INTRODUCTION TO THE QURAN

the pages would be intricately decorated with gold and silver. The calligraphers were well rewarded for their work and this led to there being different schools of calligraphy in Iraq, Egypt, Syria and Iran. It is the modified Maghribi style of writing, developed in the period of the Ottoman Caliphs, which is now mostly in use. The Quran was revealed to give glad tidings to the righteous and a warning to transgressors. As early as the tenth century, wooden blocks were used to print the Quran. Moveable type was first used to print the Quran in Arabic in Germany in 1649. This was followed by copies printed during the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries by Muslims in Russia, Kazan, Iran and Turkey. The Early Translation of the Quran To introduce Islam to neighbouring lands, the Prophet Muhammad sent to their various rulers, letters containing passages from the Quran. The following was included in the letter to the Negus of Abyssinia: He is God besides whom there is no other deity. He is the sovereign Lord, the Most Pure, the Source of Peace, the Granter of Security, the Protector, the Mighty, the Subduer, the Supreme. Glory be to God, who is far above what they associate with Him. THE QURAN, 59: 23 These letters were translated either by the messengers; that is, the Prophet’s companions, or by the kings’ interpreters. In this way, parts of the Quran began to be translated during the Prophet’s own lifetime. Salman al-Farisi, a companion of the Prophet from Persia, translated the first Surah, al-Fatiha, into Persian. The first complete translations were done in Persian in the tenth century under the rule of the Samanid king. The first translation of the Quran into Latin was done in 1143 for Peter, the Abbot of the Monastery of Cluny, but was not published until 1543 at Basle. Over the centuries, this was followed by translations into German, Italian, Dutch, French and English. The first Muslim to translate the Quran into English was Muhammad Abdul-Hakim Khan of Patiala, India, in 1906. This was followed by a number of translations, the best of these being the translation with commentary by Abdullah Yusuf Ali (Lahore, 1934) and a translation by Muhammad Marmaduke Pickthall (Hyderabad, India, 1938).