The Seven Dialects

of the Quran

By: Ayman Ibn Rushdi Suwaid, PhD in

Arabic and Islamic Studies

Translation of the Interview

The Glorious Quran was without doubt revealed in the tongue of the Arabs. Allah the Most Exalted said in the Quran: “Which the trustworthy Gabriel has brought down * Upon your heart (O Muhammad) that you may forewarn them * In the manifest and clear Arabic language.” (Quran 26:193-195). Indeed the Glorious Quran is written and read in the Arabic tongue and language, and the Arabs in the time of revelation were as in modern times from diverse tribes whom agree in many of the vocabulary but differ in pronunciation (their phonetics). This is a normal phenomena which distinguishes one tribe from the other. It was for this reason that the Prophet Muhammad -praise and blessings be upon him- said: “Indeed this Quran was brought down in seven letters (dialects), all of them are accepted and sufficient, so read according to the way you were taught.” And indeed, every one of his companions taught according to the way he was instructed to read. In the following two generations succeeding the companions, men who specialized in the distinct reading modes and techniques appeared in different regions. As each scholar taught his mode and pronunciation, his distinct reading method was made famous. So if one was asked: Whose recitation are you following? The reply would be “I am upon Naafi's method” or “upon Ibn Katheer's method” (identifying the teacher). This does not mean that Naafi or Ibn Katheer had initiated these modes. It merely means that they abided to that precise recitation and pronunciation reported from the prophet - praise and blessings be upon him- and in result that certain mode was accredited to them. It’s the same when one says I am upon the Shaafiee or Hanbali methodology. It does not mean that the Islamic legislations that stemmed from Imam Shafiee’s teachings was of his own personal opinion. It only meant the certain methodology which he extracted the distinct Islamic rulings was accredited to him. In fact, all those who follow these four imams (leaders) clearly know they state their reference and source to be both the Quran and sunnah (prophetic teachings). The same is understood with the famous reciters of the Quran whom contributed their time to learn and then teach, accordingly the readings were accredited to them since they restricted themselves to that certain mode/recitation. These readers accurately documented and narrated their readings without the slightest alterations, without the slightest changes in even the diacritic marks. Such readers were many, as were the scholars in previous times. The scholars in the previous times were indeed many, but Allah decreed for the four infamous imams to have students that would document their words and report their jurisprudential teachings and so it spread while other teachings declined. Imam Al-Shafiee describes Layth bin Saad by saying that Al-Layth is more knowledgeable than Maalik, but his companions did not record his words and so it did not circulate amongst the public. The same applies to the reciters of the Quran since they were many, but the ones who had a greater number of students to report their reading modes were ten well-known imams. These were: 1.  The Imam Naafi' Al-Madani 2.  The Imam Abdullaah ibn Katheer Al-Makki 3.  The Imam Abu Amr Al-Basri 4.  The Imam Abdullaah ibn Aamir Ad-Dimashqi 5.  The Imam Aasim Al-Koufi 6.  The Imam Hamzah Al-Koufi 7.  The Imam Ali Al-Kisaai Al-Koufi 8.  The Imam Abi Jaafar Al-Madani 9.  The Imam Yaqoub Al-Hadhrami Al-Basri 10.The Imam Khalaf Al-Bazzar Al-Koufi These men are the ten reciters of the authentic reading modes of the Quran. When one mentions the ten reading modes of the Quran, then what is meant is the ten recitations that the previous imams reported. One might ask, if the Muslims in the vast Islamic lands are accustomed to these different modes. The answer is no. Most of these readings are documented and known by the scholars in the field and those whom were instructed directly through their masters and their numbers are sufficient to preserve these recitations in the Islamic world, praise is due to Allah for that. But the common Muslims, millions in number in the Islamic world, read according to the reading reported from the Imam Hafs from the Imam Aasim and his connection to the Prophet Muhammad -praise and blessings be upon him. On the other hand, the people in the Moroccan western region of Arabian lands read according to Imam Naafi's method, the imam of the people of Medina, whether be it that which was reported through Imam Qaloun or Imam warsh. Furthermore, in the Sudan and Hadhramaut (region in southern Yemen), they read according to Imam Hafs Ad-Douri (other than Hafs from Aasim). Imam Ad-Douri reported his recitation through Imam Abi Amr Al-Basri. This is the selected recitation in Sudan and Hadhramout, south of the Arabian Peninsula. These are the recitations that are wide spread amongst the public and are known to the scholars in the field, and which have reached us the people of the 20th century. Translated by: Academia-srt editor, on the topic of dialectology and the Arabic tongue.