Search In Fatwa

Dialect of Quraysh best of Arab dialects

Question

Was the dialect of Quraysh or of the Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, the best and most beautiful Arabic dialect at that time? And did the Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, have the noblest lineage of all people? I read in one of your answers that the Quran is not in the dialect of Quraysh. However, to me, it really matches the wording of how the Prophet and his Companions spoke. Please explain. May Allah reward you greatly.

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ) is His slave and Messenger.

We did not say in our fatwa that the Quran is not in the dialect of Quraysh, and Allah revealed the Quran in a clear Arabic language. Allah says (what means): {The Trustworthy Spirit has brought it down. Upon your heart [O Muhammad] - that you may be of the warners - in a clear Arabic language.} [Quran 26: 193-195]

The Arabs are different tribes, and the Quran was revealed in their languages and dialects, but the most eloquent of them is Quraysh, and it is for this reason that ‘Uthmaan, may Allah be pleased with him, said to the Companions when they wrote the Mus-haf (physical copy of the Quran), “If you differ with Zayd ibn Thabit on the Arabic of the Quran, then write it in the tongue of Quraysh, as the Quran was revealed in their tongue.” [Al-Bukhaari and others]

Mannaa’ Al-Qattaan said in his book Mabaahith fee ‘Uloom Al-Quran (Research on the Sciences of the Quran):

The Arabs had different dialects emanating from the nature of their Fitrah (natural disposition) in their sounds and letters ... Each tribe had a way of pronouncing many words that is different from the others, but Quraysh among the Arabs had many factors that made their dialect the foremost among the other branches of Arabic, as they were neighbors of the House [the Ka‘bah], provided the pilgrims with water, maintained Al-Masjid Al-Haraam [in Makkah], and supervised trade, so all the Arabs considered the dialect of Quraysh because of these characteristics and others to be as the father for their dialects. Therefore, it was natural that the Quran descended in the dialect of Quraysh upon the Prophet, who was from Quraysh, as a way of reconciling between the Arabs and in order to achieve the miracle of the Quran when it is in their hands, as it challenged them to come up with the same like it, or with one single surah like it. If the dialects of the Arabs vary about one single meaning in any manner of difference, then the Quran that Allah revealed to His Prophet Muhammad  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ) is indeed completely miraculous in the way its letters and modes of recitation encompass the purest of their dialects, making it easier for them to recite it, memorize it and understand it.

For more benefit, please refer to fatwas 5965and 182113.

There is no doubt that the Prophet  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ) was the best person in lineage.

Waathilah ibn Al-Asqa', may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that the Prophet  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ) said, “Verily, Allah granted eminence to Kinaanah from amongst the descendants of Ismaa‘eel, and He granted eminence to Quraysh amongst Kinaanah, and He granted eminence to Banu Haashim amongst Quraysh, and He granted me eminence from the tribe of Banu Haashim.” [Muslim]

Moreover, Al-‘Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that the Prophet  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ) heard some of what the people were saying (about him), so he ascended the pulpit and said, “Who am I?” They said, “You are the Messenger of Allah.” He said, “I am Muhammad ibn ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abdul-Muttalib. Indeed, Allah created the creation, and He put me in the best group of them, then He made them into two groups, so He put me in the best group of them, then He made them into tribes, so He put me in the best of tribes, then He made them into houses, so He put me in the best of houses, so I am in the best house and I am the best person (soul).’

Allah knows best.

Related Fatwa