَرْفٌ وَلاَمٌ حَرْفٌ وَمِيمٌ حَرْفٌ
Whoever reads a letter from the Book of Allah has a good deed for it, and each good deed is multiplied by ten. I do not say that alif lam mim is one letter: alif is a letter, lam is a letter and mim is a letter.
Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2910 · narrated by Abdullah ibn Mas'ud · graded hasan sahih by at-Tirmidhi
خَيْرُكُمْ مَنْ تَعَلَّمَ الْقُرْآنَ وَعَلَّمَهُ
The best of you are those who learn the Quran and teach it.
Sahih al-Bukhari 5027 · narrated by Uthman ibn Affan · sahih
Where to start reading
- Al-Fatiha. Seven verses, recited in every unit of every prayer. Read it on Surah Al-Fatiha or learn it word by word.
- The short surahs at the end, such as Al-Ikhlas, Al-Falaq and An-Nas. They are easy to memorise and used in prayer. See short surahs for salah.
- A full translation, little by little. Many beginners read a page a day with a short tafsir. Others start with Surah Yusuf or Surah Maryam, which tell the stories of Joseph and of Mary and Jesus.
- Listen. Hearing a good reciter helps you feel the Quran as it was meant to be received. Try our Quran recitation player or Quran radio.
- Learn to read the Arabic with the Arabic alphabet and then the rules of tajweed.
FAQ
Who wrote the Quran?
Muslims believe no human wrote the Quran: it is the speech of Allah, revealed to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, who could not read or write. His scribes, such as Zayd ibn Thabit, wrote it down as it was revealed, and it was gathered into one book under Abu Bakr.
How many surahs and verses are in the Quran?
There are 114 surahs. The most widely used count gives 6,236 verses. The Quran is also divided into 30 equal parts (juz) for reading.
Is the Koran the same as the Quran?
Yes. Koran is an older English spelling. Quran or Qur'an is closer to the Arabic pronunciation, and is the spelling most Muslims use today.
Can non-Muslims read the Quran?
Yes. The Quran often addresses all people ("O mankind"), and translations are widely available for anyone to read. Scholars differ on whether a non-Muslim may handle the Arabic mushaf itself, so many mosques give visitors a translation.
How long does it take to read the whole Quran?
The standard Madinah print has 604 pages. Reading one juz (about 20 pages) a day finishes it in 30 days, which is why many Muslims complete it during Ramadan.
What is the difference between the Quran and the hadith?
The Quran is the word of Allah. The hadith are reports of what the Prophet ﷺ said, did and approved, collected by scholars such as al-Bukhari and Muslim. Both are sources of Islamic teaching, but only the Quran is recited in prayer as revelation.
The rulings on this page are pending review by the scholars on our team.
Sources
- Quran 96:1-5, 2:2, 2:23, 12:2, 15:9, 25:1 and 56:79, translation by Sahih International.
- Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2910, graded hasan sahih by at-Tirmidhi.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 5027.
- On the language of recitation in salah: al-Marghinani, al-Hidayah, Bab Sifat as-Salah; Ibn Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar. The other schools are summarised from their standard manuals.
- On touching and reciting the mushaf: al-Kasani, Bada'i as-Sana'i; Ibn Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar, Kitab at-Taharah. The other schools are summarised from their standard manuals.
Quran: Arabic from the Tanzil Uthmani text, English translation by Sahih International. Hadith gradings are those of the hadith scholars named; where a hadith number is not given, the collection and narrator are cited instead.