The Holy Qur`an was revealed in Arabic. How can it be used by all people in the world?

Question: The Holy Qur`an was revealed in Arabic. How can it be used by all people in the world?

Answer:

Of the most important means of human communication are speech and writing. Any message – verbal or written – must be expressed in a human language in order to be understood by humans. God has used the special languages of different people and eras in sending his prophets and communicating his messages. That is, all the divine prophets spoke in the language of the people they were sent to invite, and their holy book was also in the same language. 1 The Holy Qur’an, like any other holy book, is not exempt from this rule. The first audience of the Holy Qur’an was the Prophet of Islam (PBUH) and the natives of the Arabian Peninsula. Therefore, obviously this book must be in Arabic. The Holy Qur’an itself says: that it speaks in clear (fluent and transparent) Arabic language.

But does writing or revelation of a book in a particular language make its audience exclusive to the people who know that language or could it be used by other peoples as well? Let’s take an example: Avicenna, a Persian-speaking sage whose reputation is known worldwide, wrote a book on medical science in Arabic called “The Canon of Medicine”. It is said that this book has been translated into many languages and has been taught in European scientific institutes for almost 700 years.3 Is it reasonable for the doctors of the world to say that because this book was written in Arabic, it can only be used by Arabic natives? Certainly, every medical scientist has either translated it to use this book or benefited from its translation in order to improve his knowledge. In other words, the Arabic language of this book has not prevented non-Arabic speakers from understanding its concepts. Now, when faced with the Holy Qur’an, which is a divine book and claims to be the guidance to mankind on the path to bliss, if one is looking to explore its concepts, they can simply use the translation.

The Holy Qur’an itself introduces its audience as the whole of humanity and states that it was revealed for everyone. For the sake of brevity, only one example of these verses is mentioned: Great and honorable is He (God) who sent down the Furqan – the separator of truth from falsehood (i.e. the Holy Qur’an) – on His servant to be a warning to the world.

Finally, it is necessary to mention that Arabic is one of the languages with a high level of influence. The brevity in expression, rhetoric and eloquence of this language, along with its lexical abilities and advantages, and its accuracy, have placed Arabic among the top languages in the world.5 The Holy Qur`an, which claims to contain the most important messages for all humans til the Day of Judgment, has used the platform of this language to communicate concepts and meanings.

References:

[1]

و ما أَرْسَلْنا مِنْ رَسُولٍ إِلَّا بِلِسانِ قَوْمِهِ لِيُبَيِّنَ لَهُمْ [ابراهیم/4]

/ And we did not send any messenger except [speaking] in the language of his people to state clearly for them. 14:4

[2]

بِلِسَانٍ عَرَبِيٍّ مُبِينٍ[شعراء/195]

In a clear Arabic language. 26:195 /

[4]

تَبارَكَ الَّذی نَزَّلَ الْفُرْقانَ عَلى‏ عَبْدِهِ لِیَكُونَ لِلْعالَمینَ نَذیراً فرقان/ 1

/ Blessed is He who sent down the Criterion upon His Servant that he may be to the worlds a warner – 25:1

[5] History of the Arabs, Philip Khuri Hitti, Macmillan International Higher Education, 2002