Version 1
: Received: 18 September 2024 / Approved: 19 September 2024 / Online: 20 September 2024 (10:54:36 CEST)
How to cite:
Yahyaoui, Y. Qurʾānic Exegesis and the Reshaping of Early Islamic History: A Case Study of Sura Q 107. Preprints2024, 2024091511. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.1511.v1
Yahyaoui, Y. Qurʾānic Exegesis and the Reshaping of Early Islamic History: A Case Study of Sura Q 107. Preprints 2024, 2024091511. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.1511.v1
Yahyaoui, Y. Qurʾānic Exegesis and the Reshaping of Early Islamic History: A Case Study of Sura Q 107. Preprints2024, 2024091511. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.1511.v1
APA Style
Yahyaoui, Y. (2024). Qurʾānic Exegesis and the Reshaping of Early Islamic History: A Case Study of Sura Q 107. Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.1511.v1
Chicago/Turabian Style
Yahyaoui, Y. 2024 "Qurʾānic Exegesis and the Reshaping of Early Islamic History: A Case Study of Sura Q 107" Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.1511.v1
Abstract
This study examines the historiography of early Islam by assessing the reliability of Qurʾānic exegeses as sources documenting the early history of Islam and the biography of the Prophet Muḥammad in Mecca. Focusing on Qurʾānic exegetical practices from late antiquity to the medieval period, this article argues that there is a significant discontinuity in how Qurʾānic exegeses align with the historical context of the Qur'an, especially in relation to Meccan sūras such as Q 107. Significantly, this challenges the continuity of tradition, the fundamental concept upon which the “Islamic sciences” are based. This discontinuity is herein revealed through a historical-critical analysis of the exegesis of Q 107:4 that demonstrates how Qurʾānic exegetical practices have reinterpreted and reshaped early Islamic history in response to the pressures of new identity formation and made Qurʾānic exegeses more reflective of the social and political contexts of the exegetes than of the historical milieu of the Qurʾān itself. This analysis contributes to the ongoing discussion of the role exegesis played in reshaping the history of Islam. Indeed, it emphasises the importance of critically evaluating these sources in order to uncover a more nuanced historical narrative of early Islam.
Keywords
Qurʾānic Exegesis; Qurʾānic Exegetical Practices; The Historical Context of the Qurʾān; Discontinuity; The Early Meccan Sūras
Subject
Arts and Humanities, Religious Studies
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
