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The angels Hārūt and Mārūt are mentioned in one brief, enigmatic verse in the Qurʾān, after Solomon is quoted: “The Satans disbelieved, teaching the people sorcery and that which was sent down to Babylon’s two angels, Hārūt and Mārūt; they taught no man without saying, ‘We are only a temptation; do not disbelieve’ ” (Q 2:102). The few elements included—that is, the names of the angels, the mention of Babylon, and their responsibility for the spread of magic—gave rise to various Islamic interpretatio…

The afterlife is one of the main themes of the Qurʾān, which states that every soul will taste death (Q 3:185) but makes only scanty and oblique references to the period between the death of the individual and the last things. The Qurʾān states that after the signs of the “last hour” and the annihilation of all creatures, people will be resurrected and judged on the Day of Resurrection ( yawm al-qiyāma, Q 2:85, passim) or the Day of Judgement ( yawm al-dīn, Q 15:35, passim). Details about this day, such as the blast of the trumpet ( al-ṣūr, Q 18:99, passim), the raising (or resurrection, al-baʿth, Q…

Lot (Lūṭ) was a prophet and messenger whose story is attested in several passages of the Qurʾān. Like the narrative of Noah, it constitutes a typical punishment story. 1. Lot in the Qurʾān A few passages introduce Lot along with or after the story of the angels visiting Abraham (Q 11:69–83, 15:49–74, 29:26–35); in other chapters his story stands on its own, and the angels appear as Lot’s guests (Q 7:80–4, 26:160–75, 27:54–8, 37:133–8, 54:33–40). Lot is described as a believer in the preaching of Abraham, with whom he set off fo…

Abū Righāl was a pre-Islamic figure identified in differing traditions either as a member of the Thamūd tribe who survived divine punishment or as a man of the Thaqīf who guided Abraha’s expedition towards Mecca but died before reaching his destination. In the tradition that identifies him as a man of the Thamūd, he is said to have survived briefly the divine punishment that destroyed the people who rejected Ṣāliḥ’s preaching. He was saved only because he was in Mecca at the time, but as soon as he left the holy territory, punishment a…

Āsiya is the name given in post-Qurʾānic literature to the wife of Pharaoh at the time of Moses. Although her name is not given in the Qurʾān, the wife of Pharaoh is mentioned twice (Q 28:9, 66:11) and is considered a model for all believers. According to some reports found in the major ḥadīth collections, Muḥammad emphasized the positive elements of Āsiya's nature, ranking her among the best of women, along with Mary (the mother of Jesus), Khadīja, Fāṭima, and ʿĀʾisha. According to Muslim traditions it was Āsiya herself or one of her slave girls who rescued Moses from the N…

Japheth is not mentioned in the Qurʾān. The Qurʾān mentions the story of Noah in several passages but offers little regarding his family. There is reference to a wicked wife (Q 66:10) and an impious son (Q 11:40–6), the latter usually identified in later traditions as Canaan or Yām. Japheth is named amongst the three sons of Noah (Shem, Japheth, and Ham) only in a few later reports and traditions relating mainly to the genealogies of peoples after the Flood. Few details about Japheth appear in Islamic literature. Japheth was one of seven or eight saved in the Ark (al-Ṭarafī…

The angel Isrāfīl (Seraphiel), who will blow the trumpet on the Day of Resurrection, is not named in the Qurʾān but is treated at length in eschatological treatises and books. In fact, of all the angels, Muslim traditions show a peculiar preference for four in particular: Gabriel (Jibrīl or Jibrāʾīl), Michael (Mīkāl), Isrāfīl, and the Angel of Death. According to the majority of the reports that mention him, God made Isrāfīl responsible for the trumpet that will sound on the Day of Resurrection, a…

Adam, according to Muslim tradition, was the first man and the first prophet of humankind. His name is mentioned in several passages in the Qurʾān and also in the expression “the sons of Adam” ( banū Ādam, Q 7:26, passim), a phrase that defines humankind, but he is not named in the Qurʾānic passages describing the creation of man from mud or clay. While the Qurʾān does not identify Adam explicitly as a prophet, and his name does not appear in those verses that list the prophets, other sources, such as the sayings of the prophet Muḥammad and the later traditions, include him among the prophets. The e…

Daniel (Dāniyāl) is not included among the pre-Islamic patriarchs and prophets that are mentioned or alluded to in the Qurʾān. Later religious, historical, and geographical literature does, however, preserve various confusing reports about at least two characters named Daniel, one resembling the sage mentioned in Ezekiel 14:14, the other living during the captivity of the Israelites. Early reports say that Daniel the Elder (al-akbar) lived after Noah and before Abraham and that he could predict events astrologically, for which reason a Book of divination (Kitāb al-jafr) was ascr…

Kanʿān is the name usually given by post-Qurʾānic Islamic traditions and literature to the son of Noah who was left behind and drowned in the Flood. The name is attested in early Qurʾānic commentaries (cf. Muqātil, 2:283–4), although a few sources maintain that his name was actually Yām. The Qurʾān does not name such a son but alludes to him in a few verses: “And Noah called to his son, who was standing apart, ‘Embark with us, my son, and be thou not with the unbelievers!’ He said, ‘I will take …

Benjamin (Binyāmīn) is the youngest brother of Joseph. The name is not mentioned in the Qurʾān, where he appears simply as “brother” in a few places in the sūra of Joseph (Q 12). At the beginning, all the other brothers state that Joseph and his brother were dearer to their father, Jacob, than were they (Q 12:8). Later on, when he is powerful in Egypt, Joseph asks the other ten brothers to bring his brother to him if they want further provisions (Q 12:59), and they do so, although Jacob is reluc…

Joshua (Ar., Yūshaʿ b. Nūn) is not mentioned in the Qurʾān, but, according to some exegeses, certain verses must allude to him. Most of the sources, beginning with the early commentaries, have identified Joshua as the servant (Ar. fatā) of Moses mentioned in Q 18:60, 62, in the story of the meeting between Moses and the mysterious figure al-Khiḍr (Muqātil, 2:592; al-Ṭabarī, Jāmiʿ, 15:271; al-Bukhārī, nos. 122, 4725–7). Other interpretations maintain that one of the two God-fearing men mentioned in Q 5:23 must be Joshua (Muqātil, 1:466; al-Ṭabarī, Jāmiʿ, 6:176). Joshua is also allud…

ʿAnāq is the name of a daughter of Adam. According to some reports ʿAnāq was born alone, with no twin brother, or, in other reports, she was Cain's sister, and he, after killing Abel, brought her to Yemen, where he married her (al-Kisāʾī, 233). She was said to be the first one to commit fornication and to act badly on earth and because of this she was later killed. Some traditions add particulars about her monstrous appearance, such as that she had two heads, or twenty fingers with two nails eac…

Muḥammad b. ʿAbdallāh al-Kisāʾī is the name of an unknown author to whom two extant works are attributed. The most famous is a collection of stories of the prophets (qiṣaṣ al-anbiyāʾ), and the other is ʿAjāʾib al-malakūt (“The marvels of the divine kingdom”), which is attested in several manuscripts and has been only partially edited and published. The lack of biographical information on al-Kisāʾī in Islamic sources and the data from manuscript attestations or other early sources do not permit the identification of al-Kisāʾī or allow his works to be dated with confidence. The author and…

The ʿAmālīq (Amalekites), were an ancient pre-Islamic people, not mentioned in the Qurʾān, who, according to Muslim reports, were among the first speakers of Arabic. Their name derives from their forebear ʿAmlīq (or ʿAmlāq), who was either a son of Ḥām, Shem, or Lud; a brother of Ṭasm and Jadīs; and was considered the first person to speak Arabic. The ʿAmālīq are referred to in various traditions. At the time of Hūd, the ʿAmālīq are mentioned as inhabiting the land of Mecca, where Abraham found them when he took Hagar and Ishmael there. Abraham also fou…

Baal (baʿl) is the name of a pagan deity or idol that is mentioned in the Qurʾān in connection with the story of Elijah (Q 37:125). Elijah was sent by God to eradicate from amongst his people the worship of the idol Baal, and this brief allusion to Baal and its story in the Qurʾān was developed further in later traditions and literature. A few more details about the idol are presented in traditional reports: it was of gold, twenty cubits tall, and had four faces (al-Thaʿlabī, al-Kashf, 8:159; al-Rāzī, 26:140), and it was crowned with hyacinths, pearls, and gems; it had four hundre…

Ahl al-Ṣuffa (“people of the bench”) or aṣḥāb al-ṣuffa (“those of the bench”) is the name given in ḥadīth reports and in Muslim literature to a group of Companions of the prophet Muḥammad who lived in the portico or vestibule, the ṣuffa, often translated as “bench” or “banquette,” of the Prophet's mosque in Medina. This portico was their only home. Sources make varying estimates as to how many of them there were, and their number changed over the years the Prophet spent in Medina. Reports variously mention sixty, seventy, and four hundred, while according to Ibn Taymiyya (d. 728/1328; Ahl al-…

Hāmān is mentioned six times in the Qurʾān, in connection with Moses. He is mentioned along with Pharaoh “and their soldiers” (Q 28:6, 8, in Arberry’s translation) and again, when Pharaoh, in addressing his council, says, “Kindle me, Hāmān, a fire upon the clay, and make me a tower, that I may mount up to the God of Moses” (Q 28:38). In another passage, Pharaoh orders him to build the tower so that he might “reach the cords, the cords of the heavens” (Q 40:36–7). In two other passages, Hāmān is …

Eve (Ḥawwāʾ), although never mentioned by name in the Qurʾān, is alluded to in a number of passages in relation to Adam. Her creation is attested in various passages where the Qurʾān states that God “created you of a single soul, and from it created its mate ( zawjahā)” (Q 4:1; cf. Q 7:189, 39:6, and 30:21). Here, as in other passages, she is alluded to as the spouse ( zawj) of Adam (20:117). God, in fact, made her his spouse so that “he might rest in her” (Q 7:189). God ordered Adam and his spouse to dwell in Paradise ( janna) and eat whatever they wanted except for the fruit of a particular t…

Amīna is the name given in Muslim traditions to a slave girl or other woman of Solomon. She is mentioned in later traditions and reports in connection with a mysterious episode of Solomon's life alluded to in the Qurʾān (38:34–5): God, wanting to test Solomon, put another person on his throne until Solomon asked for forgiveness. Exegetical reports connect her name in particular to the episode in which Solomon lost his signet ring for forty days and with it all his powers. It is said, for instance, that Amīna (or al-Amīna, according to al-Thaʿlabī in al-Kashf, 8:203) was one of Solomon's w…

ʿIzrāʾīl (or ʿAzrāʾīl) is the name given in Islamic eschatology to the Angel of Death, one of the most prominent of the angels. The religious literature as a whole usually mentions him along with Gabriel (Jibrīl or Jibrāʾīl), Isrāfīl, Michael (Mīkāl), and the carriers of the Throne of God, as the angels closest to God. He is referred to in only one Qurʾānic verse (32:11) as the “Angel of Death” (malak al-mawt), but later exegetical works and traditions ascribe to him the name ʿIzrāʾīl or ʿAzrāʾīl, which is most probably connected to Jewish or Christian onomastics. …

Hūd is the name of an Arabian prophet cited in the Qurʾān. His name gives the title to sūra 11. Four Qurʾānic passages (Q 7:65–72, 11:50–60, 26:123–40, and 46:21–6) repeat his story and mention him as the “Brother of the ʿĀd.” The dramatic confrontation between the ʿĀd and Hūd, described explicitly as a messenger sent to them, is the main topic in these passages. He tried to convince them to follow his preaching, reminding them of the benefits accorded to them by God and attempting to convince them of the ineffic…

Āṣaf b. Barakhyā is the name given in Muslim traditions to the minister or scribe of the king and prophet Solomon (Sulaymān). According to some exegetical reports he is identified as the “mere body” (jasad an ) that was placed upon Solomon's throne, according to Q 38:34, or as the one mentioned in 27:40, “who possessed knowledge of the Book” (alladhī ʿindahu ʿilm un min al-kitāb), meaning that Āṣaf knew the Mighty Name of God, or at least one of its letters. Later reports added further particulars. Āṣaf was said to be the one who wrote the letter that Solomon sent to the Quee…

Ishmael (Ismāʾīl), the biblical and Qurʾānic son of Abraham and Hagar, is mentioned in twelve Qurʾānic passages. In most of them he is simply named along with the other prophets, such as Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Q 2:133, 136, 140; 3:84; 4:163), or, alternatively and in different combinations, with Elisha, Jonah, Lot, and Dhū al-Kifl (Q 6:86; 21:85; 38:48). These verses usually function to underline the steadfastness of these men and their obedience to God and thus present their behaviour as a …

Cain and Abel (Ar. Qābīl wa-Hābīl) are the two sons of Adam and Eve hinted at in a Qurʾānic passage exhorting the Prophet to recite the story of two sons of Adam (Q 5:27). Each brother offered a sacrifice, but the offering of only one of them was accepted, because the other was not God-fearing. The latter promised to kill the former (Q 5:28–9) and did so (Q 5:30). Then God sent a raven that dug up the earth to show him how to bury the corpse of his brother, and the murderer cried “Woe is me! Am I …

Job (Ar., Ayyūb) is mentioned in two extended passages in the Qurʾān, 21:83–4 and 38:41–4; he is also mentioned, along with other prophets, in two other verses (Q 4:163, 6:84). The first of the long passages (Q 21:83–4) mentions Job’s invocation to God and the fact that God relieved him of his suffering and restored his family to him. The torments with which he was tested are only alluded to. The second passage touches on the same points, including Job’s invocation, followed by God’s decree rest…

Jacob was a prophet mentioned in several Qurʾānic verses. He is mentioned along with Abraham, for what they recommended to his sons (Q 2:132). His name appears after the names of Abraham, Ishmael, and Isaac (Q 2:136, 140, 3:84, 4:163) and, in some passages, before the names of other prophets, as representing the revelation given to Abraham and his progeny or in relation to prophecy. He is usually mentioned after Isaac: Isaac and his son Jacob and with their progeny were given to Abraham (Q 19:49…

Ham is included, in later reports, amongst the three sons of Noah (the other two being Shem, the oldest, and Japheth, the youngest; al-Rabghūzī, 67) who survived the Flood and landed with the Ark. The Qurʾān mentions the story of Noah in several passages but offers scant information regarding his family. In some passages, reference is made to a wicked wife (Q 66:10) and an impious son (Q 11:40–6), who is usually identified in later traditions as Canaan or Yām. His three sons helped Noah build th…

Islamic tradition and literature give various versions of the name of Jeremiah (Ar., Irmiyā/Irmiyāʾ, Armiyā, Urmiyā) and tell his story in various episodes. In some of these, his story overlaps with accounts of such figures as Ezra, Daniel, and Nebuchadnezzar. The name Jeremiah, as Irmiyā, is explained as the foreign, subsequently Arabicised, name of a prophet who lived in the times of Nebuchadnezzar (r. in Babylon c. 605 B.C.E. to c. 562 B.C.E.), Alexander II (r. in Macedon, c. 370–368 B.C.E), or other potentates (Sibṭ Ibn al-Jawzī, 543). He was from the tribe of Aaron (al-Ṭabarī, Jāmiʿ, …

ʿAzīz Miṣr (lit., “the mighty one of Egypt”) is the most common Arabic name for the Biblical Potiphar. The name is based on the title al-ʿazīz (“the mighty one”) given in the Qurʾān to the person who bought the prophet Joseph (Q 12:30, 51). He is mentioned in the Qurʾān (12:21) as the one “that bought him, being from Egypt” and entrusted him to his wife, telling her to “treat him hospitably” (Q 12:21). Joseph rose to a high-ranking position. His brothers came to Egypt and appeared before him, and without recognising him, they addressed him as al-ʿazīz (Q 12:78, 88), suggesting that the term…

Isaac (Isḥāq), the biblical and Qurʾānic son of Abraham and Sarah, is mentioned in sixteen Qurʾānic verses and particularly in listings of prophets quoted in the Qurʾān to better define Muḥammad’s prophethood and message. The name of Isaac appears, alternatively, along with those of Abraham and Jacob plus, in only some of these passages, Ishmael (Q 2:133, 136, 140; 3:84; 4:163; 6:84; 12:6, 38; 19:49; 21:72; 29:27; 38:45). Some of these verses extol the true belief and behaviour of these men, or …

Qārūn (the biblical Korah) is the protagonist of a Qurʾānic passage (Qurʾān 28:76–82) in which he is introduced as one “belonging to the people of Moses” who “became insolent to them.” God had accorded him such enormous treasures that their “very keys were too heavy a burden for a company of men” (Q 28:76). People urged him to act not with a view to this world but for the world to come, and he answered, “What I have been given is only because of a knowledge that is in me” (Q 28:78). He did not know…

The name Shuʿayb appears in the Qurʾān as an Arab prophet together with the tribulations afflicting his people that led to their destruction. Shuʿayb is also the name attributed to the father-in-law of Moses, alluded to in the Qurʾān and so named in exegetical and later sources. 1. Shuʿayb in the Qurʾān Shuʿayb is mentioned eleven times in the Qurʾān, where his story is dealt with in several passages (Q 7:85–93, 11:84–95, 26:176–91, 29:36–7) in which the tribulations of his people are described. Shuʿayb was sent to Madyan (biblical Midian) (Q 7:8…

Elisha (Ar. al-Yasaʿ) is considered a prophet in Muslim tradition and is mentioned twice in the Qurʾān among the upright and just men, in verses that also mention other prophetic figures. In Q 6:84, David and Solomon, Job and Joseph, and Moses and Aaron are mentioned among the descendants of Isaac and Jacob, and in Q 6:85–6, it is stated that “Zacharias and John, Jesus and Elias, all were upright men, and Ishmael, Elisha, Jonah, and Lot.” In a second passage (Q 38:48), Elisha is mentioned, along…

Hagar (Ar. Hājar) was the Egyptian servant girl of Abraham (Ar. Ibrāhīm) who gave birth to Ishmael (Ar., Ismāʿīl). Although the Qurʾān makes no reference to her, later traditions mention Hagar by her name or as the “Mother of Ishmael” (Umm Ismāʿīl), or in a general connection with Ishmael. According to the Islamic narratives, Hagar was given as a gift by the king of Egypt, and Sarah allowed Abraham to take Hagar (al-Thaʿlabī, 79–80). After the birth of Ishmael, however, Sarah became jealous and …

The events of the life of Noah, his family, and his people leading up to the Flood and what took place during and just after it are mentioned in ten Qurʾānic passages. God ordered Noah to build the Ark ( al-fulk, Q 11:38, al-safīna, Q 29:15), and his people passed by and laughed at him (Q 11:37–9). The Ark is described as “a well planket vessel well caulked” (Q 54:13) and as a “fully-laden ship” (Q 26:119). So, when the fate of Noah’s people was sealed, the gushing forth of the oven ( tannūr, Q 11:40, 23:27) was the sign of the beginning of the Flood. Noah received instruction from God …

'Annals of the Muslims' Giovanni Battista Rampoldi Date: 1822-6 Original Language: Italian DescriptionRampoldi’s major work was beyond doubt  Annali musulmani, which appeared in 12 volumes (the twelfth containing the indexes) between 1822 and 1826. Every volume includes a chronology at the beginning, followed by the text organised according to the years of the Christian era, plus notes to the text. The volumes cover the period from the birth of Muḥammad, given as occurring in 578, to the fall of Constantinople in 1453.  Annali musulmani was generally well received and also quo…

Date of Birth: 17 August 1761 Place of Birth: Uboldo, Lombardy Date of Death: 21 August 1836 Place of Death: Milan BiographyGiovanni Battista Ramboldi was born in Uboldo, Lombardy, in 1761. Only a few details are known about his life. He travelled in the Ottoman Empire when he was just over 20 years old and from 1784 he was in Greece, Turkey, Arabia, Syria, Palestine and Egypt among other places. No record of his travels is extant, and nothing is known about the reason for them, apart from some details of his personal life alluded to in the notes to his  Annali musulmani. When he was back in Mil…

Date of Birth: 6 August 1794 Place of Birth: Lonato, Lombardy Date of Death: 6 April 1861 Place of Death: Milan BiographyAndrea Zambelli was born in Lonato, Lombardy, into a noble family whose fortunes declined in the last years of his life. He received his primary education at the Collegio Cicognini in Prato and then studied law in Padua and graduated in Pavia on 17 June 1815. After that, he went to Milan, attending the school of Alta Legislazione (‘High Legislation’) headed by G.D. Romagnosi. He was appointed Prof…

‘Refutation of the Qur'an, in which the axe is laid to the root of Muḥammadan superstition’ Ludovico Marracci Date: Approximately 1680 Original Language: Latin Description The  Refutatio alcorani constitutes the second volume of the  Alcorani textus universus. It was published in Padua in 1698 and includes the Arabic text of the Qur’an followed by a Latin translation with annotations and refutations (26 pages of introduction, 838 pages of text and nine pages of index and corrections). Marracci dedicated the  Refutatio to Emperor Leopold I (r. 1658-1705), whose armies had…

‘On the political influence of Islam' Andrea Zambelli Date: 1851-9 Original Language: Italian DescriptionFollowing and accompanying his works on religions in the 1850s, Andrea Zambelli also published a number of short articles and Memorie (‘memoirs’ or 'communications’) that originally appeared in the Giornale dell’I.R. Istituto Lombardo di Scienze, Lettere ed Arti e Biblioteca Italiana and  Memorie dell'I.R. Istituto Lombardo di Scienze, Lettere ed Arti, the journals of the institute of which he was a member and had also been president. Inconsistencies in …

‘Introduction to the refutation of the Qur'an’ Ludovico Marracci Date: Approximately 1680 Original Language: Latin Description The  Prodromus ad refutationem Alcorani was published first in Rome in 1691 and subsequently reprinted in identical form as the first volume of Alcorani textus universus in Padua in 1698. The work, under the full title Prodromus ad refutationem Alcorani. In quo per quatuor praecipuas verae Religionis notas Mahumetanae Sectae falsitas ostenditur: Christianae Religionis veritas comprobatur. In quatuor Partes divisus: Auth…

Date of Birth: 6 October 1612 Place of Birth: Torcigliano di Camaiore, Tuscany Date of Death: 5 February 1700 Place of Death: Rome Biography Ludovico (Lodovico) Marracci is considered the major European scholar of the Qur’an in pre-modern times. He belonged to the order of the Chierici Regolari della Madre di Dio and held various offices and roles in Rome until his death in 1700. His knowledge of Oriental languages and Arabic underpins some of his works, in particular his involvement in the Arabic translation of the Bi…

A figure living at the time of Moses (q.v.) who is mentioned both in the Bible and the Qurʾān. He is described in q 28:76-82 and briefly mentioned in two other verses. Korah (Ar. Qārūn) is introduced as one of the people of Moses, yet one who treated them unjustly (q 28:76-82; see justice and injustice; oppression). God accorded him such enormous treasures that “its very keys (mafātiḥahu) were too heavy a burden for a company of men” (q 28:76) to carry. When people urged him to use his wealth (q.v.) for God's purposes and, with the world to come in mind (see eschatology ), he would answer that the…

Name of a messenger mentioned eleven times in the Qurʾān. His story is dealt with in a few passages (q 7:85-93; 11:84-95; 26:176-91; 29:36-7) where his vicissitudes with his people are described. According to the Qurʾān, Shuʿayb was sent to Madyan (q 7:85; 11:84; 29:36; see midian ). He exhorted his people (to whom, it is stated, a sign was sent; cf. q 7:85; 11:88; see signs ) to believe in God (see belief and unbelief ) and he urged them not to cheat people by altering weights and measures (q.v.; q 7:85; 11:84-5; 26:181-2; see also cheating ). He also summoned them not to engage in cor-¶ rupt behavi…

The father of Mary (q.v.), mother of Jesus (q.v.). ʿImrān is attested three times in the Qurʾān and Āl ʿImrān is the title of the third sūra. The name occurs incidentally in two passages of the narrative sections (see narratives ) which deal with the story of Mary and her mother, passages in which “the wife of ʿImrān” (q 3:35) and “Mary, ʿImrān's daughter” (q 66:12) are mentioned. The third passage, from which the title of the third sūra is taken, mentions “the family of ʿImrān” (q 3:33) which God chose — along with Adam (see adam and eve ), Noah (q.v.) and the family of Abraham (q.v.) — above all b…

The Qurʾān mentions the mysterious People of the Ditch (aṣḥāb al-ukhdūd) saying that “slain were the People of the Ditch — the fire abounding in fuel — when they were seated over it and were themselves witnesses of what they did with the believers” (q 85:4-7). The Qurʾān adds that they were tortured in this way only because they believed in God “to whom belongs the kingdom of the heavens and the earth, and God is witness over everything” (q 85:8-9). The expression “People of the Ditch” is the single detail of this whole passage that has been subject to differing interpretati…

An ancient tribe to whom the prophet Hūd (q.v.; q 7:65; 11:50; cf. 46:21) was sent. They are mentioned twenty-four times in the Qurʾān. The ʿĀd are described as a powerful tribe which existed after the people of Noah (q.v.; q 7:69). They were mighty and proud of their strength (q 41:15; cf. 26:128-9) as well as very tall of stature (q 7:69). The prophet Hūd was sent to the ʿĀd, but his preaching was largely unsuccessful (q 7:70-1; 11:53-4; 46:22). Other messengers were also sent to the ʿĀd, but they too were rejected (q 26:123). Hūd tried to convince his people to invoke God's interventi…

A prophet who is mentioned in two verses in the Qurʾān. In the first (q 6:86), Elisha (al-Yasaʿ) is cited together with Ishmael (q.v.), Jonah (q.v.) and Lot (q.v.), where it is said that they were elevated above the rest of creation (wa-kullan faḍḍalnā ʿalā l-ʿālamīna). Elisha is mentioned in a second verse (q 38:48), along with Ishmael and Dhū l-Kifl (q.v.), where it is said that “all are among the excellent” (wa-kullun mina l-akhyāri). The Qurʾān does not contain any details about his life and limits itself to mentioning his name together with those of other prophets (see prophets …

Name given to the protagonists of a long qurʾānic passage containing a version of the story of the seven sleepers of Ephesus. The Qurʾān states that the Men of the Cave (aṣḥāb al-kahf) and of al-Raqīm (see below) were among God's signs, and says they were youths who took refuge in a cave (q.v.) and invoked God's mercy (q.v.; q 18:9-10). God made them and their dog (q.v.) fall into a deep sleep (q.v.) for many years and then woke them from their slumber. The Qurʾān explains that they were pious youths fleeing from the idolatry (see idolatry and idolaters ) of their people and that they found re…

Term mentioned twice in the Qurʾān in connection with the expression aṣḥāb al-rass, “the people of al-Rass”: “We have prepared for the evildoers a painful chastisement. And ʿĀd (q.v.), Thamūd (q.v.) and the people of al-Rass, and between that, ¶ many generations” (q 25:37-8); “The people of Noah (q.v.) and the people of al-Rass, and Thamūd and Pharaoh (q.v.), and ʿĀd and the brothers of Lot (q.v.) cried lies before them…” (q 50:12). Although there are no other elements that help clarify who the people of al-Rass were, the fact that they are mentioned alongside othe…

Natural and temporary periodic reduction of sensation and consciousness. Sleep (nawm) is mentioned a number of times in the Qurʾān. According to q 25:47, “It is he [God] who appointed the night for you to be a garment and sleep for a rest, and day he appointed for a rising” (see day and night ). Sleep in the night is deemed to rest the body after a day's work and thus it is a gift from God almighty (see grace; gift and gift-giving). The concept had found expression already in q 78:9-11, “and we appointed your sleep for a rest and we appointed night for a garment and we appointed day for a livelihood” (see …

Bowing, an inclination of the head or a bending of the body in reverence; prostration, reclining with the face on the ground in humble adoration (q.v.). The two fundamental gestures of the ritual prayer, bowing (rukūʿ) and the more frequent prostration (sujūd) are mentioned numerous times in the Qurʾān. Many qurʾānic passages that refer to bowing (q 2:43; 5:55; 77:48) and prostration (q 4:102; 15:98; 25:64; 26:219; 50:40; 76:26; 96:19) allude to prayer (q.v.) and devotion in general. Other verses mention the two gestures together (q 2:125; 3:43; 9:112; 22:26; 22:77; 48:29), again evid…

Biblical prophet who figures in Islamic tradition. Ezekiel is not mentioned in the Qurʾān but exegetical literature claims a qurʾānic allusion to him at q 2:243 as follows: “Have you not considered those who went forth from their homes in the thousands for fear of death (see death and the dead )? God said to them, ‘Die!’ Then he gave them life (q.v.).” Qurʾānic exegesis and extra-canonical traditions of various origins have given a vivid description of the events to which this verse alludes, in connection with the story of the vision of the dry bones (cf. Ezek 37:1-14). According to some re…

A messenger (q.v.) sent to the people of Thamūd (q.v.), named nine times in the Qurʾān. His story is dealt with in a number of passages (q 7:73-9; 11:61-8; 26:141-59; 27:45-53; 54:23-31; 91:11-5), and in other verses mention is made of the people of Thamūd and their fate. The Qurʾān does not contain a complete narrative of the story of this messenger and the events that led his people to punishment and destruction, but it does mention (and occasionally repeats some details of) his mission among his people. Particular attention is given to the…

Name mentioned at the beginning of the qurʾānic version of the story of the Seven Sleepers (see men of the cave ), where the Qurʾān states: “Or do you think the Men of the Cave and al-Raqīm were among our signs (q.v.) a wonder?” (q 18:9). The isolated mention in this passage with no other specification or occurrences of the term prompted an abundance of exegetical explanations and interpretations. One tradition mentioned in some commentaries attests that al-Raqīm was one of the four words in the Qurʾān that Ibn ʿAbbās (d. ca. 68/688; see companions of the prophet; ḥadīth and the qurʾān) could n…

A messenger (q.v.) and prophet who is mentioned three times in the Qurʾān. In the first instance the name of Elijah (Ilyās) is cited along with those of Zechariah (q.v.), John (see john the baptist ) and Jesus (q.v.) with the statement that “all were of the righteous” (q 6:85). The name of Elijah is next mentioned at the beginning of a passage (q 37:123-32) that recounts his vicissitudes in the manner of ¶ other qurʾānic punishment stories (q.v.) involving the prophets and their peoples (see prophets and prophethood ). There Elijah is identified as one of the messengers, the one who c…