universe (46:3). This period lies within the purview of God’s omniscience; it can be lengthened or shortened only by His direction (35:4). It can also be elided with the Mother of the Book (umm al-kitab; see below), a relationship depicted in 13:38–39.
ʿalamin — “universe” (1:2 – genitive plural of ʿalam, world), denoting the fact that all the “worlds” created by God ultimately comprise a unity; also rendered as “all peoples” (3:33), “all the worlds” (5:20, 115), “all worlds” (5:28; 10:10, 37; and 12:104), “[created] beings” (29:6), “creatures” (29:10, 28), and “peoples” (37:79). In each case, the sense of the surrounding passage dictates the choice of translation. At 1:2, the original Arabic refers to ʿalamun (nominative pl. of ʿalam), literally, “the worlds, or all worlds”; it connotes “universe” because it covers the spectrum of creations in the heavens and earth, land and sea, while at the same time including other creatures who are nonhuman, both jinn (see below) and angels.
amr — literally, “command” (16:2), but also “clear signs” as in 2:87, 253; 5:110; 16:2; 40:15; 42:52; 65:12; and 97:4.
al-asmaʾ al-husna — “the Beautiful Names” / asmaʾ Allahi al-husna: “the Beautiful Names of God.” The Beautiful Names, sometimes known as the Most Beautiful Names or the Beautiful Divine Names, are invoked in prayer by multiple names. Some have said that the Beautiful Names number ninety-nine, while others reckon that they are beyond calculation; in either instance, they are lodestones of memory and pious mimesis, both in the Quran and in Muslim ritual devotion. In this rendition, the Beautiful Names have been capitalized in every instance where they occur or can be inferred. For further details, see pages li–lvii as well as The Beautiful Names (page 534).
ayat — literally, “signs” (of God and God’s power), but also “verses” or “words” (of God), as in 3:112–13. In one case (26:128), the singular aya means “altar” or “monument.”
barzakh — a Persian word. At 23:100 and 25:53, it’s rendered as “barrier,” but at 55:20, it’s rendered as a “limit,” since it is both a barrier and a bridge, not mixing yet connecting two distinct elements or states or levels of existence.
dhikr — “remembrance” (of God or the Quran), “reminder,” or “message.” It is used almost three hundred times in reference to either God or the Quran.
din — “reckoning” or “religion.” As discussed in the note for 1:4, in the phrase malik yawm al-din it is clearly the final day or the day of reckoning, with the promise of reward or punishment. Elsewhere, the word is best rendered as “faith” (e.g., 9:11, 122). Another example of din as “reckoning” occurs in 37:20, “day of reckoning,” similar to yawm al-qiyama, “day of resurrection.”
furqan — 2:53; 3:2 and 25 (passim), with multiple meanings. Often translated as “measure” or “criterion,” furqan is a technical term indicating an absolute dividing line or demarcation between two opposites or binaries, especially the good and the bad.
al-ghaib — what lies beyond human knowing, i.e., “the unseen,” as in 2:33; 6:50, 59; 7:188; and 13:9.
hanif — “one pure in faith” (3:67, 95) or “monotheistic in faith” (10.105 and also 16:120–23). It is the antonym of kafir (see under kufr, below).
haqq/haqqa — “truth” or “reality,” but also “right” or “duty.” Haqq can refer not just to truth but the possession of right, as in 9:13, 146, and 33:37, where God is cited as having “more right” to be feared than others. In terms of duty, see 2:180, where making provision for one’s survivors is “a duty upon those who are mindful of [the One] God.”
Iblis — see Shaytan below.
al-insan — “person” (36:77), “man” (55:3), or “humankind” (12:5 and 55:14, 33). To be gender inclusive, insan has often been rendered as “humans” (instead of the singular) or “humankind.” Also see ahl under ahl al-kitab, above.
islam — “submission” / muslim: “one who submits” (to God). See, however, 5:3, where the name “Islam” is used; see also 2:128 and 3:85. The root verb, s-l-m, refers both to peace (salam) and submission (islam). In the period when the Muslim movement had not yet coalesced into a community aware of itself as such, the emphasis was on submitting to God and to God’s will, both as individuals and as a group. Multiple references to muslimun (i.e., “muslims”) are to those who submit from every tradition honoring the One God, not solely to those who follow Muhammad and later become part of Islam.
jinn — “spirits.” Neither angelic nor human, yet both at once. They abound in literary circles of the premodern world, with their equivalent in English being “genie.” They can be either evil or good, depending on circumstance. See especially suras 55 and 72.
kufr — “disbelief” or “lie,” but also “ingratitude.” Hence a kafir is a disbeliever and kafirin are liars, but all are, firstly, ungrateful. The contrast is between kufr and shukr (“gratitude”), as in 2:152: “Show thanks to me, and do not be ungrateful.”
al-mathal — “parable” (36:13), “simile,” or “comparison” (36:78).
muqattaʿat — “disconnected” / al-huruf al-muqattaʿat: “disconnected letters.” These Arabic letters that appear at the beginning of several suras have become the subject of extensive commentary, with occasional efforts to translate them (as in Sura 36, Ya Sin). They are often termed mystical or mysterious letters whose meanings are known only to the Lord of all that is seen and unseen. There is a suggestive tone of authority in several suras; it comes in the phrase right after the opening letters. In 2:2 we are told that the Book “provides guidance for those mindful of the Divine”; elsewhere it can refer to the Book as clear and decisive (e.g., suras 15, 36, 38, and 50) or to the process of revelation (e.g., suras 3, 7, and 40–46). Because this last group (40–46) all start with the same letters (ha and mim), they are often called the Hawamim.
muslim — “one who submits” (to the will of God). See islam above on the variability of islam/muslim as both terms evolved during the early decades of the Quranic revelation.
muttaqi — “one mindful of God.” Also see taqwa below.
nas — “people,” “man,” “humankind” (10:2, 11, 19, 21, and 23; 24:3; and 114 passim), but also “human beings” (10:44), or “humans” (10:44). See ahl under ahl al-kitab, above.
naskh — “abrogation” (2:106 and 3:7). The replacement of one verse by other verses, it has become the basis for juridical efforts to see shifts within the Quran at several points. However, other commentators have disputed whether the Quran itself changes or if it instead challenges each reader/believer/submitter to explore depths of meaning not readily apparent in God’s Word. See also 3:7 for the Quran’s own distinction between verses clear in meaning and those deemed allegorical or metaphorical. One needs to be constantly aware of how images, such as the Hand of God (e.g., 48:10) or the Face of your Lord (e.g., 55:27), are metaphorical rather than literal.
qawm — “peoples” (10:74) or “nation” (10:75). The Quran speaks of humankind as one people (in 2:213), but as many elsewhere: 5:48, 11:118, 16:93, 42:8, 43:33, and especially 10:19. Also see ahl under ahl al-kitab, above.
ruh — “spirit.” Suras 4:171, 16:2, 17:85, 19:17, 40:15, 42:52, 58:22, and 78:38 all include reference to ruh al-quds (“holy spirit”), not be confused with “the Holy Spirit,” a central component of the Christian doctrine of the Trinity (eschewed by Muslims). Wherever the text refers to the Arabic ruh al-quds (literally, “spirit of the holy” or “holy spirit”), Gabriel is the agent.
Shaytan — Iblis is another name for Shaytan (Satan), the enemy of humankind. Iblis’s refusal to bow down to Adam is cited in several passages: 2:34, 7:11, 17:61, 18:50, 20:116, and 38:74–75.
sihr — “magic” (5:110 and 20:71, 73), “magician” (20:69 and 38:4), “magicians” (20:70), “sorcery” (6:7, 11:7, 20:63, 37:15, 43:30, and 54:2), “sorcerer” (43:49 and 51:39, 52), “manifest sorcerer” (10:2), or “sorcerers” (20:63). See also 5:110, 27:13, 34:43, 46:5, 61:6, and especially 10:75–81.
sura — sura, referring to the sections into which the Quran is divided (24:1). See also 10:38 and 11:13.
taqwa — “mindfulness of God” / muttaqi: “mindful of God or in 2:2 “mindful of the Divine.” Also rendered as “fear of God” (9:108–9, 115) and “God-fearing” (19:97 and 41:18).
umm al-kitab — literally, “the Mother of the Book.” In 3:7 and 13:39 it is rendered as “the origin of the Book,” while in 43:4 it is described as “the archetypal Book” that records all deeds of humankind, and is also the source of all scripture.
umma — “community” (7:34, 10:19, and 43:21), “nation” (10:47, 49, and 16:120), or “people” (5:48 and 42:8). The plural is umam. Note two further uses—11:8: illa ummatin maʿdudatin, “for a definite term”; and 12:45: baʿd ummatin, “after all this time.” See also ahl under ahl al-kitab, above.
zabur — the Psalms (4:163, 17:55, and 21:105), but also “scriptures” in general (3:184; 16:44; 23:53; 26:196; 35:25; and 54:43, 52).

The Beautiful Names of God

The Beautiful Names (al-asmaʾ al-husna) or the Beautiful Names of God (asmaʾ Allahi al-husna) recur throughout the Quran. They have been extracted and counted as ninety-nine in devotional practice and in numerous commentaries though their actual usage exceeds ninety-nine. We have capitalized their various forms in all but a few cases where doing so might compromise our general aim of producing a readable and fluent translation.
Abiding Forever—al-Baqi: 55:27
The Absolute—al-Samad: 112:2
Accepting of repentance – Qabil al-tawb: 40:3
The Accomplisher/Doer—al-Faʿʿal: 11:107; 85:16
The [All] Aware/Ever Aware—Khabir/al-Khabir: 2:234, 271; 3:153, 180; 4:94, 128, 135; 5:8; 6:18, 73, 103; 9:16; 10:19, 50, 111; 17:30, 96; 22:63, 24:30, 53; 25:58; 27:88; 31:16, 29, 34; 33:3, 34; 34:1; 35:14, 31; 42; 27, 48:11; 49:13; 57:10; 58:3, 11, 13; 59:18; 63:11; 64:8; 66:3; 67:14; 100:11
The All Encompassing—al-Muhit: 2:19; 3:120;