The Syro-Aramaic Reading of the Koran

The Syro-Aramaic Reading of the Koran
Author	Christoph Luxenberg
Original title	Die Syro-Aramäische Lesart des Koran
Language	English
Subject	Qur'anic studies
Genre	Non-fiction
Publisher	Hans Schiler Publishers
Publication date	1 May 2007
Publication place	Germany
Media type	Print (Hardcover)
Pages	352
ISBN	3-89930-088-2, 78-3899300352 Parameter error in {{ISBNT}}: invalid character
OCLC	124038162
Dewey Decimal	297.1/22 22
LC Class	PJ6696 .L8913 2007

The Syro-Aramaic Reading of the Koran: A Contribution to the Decoding of the Language of the Koran is an English-language edition (2007) of Die syro-aramäische Lesart des Koran: Ein Beitrag zur Entschlüsselung der Koransprache (2000) by Christoph Luxenberg.

The book received considerable attention from the popular press in North America and Europe at its release, perhaps in large part to its argument that the Quranic term Houri refers not to beautiful virgins in paradise (Jannah), but to grapes there.^[1]

The thesis of the book is that the text of the Quran was substantially derived from Syriac Christian liturgy, arguing that many "obscure" portions become clear when they are back-translated and interpreted as Syriacisms. While there is a scholarly consensus Classical Arabic was influenced by Syro-Aramaic, since the latter used to be the lingua franca of the Ancient Near East, Luxenberg's thesis goes beyond mainstream scholarly consensus and was widely received with skepticism in reviews. The book asserted that the language of the early compositions of the Quran was not exclusively Arabic, as assumed by the classical commentators, but rather is rooted in the Syriac language of the 7th century. Luxenberg's premise is that the Syriac language, which was prevalent throughout the Middle East during the early period of Islam, and was the language of culture and Christian liturgy, had a profound influence on the scriptural composition and meaning of the contents of the Quran.^[2]

^ Reynolds, "Quranic studies and its controversies", 2008: p.16
^ Giving the Koran a history: Holy Book under scrutiny / Critical readings of the Muslim scripture offer alternative interpretations of well-known passages Archived 2007-05-20 at the Wayback Machine, Lebanon Daily Star (July 12, 2003): "Luxenberg asserts that Koranic Arabic is not Arabic at all, at least not in the sense assumed by the classical commentators. It is written, rather, in the dialect of the Prophet's tribe, the Meccan Quraysh, and heavily influenced by Aramaic. Luxenberg's premise is that the Aramaic language—the lingua franca of the Prophet Mohammed, the language of culture and Christian liturgy—had a profound influence on the Koran. Extensive borrowing was necessary simply because at the time of the Prophet, Arabic was not yet sophisticated enough for scriptural composition."

[GSRQSaIC2008:16-1] Reynolds, "Quranic studies and its controversies", 2008: p.16

[2] Giving the Koran a history: Holy Book under scrutiny / Critical readings of the Muslim scripture offer alternative interpretations of well-known passages Archived 2007-05-20 at the Wayback Machine, Lebanon Daily Star (July 12, 2003): "Luxenberg asserts that Koranic Arabic is not Arabic at all, at least not in the sense assumed by the classical commentators. It is written, rather, in the dialect of the Prophet's tribe, the Meccan Quraysh, and heavily influenced by Aramaic. Luxenberg's premise is that the Aramaic language—the lingua franca of the Prophet Mohammed, the language of culture and Christian liturgy—had a profound influence on the Koran. Extensive borrowing was necessary simply because at the time of the Prophet, Arabic was not yet sophisticated enough for scriptural composition."

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