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Bible Encyclopedias
Koran
Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature
or often Anglicized (when, as properly, it has the article prefixed) Al-Coran, but more precisely Quaran. The emphasis is not on the first syllable, as many persons place it. The word is from the Arabic root karaa, and means literally the reading-that which ought to be read; corresponding nearly to the Chaldee Keri (q.v.). The book is also called Furqan, from a root signifying to divide or distinguish; Sale says to denote a section or portion of the Scriptures; but Mohammedans say because it distinguishes between good and evil. It is furthermore spoken of as Al-Moshaf, "The Volume," and Al-Kitarb, "The Book," by way of eminence; and Al-Dhikr, " The Admonition." The Koran is the Mohammedan Book of Faith, or, as we may say, Bible.
Divisions. — It consists of one volume, which is divided into one hundred and fourteen larger sections or portions called Suras, which signifies a regular series. These suras or sections are not numbered in the original, but bear each its own title, which is generally some keyword in the chapter, or the first word therein. In cases where it is taken from near the close of the chapter, it is probable that that portion was originally uttered first. Some suppose these titles to have been matter of revelation, as also the initial Bism-illah, "In the name of God," etc., which is likewise placed as a prefatory phrase in all Moslem books, but in the Koran stands at the head of each chapter or sura. There are twenty-nine chapters which begin with certain letters, and these the Mohammedans believe to conceal profound mysteries, that have not been communicated to any but the prophet; notwithstanding which, various explanations of them have been proffered. For these curious but unimportant theories, see Sale, p. 43. The chapters or suras do not now stand in the order in which they were originally uttered. As the Mohammedan theory concerning the reconciliation of inconsistencies in the Koran is that the later revelation abrogates any former one with which it conflicts, and as some two hundred and twenty- five of the passages of the Koran are admitted thus to have been cancelled, their chronological order frequently becomes a matter of considerable importance. The real order in point of time, and, therefore, authority, as now determined, after immense painstaking, is the following: Suras numbered 103, 100, 99, 91, 106, 1, 101, 95,102,104, 82, 92, 105, 89, 90, 93, 94, 108, were delivered in the order in which they are here set down in the first stage of Mohammed's prophetic career. Suras numbered 96,112, 74, 111, belong to the second period of his career, and extend to his fortieth year. Those numbered 87, 97, 88, 80, 81, 84, 86, 110, 85, 83, 78, 77, 76, 75, 70, 109, 107, 55, 56, belong to the third period. Numbers 67, 53, 32, 39, 73, 79, 54, 34, 31, 69, 68, 41, 71, 52, 50, 45, 44, 37, 30, 26,15, 51, cover the time from the sixth to the tenth year of Mohammed's mission. Numbers 46, 72, 35, 36, 19, 18, 27, 42, 40, 38. 2, 20, 43, 12, 11, 10, 14, 6, 64, 28, 23, 22, 21, 17, 16, 13, 29, 7, to the fifth stage. The date of numbers 113, 114 is not known. Numbers 2, 47, 57, 8, 58, 65, 98, 62, 59, 24, 63, 48, 61,4, 3, 5, 33, 60, 66, 49, 9, are those delivered at Medina. Most of the others were delivered at Mecca, though some were delivered partly at Medina and partly at Mecca. The Koran is further subdivided by the equivalent of our verses, called Ayat, which means signs or wonders, as the secrets of God's attributes, works, judgments, etc. It is again arranged in sixty equal portions called Heizb, each of which is divided into four equal parts (or into thirty portions twice the length of the former, and subdivided into four parts), for the use of the readers in the royal temples or in the adjoining chapels where the emperors and great men are interred. Thirty of these readers belong to each chapel, and each reads his section every day, so that the whole Koran is read through once a day (Sale, p. 42). Contents. — The matter of the Koran is exceedingly incoherent and sententious, the book evidently being without any logical order of thought either as a whole or in its parts. This agrees with the desultory and incidental manner in which it is said to have been delivered. The following table of the suras (condensed from Sale) will give the reader some idea of its miscellaneous range of topics. Many of the headings, however, are, as above explained, simply catch-titles, taken from some prominent word or expression. Most of the contents are preceptive merely; some are a travesty of Bible history; others recount in a vague and fragmentary way incidents in the prophet's personal or public career; and a few are somewhat speculative. Generally these elements are indiscriminately mixed in the same piece.
1. Preface ............. 7
2. The Cow........... 286
3. The Family of Imran 200
4. Women ........... 175
5. The Table .......... 120
6. Cattle............ 165
7. Al-Araf ........... 206
8. The Spoils......... 76
9. The Declaration of Immunity [Conversion] .............. 139
10. Jonas .............. 109
11. Hud ............... 123
12. Joseph ............. 111
13. Thunder ........... 43
14. Abraham ........... 52
15. Al-Hejra [TheFlight] 99
16. The Bee............ 128
17. The Night Journey. 110
18. The Cave ........... 111
19. Mary................ 80
20. T. H................ 134
21. The Prophets ...... 112
22. The Pilgrimage .... 78
23. The True Believers. 118
24. Light ...........74
25. Al-Forkan [The Koran] 77
26. The Poets .......... 22
27. The Ant ............93
28. The Story.......... 87
29. The Spider......... 69
30. The Greeks......... 60
31. Lokman ............ 34
32. Adoration .......... 29
33. The Confederates .. 73
34. Saba ................ 54
35. The Creator [Angels] 45
36. Y. S. [I. S.] ......... 83
37. Those who rank themselves in Order [The Classes] ......... 182
38. S................... 86
39. The Troops ...... 7
40. The True Believers. 85
41. Are distinctly Explained [Explanation]............. 54
42. Consultation....... 53
43. The Ornaments of God [Dress] ...... 89
44. Smoke .............. 57
45. The Kneeling...... 36
46. Al-Ahkaf ........... 35
47. Mohammed[The Battle] ............... 38
48. The Victory ........ 29
49. The Inner Apartments [Sanctuary] 18
50. K ................... 45
51. The Dispersing [Breath of the Winds] ..... 60
52. The Mountain ...... 48
53. The Star ........... 61
54. The Moon .......... 55
55. The Merciful....... 7
56. The Inevitable Judgment]............. 99
57. Iron................ 29
58. She who Disputed [The Complaint].. 22
59. The Emigration [The Assembly] ........ 24
60. She who is tried[The Proof] ........... 13
61. Battle Array ....... 14
62. The Assembly [Friday] ............. 11
63. The Hypocrites [Impious] ............ 11
64. Mutual Deceit [Knavery] ............... 18
65. Divorce ............. 12
66. Prohibition.......... 12
67. The Kingdom....... 30
68. The Pen............. 52
69. The Infallible [The inevitable Day] ....... 52
70. The Steps [The Classes] ................ 44
71. Noah ................ 28
72. The Genii ........... 2
73. The Wrapped up [The Prophet in his Dress] 19
74. The Covered [The Mantle]................ 55
75. The Resurrection.... 40
76. Man ................. 31
77. Those who are sent [The Messengers]...50
78. The [Important] News 40
79. Those who tear forth [The Ministers of Vengeance] .........46
80. He Frowned [The Frown] ............42
81. The Folding up[Darkness]...............29
82. The Cleaving asunder 19
83. Those who give short Measure or Weight 36
84. The Rending asunder 23
85. The Celestial Signs.. 22
86. The Nocturnal Star.. 17
87. The Most High..... 19
88. The Overwhelming [The Gloomy Veil] . 26
89. The Daybreak .......30
90. The Territory [The City] .............. 20
91. The Sun............. 15
92. The Night........... 21
93. The Brightness [The Sun in Meridian].. 11
94. Have we not opened? [The Exposition], ... 8
95. The Fig-[tree] ....... 8
96. The Concealed Blood [The Union of the Sexes] ..............19
97. Al-Kadir [The Celebrated Night] ...... ,5
98. The Evidence ....... 8
99. The Earthquake..... 8
100. The War Horses ... 11
101. The Striking [Day of Calamities] ........10
102. The Emulous Desire of Multiplying[Love of Gain] ........... 8
103. The Afternoon ...... 3
104. The Slanderer....... 9
105. The Elephant...... 5
106. Koreish ............. 4
107. Necessaries [The Succoring Hand] ...... 7
108. Al-Kitthar .......... 3
109. The Unbelievers..... 6
110. Assistance........... 3
111. Albu Laheb.......... 5
112. The Declaration of God's Unity....... 4
113. The Daybreak [God of Morning] ........ 5
114. Man ................. 6
Manner of Preservation. — Mohammed's professed revelations were made at intervals extending over a period of twenty-three years, when the canon was closed. We have no certain information about the manner of their preservation during the prophet's life. Many persons wrote them on palm- leaves and various other substances which were conveniently at hand. A writer in the Calcutta Review (xix, 8) says: " In the latter part of his career the prophet had many Arabic amanuenses; some of them occasional, as Ali and Othman, others official, as Zeid ibn-Thabit (who also learned Hebrew expressly in order to conduct Mohammed's business at Medina). In Wackidy's collection of dispatches the writers are mentioned, and they amount to fourteen. Some say there were four-and-twenty of his followers whom he used more or less as scribes, others as many as forty-two (Weil's Mohammed, p. 350). In his early life at Mecca he could not have had these facilities, but even then his wife, Khadija (who could read the sacred Scriptures), might have recorded his revelations; or Waraca, Ali, or Abu- Bekr. At Medina, Obey ibn-Kab is mentioned as one who used to record the inspired recitations of Mohammed (Wackidy, p. 277½). Abdallah ibn- Sad, another, was excepted from the Meccan amnesty because he had falsified the revelation dictated to him by the proph. et (Weil's Iolohammed). It is also evident that the revelations were recorded, because they are frequently called throughout the Koran itself Kitab, ' the writing,' i.e. Scriptures." Besides this, however. there were many persons who recited these sayings daily, considering their repetition to be a duty, and persons generally repeated some parts of them. It was said that some Could repeat literally every word of the Koran. The recital of a portion of it was essential in every celebration of public worship, and its private perusal was urged as a duty and considered a privilege. No order was, however, observed in their perusal, in public the imam or preacher selecting according to his own pleasure.
Collected by Zeid. — Many of the best memorizers of the Koran were slain in battle at Yemana, whereupon Omar advised caliph Abu-Bekr, "as the battle might again wax hot among the repeaters of the Koran," that he should appoint Zeid to collect from all sources the matter of the Koran. This Zeid did from date-leaves, tablets of white stones, breasts of men, fragments of parchment and paper, and pieces of leather, and the shoulder and rib bones of camels and goats. Sale supposes that Zeid did not compile, but merely reduced to order the various suras. This, however, was but imperfectly done. Zeid's copy was committed to the care of Hafza, the daughter of Omar.
Recension in Othnman's Time. — A variety of expression either originally prevailed, or soon crept into copies made from Zeid's edition. The Koran was "one," but if there were several varying texts where would be its unity? There were marked differences between the Syrian and Iranian readings. The caliph Othman ordered Zeid and three of the Koreish (q.v.) to reproduce an authorized version from the copy of Hafza, and this was subsequently sent into all the principal cities, all previous copies being directed to be burned. This recension being objected to in modern times on the ground Cihat the Koran is incorruptible and eternal, and preserved from all error and variety of readings by the miraculous interposition of God, the Mohammedans now say that it was originally revealed in seven different dialects of the Arabic tongue, and that the men in question only selected from these. The variations in the copies of Othman's edition are marvellously few. There is probably no other work which has remained twelve centuries with so pure a text.
Authenticity. — It would appear difficult, notwithstanding the care taken since Othman's day, to prove that the Koran has been entirely uncorrupted. The Shiite Mussulmans say that Othman struck out ten sections, or one fourth part of the whole; and the Dahbistan, translated by Shea and Iroyer (ii, 368), contains one of the sections said to have been struck out. Again, while the Koran was in the care of Hafza, one of Mohammed's wives, we cannot say that it was not in any way tampered with. The balance of evidence, however, is probably against the views of the Shiite sect. At the time of the recension there were multitudes who had transcripts, and who remembered accurately what they had heard. There was bitter political enmity to Othman, headed by All, who would gladly have seized on any such flaw or failure. Abu-Bekr was a sincere follower of Mohammed, and all the people seem to have been earnest in their endeavor to reproduce the divine message. The compilation was made within two years of the prophet's death, while yet there were official reciters and tutors of the Koran in every quarter. The very fragmentary and patchwork character of the arrangement of the book bears marks of honesty; yet passages revealed at various periods may, after all, not be all included. The very call for the recension of Othman's is, on the other hand, urged as evidence of acknowledged corruption.
The Koran as a Revelation. — The Mohammedan theory is that the Koran is eternal and uncreated, and was first written in heaven on a table of vast size, called " the Preserved Table;" that a copy of this volume was made on paper, and brought by Gabriel down to the lowest heaven in the month of Ramadan, from which copy the work was at various times communicated to the prophet. The whole was shown to Mohammed once a year, and the last year of his life he saw it twice.
The evidence relied on to prove its inspiration, so far as'found within the Koran itself, is as follows:
1. That Mohammed was foretold by Jesus in these words: "Oh children of Israel, I bring glad tidings of an apostle who shall come after me, whose name shall be Ahmad" (sura 6). Ahmad is from the same root, and has almost the same meaning as Mohammed. A passage of the New Test. (John 16:7), in which Christ promises to send the Comforter, is wrested for the same service, as also are Psalms 1:2, and Deuteronomy 33:2.
2. Some suppose that the Koran contains accounts of miracles worked by Mohammed. The 24th sura contains what some Mohammedans interpret as an account of Mohammed's splitting the moon. The Mohammedan critics are not agreed themselves as to whether the prophet there speaks in the future or past tense. Whether he does not merely affirm that the moon shall be split before the day of judgment admits of question. Mohammed elsewhere in the Koran distinctly and repeatedly denies that he could or would work miracles (sura 13-17, etc.). The night journey of Mohammed from Mecca to Jerusalem (sura 17), and the conversion of the jinns or genii who heard him reading the Koran (sura 46, 72), are also referred to as miracles by the Mohammedans, but it is doubtful if the language in the Koran was intended to assert what it has since been made to support. Various passages are referred to by Mohammedans to show that their prophet foretold future events -as the account in the 30th sura about the Greeks being overcome; but the commentators are not agreed as to the reference (sura 24, 27-48).
3. But the predictions in the Koran were never referred to as evidence of Mohammed's inspiration. The real testimony to the inspiration of the Koran appealed to throughout by Mohammedans is the book itself. The author of it everywhere appeals to it as a literary miracle: it is " uncreated" and "eternal" (Sale, p. 46); it could not have been composed by any but God (Sale, p. 169); Mohammed challenges men and genii to produce a chapter like it (Sale, p. 169-235); no revelation could be more self-evident (Sale, p. 136); it contains all thing, necessary to know (Sale, p. 221, 273); it was so wonderful that it was traduced by its enemies as a piece of sorcery (Sale, p. 166), as a poetical composition (Sale, p. 364); it was not liable to corruption (Sale, p. 175), and should not be touched by the ceremonially unclean (Sale, p. 437).
The Style of the Koran. — It is difficult to make a precise judgment of its merits. It was written in a dialect of Arabic which may now almost be called a dead language. It is composed in a kind of balanced prose, with frequent rhyming terminations; a sort of composition once greatly admired by the Syrian Christians, but in Europe neither the poetic cadence nor the jingling sound is deemed suitable to prose composition. Some learned Mussulmans have not considered it remarkably beautiful (Pocock's Specimen Hist. Arabum, ed. White, p. 224; Maracci, Prodromnts, 3:75; Lee's Martyn's Tracts, p. 124, 135). Gibbon is probably too severe in his judgment if his remarks have reference to its manner and not to its matter, when he calls it an " inccoherent rhapsody of fable, and precept, and declamation, which sometimes crawls in the dust, and sometimes is lost in the clouds" (Decl. and Fall Roman Empire, i, ip. 365, Milman's edition). Some affirm that Hamzah benAhmed wrote a book against the Koran with at least equal elegance; and Maslema another, which surpassed it, and occasioned a defection of a great number of Mussulmans. There is perhaps little reason to differ from the representations of Mr. Sale when he says, " The Koran is usually allowed to be written with tile utmost elegance and purity of language in the dialect of the Koreish, the most noble and polite of all the Arabians, but with some mixture, though very rarely, of other dialects. It is confessedly the standard of the Arabic tongue, and, as the more orthodox believe, and are taught by the book itself, inimitable by any human pen (though some sectaries have been of another opinion), and therefore insisted on as a permanent miracle, greater than that of raising the dead, and alone sufficient to convince the world of its divine original" (Koran, p. 43).
Relation to the Bible. — The Koran maintains that revelation is gradual, and that God has given written revelations to many prophets from time to time, none of which are extant except the Pentateuch of Moses, the Psalm s of David, and the Gospel of Jesus; that God revives, and republishes or reproduces from time to time his revelations through his prophets, according to the necessity of the case. The three revelations-Jewish, Christian, and that of the Mussulman — are equally inspired and divine. The preceding Scriptures are, however, to be interpreted according to the latest revelation, and are liable to have their ordinances modified in conformity therewith. A distinction is thus made between belief in and obligation to obey these precepts. The Jewish and Christian Scriptures are variously spoken of as " the Word of God," "Book of God," Taureat, etc.; they are described as " revelations made by God in ages preceding the Koran." Exhortations are given "to judge" in accordance therewith. Mohammed himself was sent " to attest the former Scriptures," etc. (Compare passages in the following suras: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 16, 17, 19, 20, 21, 23, 25, 26, 28, 29, 32, 34, 35, 37, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 45, 46, 47, 48, 53, 54, 61, 62, 66, 74, 80, 87, 98.)
There are various correspondences with these Scriptures, as in the accounts of the fall of Adam and Eve, the narratives of Noah and the deluge, of Abraham, Sarah, Lot, Isaac, Moses, Joseph, Zacharias, John the Baptist, etc. The contradictions are, however, innumerable: e.g. one of Noah's sons was drowned in the Delluge (sura 11); the wife of Pharaoh saved Moses (sura 28); the wind was subject to Solomon (sura 21); Solomon was driven from his kingdom; devils built for Solomon, other devils dived for him (ibid.); thousands of dead Israelites were raised to life (sura 3); Ezra and his ass died for a hundred years, and were then raised to life (sura 2); the grossest being that Jesus was not crucified, and is not the Son of God (sura 4).
Sources of Jewish and Christian Elements. — The Jewish and Christian elements in the Koran are readily to be accounted for. Jews from all parts of Arabia were in yearly attendance at the great fairs of Ocatz, Mujanna, Dzul,iMajaz. etc., and great mercantile journeys were made from Mecca to Syria, Yemen, and Abyssinia at least once a year. Christianity was established in these quarters. Some Arabs even reached much further. (thman ibn-Huweirith, a. citizen of Mecca, went to Constantinople, and subsequently returned a baptized Christian. Arabs frequented the Christian courts of Nira and Ghassan, which adjoined Arabia on the north. Mohammed himself had been twice to Medina. More than a hundred of his followers found refuge in the Christian court of Abyssinia, both before and after the Hegira. Embassies were sent by Mohammed to the Roman and Persian courts, to Abyssinian and other Christian chiefs. "Mohammed had connection with Jews and Christians of every quarter of the civilized world" (Muir's Testimony, p. 118 119). There are, moreover, many prominent individual cases : Zeid was of Syria, among whom Christianity prevailed. He was captured and sold into slavery, and was presented to Khadija shortly after her marriage to Mohammed, who loved him, and adopted him as his own son. He learned Hebrew. Waraca, a cousin of Khadija, was a convert to Christianity, acquainted with the religious tenets and sacred Scriptures of the Jews and Christians, copied or translated some portion of the Gospel in Arabic or Hebrew, and was of the family of Mohammed. The slaves generally of Mecca knew something of Christianity and Judaism (Muir's Mohammed).
Mohammedans, however, do not admit that our present Scriptures are trustworthy, but believe them to have been interpolated and otherwise corrupted. They quote a great number of passages of the Koran to establish this. Mr. Muir (Testimony, p. 119 sq.) nevertheless shows that there is no charge in the Koran against the Christians on this account, and that even those against the Jews are of " hiding, concealing" the whole, and not of corrupting.
Doctrines and Morals.-The contents of the Koran as the basis of Mohammedanism will be considered under that head, while for questions more closely connected with authorship and chronology we must refer to MOHAMMED. Briefly it may be stated here that " the chief doctrine laid down in it is the unity of God, and the existence of but one true religion, with changeable ceremonies. When mankind turned from it at different times, God sent prophets to lead them back to truth; Moses, Christ, and Mohammed being the most distinguished. Both punishments for the sinner and rewards for the pious are depicted with great diffuseness, and exemplified chiefly by stories taken from the Bible, the apocryphal writings, and the Midrash. Special laws and directions, admonitions to moral and divine virtues, more particularly to a complete and unconditional resignation to God's will, legends, principally relating to the patriarchs, and, almost without exception, borrowed from the Jewish writings (known to Mohammed by oral communication only, a circumstance which accounts for their often odd confusion), form the bulk of the book, which throughout bears the most palpable traces of Jewish influence" (Chambers, Cyclop. s.v.).
Outward Reverence. — The Mohammedans regard the Koran with great esteem, never holding it below the girdle nor touching it without purification. It is consulted on all matters of importance, and is the basis of the entire civil code and procedure of all Mohammedan countries. Sentences from it are inscribed on their banners: they are written on tissue paper, and are suspended in gold and silver lockets from their necks. The materials of its binding are often costly, being emblazoned with gold and precious stones. Mohammedans much dislike to see the book in tie hands of "infidels," as they call all but Islamites. The bazaars or streets in which it is sold in Constantinople have become almost as sacred as mosques, and the dealers in the Koran have come to be as much reverenced as the preacher. Kemal Bey has recently had photographed a famous copy of the Koran, written nearly two hundred years ago (in 1094 of the Hegira) by Hafiz Osman, from the MSS. of Al-Kari, a celebrated doctor (Friend o' India, Nov. 2, 1871; also Athenceum). Multitudes of Mussulmans know the entire Koran by heart; these are called Hafiz, and are much venerated in consequence.
Translations, Commentaries, Editions, etc. — Various versions of the Koran have been made. Mohammedans do not object to this (Sale, p. 50). Of French translations we have those of Du Rover, Savary (with notes, 1783), Garcia de Tassy (1829), and Kassi Mirski (1840). In Latin there is an early one (A.D. 1143) by Retenensis, an Englishman (Basle, 1543), and an Italian one from it-both condemned by Sale. The Latin translation of Maracci (1698) is much quoted by authors. In German we have those of Megerlin (1772),Wahl (1828), and Ullmann (1840). In English there is Rodwell's (1862), and the excellent one with notes by George Sale (first edit. 1734; last, Lond. 1861); also Lane's Selections from the Koran (Lond. 1843, 12mo). Besides these there are a great number of Persian, Turkish, Malay, Hindustani, and other translations, made for the benefit of the various Eastern Moslems. Of concordances to the Koran may be mentioned that of Fltigel (Leipz. 1842), and the Nujum al-Furkan (Calcutta, 1811).
The Koran has been commented upon so often that the names of the commentators alone would fill volumes. Thus, the library of Tripoli, in Syria, is reported to have once contained no less than 20,000 commentaries. The most renowned are those of Samachshari (died 539 Hegira), Beidhavi (died 685 or 716 Hegira), Mahalli (died 870 Hegira), and Sovuti (died 911 Hegira). The American Orientai Society has in its library at New Haven a superior copy of the Persian Commentary on the Koran, by Kamal ed-Din Husain (2 vols. in one, folio). For a lull list of these and the Oriental translations and editions of the Koran, see Trubner's pamphlet, A Catalogue of Arabic, Persian, and Turkish Books printed in the East (Egypt, Tunis, Oudh, Bombay, etc.). (See ARABIC LANGUAGE).
The principal editions are those of Hinkelmann (Hamburg, 1694), Maracci (Padua, 1698), Fligel (Leipzig, 3d ed. 1838, a splendid one), besides many editions (of small critical value) printed in St. Petersburg, Kasan, Teheran, Calcutta, Cawnpore, Serampore, and the many newly erected Indian presses.
Literature. — In addition to the above, special reference may be made to W. Muir, The Testimony borne by the Koran to the Jewish and Christian Scriptures (Allahabad, India, 1860); Prof. Gerock, Christologie des Koran (Hamburg, 1839); Muir, Life of Mahomet (Lond. 1860), vol. iv (the first volume being almost entirely occupied with a discussion of the sources available for such a biography); a valuable article in the Calcutta Review, vol. 19; the Journal Asiatique, July, 1838, p. 41 sq.; De Tassy, Doctrines et devoirs de lt Religion Musulmane tires du Coran; White (Bampton Lectures), Comparison of Mohammedanism and Christianity; Neal, Islamism, its Rise and Progress (2 vols. 12mo-valueless); Letters to Indian Youth, by Dr. Murray Mitchell, of Bombay; Life and Religion of Mohammed, in accordance with the Shiite Traditions of the Hlezat al- Kulud (translated from the Persian by Rev. J. L. Merrick, Boston, 1850); Noldeke Theodor), Gesch. d. Quoran (Gotting. 1860); Well, Hisiorische Einleit. in den Koran (Bielf. 1844); Weil, Mohammed der Prophet sein Leben u. s. Lehre (Stuttg. 1843, 8vo); Sprenger, Leben u. Lehre von Muhammed (Berlin, 1861); Kremer, Alfred von, Gesch. d. herrschenden Ideen des Islams (Lpz. 1868); Perceval (Caussin de), Essai sur l'histoire des Arabes, avant Islamisme, pendant l'epoque de Mahomet, et jusqu'a la reduction de toutes les tribus sous la loi Mussulmane (Paris, 1847-8, 3 vols. 8vo); and especially Series of Essays on the Life of Mohamnmed, and Subjects subsidiary thereto, by Seyd Ahmed Khan Bahader (London, 1870); Amer. Presb. Rev. Oct. 1862. p. 754; Revue des deux Mondes, Sept. 1,1865. On the Christology of the Koran, see the Studien u. Krit. 1838-1847; Kitto, Journal Sacred Liter. 28:479; Lond. Quart. .Review, Oct. 1869, p. 160 sq. (J. T. G.)
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McClintock, John. Strong, James. Entry for 'Koran'. Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature. https://www.studylight.org/encyclopedias/eng/tce/k/koran.html. Harper & Brothers. New York. 1870.
