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Brief History of Compilation of the
Qur'an
During the life of the Prophet (saas)
(570-632 CE)
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The Prophet (saas) used to recite
the Qur'an before angel Jibreel (Gabriel) once every
Ramadan, but he recited it twice (in the same order we
have today) in the last Ramadan before his death.
Jibreel also taught the Prophet (saas) the seven modes
of recitation.
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Each verse received was recited by
the Prophet, and its location relative to other verses
and surahs was identified by him.
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The verses were written by scribes,
selected by the Prophet, on any suitable object - the
leaves of trees, pieces of wood, parchment or leather,
flat stones, and shoulder blades. Scribes included Ali
Ibn Abi Talib, Mu'awiyah Ibn Abi Sufyan, Ubey Ibn
Ka'ab, Zayed Ibn Thabit.
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Some of the companions wrote the
Qur'an for their own use.
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Several hundred companions memorized
the Qur'an by heart.
During the caliphate of Abu Bakr
(632-634 CE)
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Umar Ibn Al-Khattab urged Abu Bakr
to preserve and compile the Qur'an. This was prompted
after the battle of Yamamah, where heavy casualties
were suffered among the reciters who memorized the
Qur'an.
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Abu Bakr entrusted Zayed Ibn Thabit
with the task of collecting the Qur'an. Zayed had been
present during the last recitation of the Qur'an by
the Prophet to Angel Jibreel (Gabriel).
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Zayed, with the help of the
companions who memorized and wrote verses of the
Qur'an, accomplished the task and handed Abu Bakr the
first authenticated copy of the Qur'an. The copy was
kept in the residence of Hafsah, daughter of Umar and
wife of the Prophet.
During the caliphate of Uthman (644-656
CE)
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Uthman ordered Zayed Ibn Thabit,
Abdullah Ibn Al Zubayr, Saeed Ibn Al-Aas, and
Abdur-Rahman Ibn Harith Ibn Hisham to make perfect
copies of the authenticated copy kept with Hafsa. This
was due to the rapid expansion of the Islamic state
and concern about differences in recitation.
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Copies were sent to various places
in the Muslim world. The original copy was returned to
Hafsa, and a copy was kept in Madinah.
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