An Analysis of the Role of Exegetical Narratives in Ṭabarī and Baghawī in Shaping Orientalists’ Doubts

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Associate Professor, Department of Islamic Studies, University of Tabriz

2 Master's degree in Qur'an interpretation and sciences, University of Tabriz

10.22034/jqopv.2025.19054.1392

Abstract

The claim of the Qur’an’s dependence on the Bible is one of the most significant topics of discussion among Orientalists, which has been purposefully and prominently raised in recent periods by scholars such as Geiger, Nöldeke, Montgomery Watt, Youssef Darreh Haddad, Richard Bell, and others. One of the main factors contributing to this misconception about the Prophet of Islam (peace be upon him) and the Qur’an’s alleged borrowing from the Bible is the presence of weak and incorrect material in some Islamic sources, as well as the infiltration of Isra’iliyyat (Israelite narratives) into Sunni exegeses. This has provided Orientalists with grounds to use these sources as evidence for their claims. Therefore, the main question of this research is: What role do the narratives in the exegeses of Ṭabarī and Baghawī play in Orientalists’ references to the claim of the Qur’an’s dependence on the Bible? The findings of this study, conducted using a descriptive-explanatory method and documentary analysis, reveal that the exegeses of Ṭabarī and Baghawī have been among the reference sources for Orientalists and have contributed to reinforcing this claim in areas such as the borrowing of laws and ethics, the Prophet’s teachers, the presence of foreign words in the Qur’an, shared historical stories, and the validation of certain narratives related to Qur’anic stories derived from the Old Testament. The results indicate that both exegeses have played a role in shaping this doubt, but the influence of Baghawī’s exegesis is significantly less compared to that of Ṭabarī.

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Main Subjects

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History

  • Receive Date: 14 July 2024
  • Revise Date: 31 August 2024
  • Accept Date: 06 November 2024

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