Madkhal fi Ulum al-Qiraat

Madkhal fi Ulum al-Qiraat (An Introduction to the Sciences of Quranic Readings, also published under the title Fi Ulum al-Qiraat: Madkhal wa-Dirasah wa-Tahqiq) is a contemporary handbook on the science of Quranic variant readings (Qiraat) by the Egyptian linguist and scholar al-Sayyid Rizq al-Tawil (d. 1419 AH / 1998 CE) Muqaddima fi Usul al-Baht…+1.

Background and Purpose

The author composed the work while serving as an associate professor in the Department of Linguistics at the College of Arabic Language at Umm al-Qura University in Mecca, after he was assigned to teach courses on the curriculum of qiraat Madkhal fi Ulum al-Qiraat+1. Al-Tawil designed the book to serve as an accessible introductory manual that provides a concise overview of the discipline and its literature for students, while also investigating critical foundational issues for researchers Madkhal fi Ulum al-Qiraat. He completed the work in Mecca on 26 Muharram 1405 AH (21 October 1984 CE), and it was published by al-Maktabah al-Faysaliyyah in 1405 AH (1985 CE) Madkhal fi Ulum al-Qiraat+1.

Contents and Structure

The book opens with an authorial preface and an introductory overview (tamhid) examining the definition of the Quran, its names, and its readings Madkhal fi Ulum al-Qiraat+1. The main text is divided into two primary parts:

• Part One: Readings and Readers (al-Qiraat wa-l-Qurra): Comprises four chapters Madkhal fi Ulum al-Qiraat:

  1. Fundamental Concepts: Defines the readings, their origins, where they were revealed, their standing, the causes of variation among them, and their written compilation Madkhal fi Ulum al-Qiraat+1.
  2. Accepted and Anomalous Readings: Details the criteria for sound readings (recurrent transmission [tawatur], conformity to Arabic grammar, and alignment with the Uthmanic orthography), followed by an examination of anomalous readings (al-shadhdhah), their legal status in prayer, and their evidential use in Islamic jurisprudence, Arabic grammar, and lexicography Madkhal fi Ulum al-Qiraat+1.
  3. The Readers: Provides biographical accounts of notable Quran reciters among the Companions, the Successors, and their followers, including the Ten canonical readers and their transmitters, as well as the four non-canonical readers (al-Hasan al-Basri, Ibn Muhaysin, al-A'mash, and al-Yazidi) Madkhal fi Ulum al-Qiraat+1.
  4. Recitation of the Quran: Covers the principles and forms of tartil Madkhal fi Ulum al-Qiraat+1.

• Part Two: Studies in the Readings (Buhuth fi al-Qiraat): Also comprises four chapters Madkhal fi Ulum al-Qiraat:

  1. The Seven Ahruf and the Seven Readings: Explores the prophetic tradition regarding the revelation of the Quran upon seven modes (ahruf) and its relationship to the canonical readings Madkhal fi Ulum al-Qiraat.
  2. General Rules and Individual Variants (al-Usul wa-l-Farsh): Discusses recurring phonetic rules—such as the pronunciation of the glottal stop (hamzah), vowel inclination (imalah), and open vowels (fath)—alongside specific textual variants Madkhal fi Ulum al-Qiraat+1.
  3. Uthmanic Orthography (Rasm al-Mushaf): Presents historical examples of the script and addresses polemical doubts and objections Madkhal fi Ulum al-Qiraat.
  4. Grammatical and Linguistic Argumentation (al-Ihtijaj li-l-Qiraat): Examines linguistic justifications and defenses formulated for various readings Madkhal fi Ulum al-Qiraat.