DECONSTRUCTING THE HISTORICITY OF THE QUR'AN JOHN WANSBROUGH'S PERSPECTIVE: A HERMENEUTIC STUDY OF ISLAMIC PHILOLOGICAL SUSPICION AND CRITICISM
Abstract
This article discusses John Wansbrough's radical approach to viewing the Qur'ān as a historical construction that developed in the context of sectarian polemics between Jewish, Christian and proto-Muslim communities. Through a historical-critical approach, philological and literary analysis, Wansbrough rejects the traditional narrative of Qur'ānic revelation and codification agreed upon by the majority of Muslims. He treats the Qur'ān as the discursive product of early Muslim communities living within the theological, social and political dynamics of the Levant and Iraq. Employing a hermeneutic methodology of suspicion, Wansbrough emphasizes the importance of critiquing classical Islamic sources such as hadith and sirah, and tracing the Qur'ān's intertextuality with Biblical texts. This article uses a qualitative-descriptive approach based on a desk study of the works of Wansbrough and his followers, as well as responses from Muslim scholars. The results show that although Wansbrough's approach was highly controversial and widely rejected by Muslim scholars, his contribution opened up a new paradigm in the critical study of the Qur'ān in the Western academic world. This article also emphasizes the importance of developing a Qur'ānic study methodology that is able to respond to orientalist challenges without losing the integrity of Islamic scholarship
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References
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Aljanada, Rose, and Aseel Alfaisal. "The Foreign Vocabulary of the Glorious Qur'an." International Journal of Language & Linguistics 6, no. 2 (2019). https://doi.org/10.30845/ijll.v6n2p7.
Arif, Syamsuddin. Orientalist & Diabolism of Thought. Gema Insani, 2008.
Armas, Adnin. Biblical methodology in the study of the Quran: a critical study. Gema Insani, 2005.
A'ẓamī, Muḥammad Muṣṭafá. The history of the Qur'anic texts from revelation to compilation: a comparative study with the old and new testaments. Gema Insani, 2005.
Bannister, Andrew G. An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an. Lexington Books, 2014.
Boullata, Issa J. Literary Structures of Religious Meaning in the Qur'ān. Psychology Press, 2000.
Burton, John. The Collection of the Qur'an. CUP Archive, 1977.
Creswell, John W. Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches. SAGE, 2014.
Crone, Patricia, M. A. Cook, and Michael Cook. Hagarism: The Making of the Islamic World. CUP Archive, 1977.
Daftary, Farhad. "Varieties of Islam." In The New Cambridge History of Islam, edited by Robert Irwin, 1st ed., 105–41. Cambridge University Press, 2000. https://doi.org/10.1017/CHOL9780521838245.005.
Donner, Fred M. "A Historian's View of the Qurʾān: IQSA Presidential Address – Palermo, Italy – September, 2022." Journal of the International Qur'anic Studies Association 9, no. 1 (November 11, 2024): 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1515/jiqsa-2024-0020.
———. "The Silent Qur'an and the Speaking Qur'an: Scriptural Sources of Islam between History and Fervor." Bustan: The Middle East Book Review 9, no. 2 (December 1, 2018): 179–87. https://doi.org/10.5325/bustan.9.2.0179.
Hawting, G.R. "John Wansbrough, Islam, and monotheism." Method & Theory in the Study of Religion 9, no. 1 (1997): 23–38. https://doi.org/10.1163/157006897X00034.
Hikmah, Ismi Wakhidatul, and Lianfin Safira Aulia. "Critical Discourse Analysis of Foreign Language Adoption in the Quran in Arthur Jeffery's The Foreign Vocabulary of the Quran." Jalsah: The Journal of Al-Quran and As-sunnah Studies 2, no. 1 (29 April 2022): 47–53. https://doi.org/10.37252/jqs.v2i1.228.
Hughes, Aaron W. Theory and Method in the Study of Religion: Twenty Five Years On. BRILL, 2013. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004257573.
Luxenberg, Christoph. The Syro-Aramaic Reading of the Koran: A Contribution to the Decoding of the Language of the Koran. Verlag Hans Schiler, 2007.
M.H, Panji Adam, S. Sy. Islamic Law: Concepts, Philosophy and Methodology. Sinar Grafika, 2021.
M.Hum, Dr Waston. A Critique of Positivism Philosophy: An Investigation of the Roots of the Humanities. Muhammadiyah University Press, t.t.
Muhammad Syahrul Mubarak and Erina Aolia Pangesti. "THE PARADIGM OF SKEPTICISM TOWARDS THE EXISTENCE OF THE HISTORICITY OF THE QUR'AN, JOHN WANSBROUGH'S PERSPECTIVE." BIDAYAH: STUDY OF ISLAMIC SCIENCES, DECEMBER 30, 2024, 198–215. https://doi.org/10.47498/bidayah.v15i2.2264.
Muslih, M Kholid, Muhamad Shofwan Muttaqin, and Amir Sahidin. "The Historical Concept of the Qur'an in the Eyes of John Wansbrough: An Overview of the Islamic Worldview." AL QUDS : Journal of Qur'an and Hadith Studies 7, no. 2 (August 7, 2023): 330. https://doi.org/10.29240/alquds.v7i1.5561.
Najib, Muhammad. "The Unification of the Ottoman Mushaf." Al-A'raf : Journal of Islamic Thought and Philosophy 13, no. 1 (June 5, 2016): 25. https://doi.org/10.22515/ajpif.v13i1.40.
Neuwirth, Angelika. "Structural, linguistic and literary features." In The Cambridge Companion to the Qur'an, edited by Jane Dammen McAuliffe, 97–114. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006. https://doi.org/10.1017/CCOL0521831601.006.
O'Connor, Andrew. "The Bible and the Qurʾan." In Biblical Studies, by Andrew O'Connor. Oxford University Press, 2024. https://doi.org/10.1093/obo/9780195393361-0322.
Pascoe, Jordan, and Mitch Stripling. The Epistemology of Disasters and Social Change: Pandemics, Protests, and Possibilities. Rowman & Littlefield, 2024.
Ph.D, Prof. Latipun, and Dr. Nurul Zuriah M.Si. CONTEMPORARY EDUCATION THE STUDY OF PHILOSOPHY AND THEORY. UMMPress, 2025.
Rahman, Fazlur. Major Themes of the Qur'an: Second Edition. University of Chicago Press, 2009.
Rahman, Mohammad Taufiq. Methodology of Religious Research. S2 Religious Studies Study Program UIN Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung, 2025.
Ricoeur, Paul. Hermeneutics and Humanities. IRCISOD, 2021.
Rippin, Andrew. The Qur'an and Its Interpretative Tradition. Taylor & Francis, 2022.
Salsabillah, Johana. "THE QUR'AN ACCORDING TO THE THOUGHT OF JOHN WANSBROUGH," t.t.
Sani, Azwar. "A STUDY OF JOHN WANSBROUGH'S THOUGHTS ON QUR'ANIC STUDIES: SOURCE AND METHODS OF SCRIPTURAL INTERPRETATION." Tanzil: Journal of Quranic Studies 6, no. 1 (October 17, 2023): 71–84. https://doi.org/10.20871/tjsq.v6i1.304.
Shihab, M. Quraish. Insight of the Quran: Thematic Interpretation on Various Questions of the Ummah. Scott, 1996.
Shoemaker, Stephen J. Creating the Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Study. University of California Press, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1525/luminos.128.
Supandi, Muhammad Diaz, and Ihwan Agustono. "Trends in Islamic Revisionist Discourse on Qur'anic Studies (A Critical Analysis of John Wansbrough's Thought)." Journal of Kawakib 5, no. 02 (December 30, 2024): 78–85. https://doi.org/10.24036/kwkib.v5i02.238.
Wansbrough, John E. Quranic Studies: Sources and Methods of Scriptural Interpretation. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1977.
———. The sectarian milieu: content and composition of Islamic salvation history. London oriental series, v. 34. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 1978.
Zahniser, A. H. Mathias. "Language of the Qur'an." In The Oxford Handbook of Qur'anic Studies, by A. H. Mathias
Zahniser, 275–93. edited by Muhammad Abdel Haleem and Mustafa Shah. Oxford University Press, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199698646.013.48.
Published
2025-07-31
How to Cite
Mustakim, A., Sholihah, F., Rahmah, A., & Martafia, N. (2025, July 31). DECONSTRUCTING THE HISTORICITY OF THE QUR’AN JOHN WANSBROUGH’S PERSPECTIVE: A HERMENEUTIC STUDY OF ISLAMIC PHILOLOGICAL SUSPICION AND CRITICISM. HUNAFA Jurnal Studia Islamika, 22(1), 80-98. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.24239/jsi.v22i1.837
Section
Articles
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
