Ancient Koran "Could Rewrite History Of Islam"

[url=http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/ancient-copy-koran-found-birmingham-6356152]Ancient Copy Of Koran Found In Birmingham Library 'Could Rewrite History Of Islam' - Mirror.co.uk[/url]

An ancient copy of the Koran found in a Birmingham library could rewrite the early history of Islam, experts believe.

Some of the world’s oldest fragments of the Muslim holy text were discovered by the University of Birmingham in July.

The pages of the Koran were kept with a collection of Middle Eastern books and lay undiscovered for almost a century.

Experts think the manuscript, written on sheep or goat skin, dates back to between AD 568 and 645.

The Prophet Muhammad, said to have received the revelations that form the Koran, lived between AD 570 and 632.

But now some historians controversially believe the Birmingham Koran could pre-date the Prophet.’

That would contradict most accounts of his life and legacy and may
“radically alter the edifice of Islamic tradition”.

If the dates are correct, the manuscript was made before the first formal text of the Koran is supposed to have been collated.

Experts say that is the equivalent of discovering a copy of gospel sayings that date back to the infancy of Jesus.

It would contradict beliefs held by the Salafist branch of Islam - whose offshoots include al-Qaeda and ISIS.

Historian Tom Holland said evidence is mounting that traditional accounts of Islam’s origins are unreliable or wrong.

He said: "It destabilises, to put it mildly, the idea that we can knowanything with certainty about how the Koran emerged.

“That in turn has implications for the historicity of Muhammad and the Companions (his followers).”

Keith Small, from the University of Oxford, said the Birmingham Koran could mean Muhammad did not receive a revelation from heaven.

He said if the radio carbon dates are correct "then the Koran, or at least portions of it, predates Muhammad.

The claims are strongly disputed by Muslim scholars.

Mustafa Shah, from the School of Oriental and African Studies, said: “The manuscript has consolidated traditional accounts of the Koran’s origins.”
Source: mirror.co.uk

What to say? The Koran was written down some time after the death of Muhammad. That too because those who have learnt the entire thing by heart were dying in wars. The word ‘Koran’ literally means recitation.

Interesting article Lady Eva. Thanks for sharing. I wish more information on this subject were available.

It is interesting, there’s an article here that goes into slightly more detail: [url=http://www.breitbart.com/london/2015/08/31/oldest-koran-destabilises-islamic-history-carbon-dating-says-it-pre-dates-mohammed/]http://www.breitbart.com/london/2015/08/31/oldest-koran-destabilises-islamic-history-carbon-dating-says-it-pre-dates-mohammed/[/url]

And some more commentary and snippets here: [url=http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2015/09/01/carbon-dated-quran-may-be-older-than-muhammad-challenging-islams-most-basic-tenets/]http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2015/09/01/carbon-dated-quran-may-be-older-than-muhammad-challenging-islams-most-basic-tenets/[/url]

The Bible has been subject to endless “reboots” :o) by people with their own interpretations, I wonder if this will cause the same effect further along?

Well,what a fitting announcement to make,right before Eid Al-Adha.:slight_smile:

Thank you Lady Eva!Very interesting!

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