Contents PART I Xl XVlll Introduction The Qur'an and Its Names 3 Chapter 1 The Authorship ofthe Qur'an 7 The authorship oJthe Gospels The authorship oftile Pentateluh Books held sacred by other religions Orienta/ists' claims about the authorship ojthe Qur'iin Claims that the Prophet was a poet Claims that the Qur'iin resulted from his imagination Claims that he was an epileptic Claims that he composed the Qur'iin helped byJewish and Christian sources Chapter 1 The Divine Composition ofthe Qur'an 18 The Qur'iinic literary style More Orie,ntalists' comments on the Qur'iinic style Comments by modern Arab linguists The frequency ojoccurrence ojalphabetical letters Individllal letters at the beginning ojSurahs The subject matter oJthe Qur'iin Conclllsion Chapter J First Writing ofthe Qur'an The reve/atiom came down in instalments Early memorizing and writing ojthe Qllr'iin Historical evidence Chronological and textllal orders 35 CClIIlmlS Titles (~f tllf: Siiralls Tile textllal order was kllowII in tile Propllet's time Collection ofti,e written texts Issuing oftile statldard copies Present-day Mu~-~afs Sciences and arts related to tile Qur'iin Chapter 4 On the Qur'anic Textual Order Attempted changes itl tlte texlllal order Rodwell's hypotllesis jeffery's aSSlfmptions Illvellted criteria for Meccan and Medinall revelations Meccall alld Medinall verses combitled Links between consecutive Siiralls Chapter 5 English Translations of the Qur'an Historical note Assessment ofEnglish tramlatiotls Mistaken English translations 1 Nescience ofthe Arabic word's exact meatling 2 Awareness ofonly one shade ofmeaning 3 Confilsion between diffirent Arabic words 4 Limited knowledge ofArabic eked out witlt figments of imaginatiotl 5 Mistaking Arabic fer Hebrew or Syriac 6 Some con}Usion with Hebrew Traditions 52 64 Chapter 6 Judgements based on Mistaken Interpretations 80 The Names ofAllah Islam and Hanyjism Intermediaries Asserted in Islam Islam accused ofpolytheism Imagined contradictions Assertions ofthe Middle Ages More recent assertions J Chapter 7 Abrogations How the subject is mentioned in the Qur'an Some Orietrtalists' comments VI 93 Book The Sublime Qur'an and Orientalist author :