of the Authorized English translation of the Quran by Dr. Rashad Khalifa
Why Was the Quran Revealed in Arabic?
We learn from 41:44
that the sincere believers have access to the Quran,
regardless of their mother tongue. The disbelievers, on the other hand,
are not permitted access to the Quran, even if they
are professors of the Arabic language (17:45, 18:57,
41:44, & 56:79).
Arabic is the most
efficient language in the world, especially when it comes to the precise
statement of laws. Since the Quran is a Statute Book, it was crucial that
such laws must be clearly stated. God chose Arabic for His Final Testament
because of the obvious reason that it is the most suitable language for
that purpose.
Arabic is unique
in its efficiency and accuracy. For example, the word "they" in English
does not tell you if "they" are males or females.
In Arabic there
is a "they" for the males, "HUM," and a "they" for the females, "HUNNA."
There is even a "they" for two males, "HUMAA," and a "they" for two females,
"HAATAAN." This feature does not exist in any other language in the world.
I came to appreciate
this efficiency of the Arabic language when I translated, for example,
2:228. This verse enjoins the divorcee to give up her own wishes to divorce
her husband, if she discovers that she is pregnant, and the husband wishes
to reconcile the welfare of the child takes a priority.
The efficiency of
the Arabic language was extremely helpful in stating this law. Any other
language would have made it almost impossible to point out whose wishes
are to be superseded, at least not in such a few words as we see in 2:228
.
The word "Qaalataa"
of 28:23, for
example, translates into four English words: "the two women said." Such
is the efficiency of the Arabic language.
Another possible
reason for choosing Arabic is the fact that "He" and "She" do not necessarily
imply natural gender. Thus, when God is referred to as "He," this does
not imply gender at all. God be
glorified; He is
neither male, nor female. The usage of "He" to refer to God in the English
language, for example, has contributed to a false image of God. This was
not helped by such distorted expressions
as "Father" when
referring to God. You never find such a reference to God in the Quran.
