Re: What is the language of the Qur'an

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Subject  : Re: What is the language of the Qur'an

Comments:
: Hello Mohamed,

: Thanks for your mail. Unfortunately, it contained nothing pertinent to the item of the primordial language of the Qur'an.

: But let us look!

: : {I think that item is of less importance since nobody doubts that 
: : Jesus (usually) spoke Aramaic and the New Testament is written 
: : in Greek.}

: : Well, if it is not important to you that Jesus is from Palistine,
: : and the Bible is written in a language Contentants Away, then why 
: : even read the Bible.

: You should be a bit more careful. Where did I say that it would be of no importance to me that Jesus Christ "came from Palestine" ? By the way, a bit strange expression. I would prefer to say, he was a Jew and living in what later was called Palestine.

: You should have been a bit more careful in your second assertion, too: Not the Bible is written in Greek, but the New Testament. The Old Testament is written in Hebrew with some passages written in Aramaic.

: : Didn't any one in Palistine in the time of Jesus know how to write.

: Don't be silly! On the contrary, one has to realize the enormous importance of the Aramaic or (later) Syriac language and of its alphabet and literature to the Arabic alphabet and (religious) language.

: : If Jesus spoke to his disiples in Aramayic, why would they write 
: : it in Greek.

: I have no possibility to ask them. But the reason seems obvious: As I said before, they spoke and wrote to a Greek speaking public. The Greek language, the so called koine (which meeans "the common one"), was by far more important as medium of communication in the Eastern Mediterranian of those days than Aramaic. Even in Palestine the knowledge and usage of Greek was rather common.

: : We have many documents written in Aramayic, why not what Jesus taught.

: I just said it. But that doesn't exclude that there may have been documents in Aramaic, which however acquired less importance. The Greek of some parts of the New Testament displays a lot of Hebraisms (or: Aramaisms), which may be some traces of such documents. There are reports that the Gospel according to Matthew, indeed, had an Aramaic precursor. This matter is open to scholarly research.

: : If you are going to speak 1 language, why write in a completely forgien language.
: : Jesus came for the Children of Isreal{Mark 12:29}, why then would the Gospel be in Greek.

: I just said it.

: : Since this does not concern you

: Be careful: It's a matter of scholarly interest, but surely of no "concern".

: :... and you are willing to accept what ever the 
: : church hands you,

: How do you know?

: : ... I will adress your question.

: Thanks! Eventually!

: : {But what's about the primordial language of the Qur'an? }

: ...
: : Here are just a few sites that answer your concerns in detail 
: : with references, enjoy.

: I visited them. They are of different scholarly quality. The question of the primordial language of the Qur'an, however, isn't addressed there at all. That seems me striking. Both assertions are by no means new ones, neither the observation that Muhammad's environment didn't speak Classical Arabic, but some Arabic vernacular  nor Voller's hypothesis that the primordial language of the Qur'an was this vernacular -- contrary to what Islamic orthodox historiography tells us about that matter. Saifullah and others apparently havn't to say anything about the matter.

: I would be add the quality of this debate site, if you, Mohamed, eventually were prepared to present arguments which really are pertinent to the respective, particular item.

: Kind regards,
: Christoph Heger