The Language of the Qur'an and a Near Eastern Rip van Winkle

This paper will discuss the language of the Qur'an in the light of recent publications about the Syro-Aramaic origins of the Muslim Scripture. Parallels from Aramaic and Ancient North Arabian inscriptions will be adduced for comparison, and a number of specific Qur'anic examples will be examined, especially the case of a man whom God puts to sleep and revives a century later, which leads on to speculation about the inspiration for this figure in Near Eastern literature.

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