Investigating the Impact of Explicitation of the Situational Context on the Quality of Qur’ān Translation into English

Document Type : Original Research

Authors

1 Department of English Language, Imam Reza International University, Mashhad, Iran

2 Department of English Language, Baqir Al-Olum University, Qom, Iran

Abstract

Situational context plays a crucial role in translation studies. In Qur’ān translation, understanding Asbāb al-Nuzūl (occasions of revelation) is essential, as misinterpretations may arise without it. This qualitative study explores the impact of situational context explicitation on the quality of English translations of the Qur’ān. Four Shia translations, Nasr, Shakir, Saffarzadeh, and Mir, were selected due to their shared exegetical sources. Klaudy’s (2008) explicitation typology provided the framework for classifying types of explicitation. Analysis of 100 randomly selected verses revealed that explicitation of situational context, particularly the occasions of revelation, is present in all four translations. Pragmatic explicitation was the predominant type observed. The findings suggest that incorporating situational context into translations enhances readers’ comprehension of the Qur’ān’s meaning.

Keywords

Main Subjects

©2024 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, as long as the original authors and source are cited. No permission is required from the authors or the publishers.

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International Journal of Textual and Translation Analysis in Islamic Studies
Volume 2, Issue 4 - Serial Number 8
October 2024
Pages 421-433

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History

  • Receive Date: 18 December 2024
  • Revise Date: 17 February 2025
  • Accept Date: 22 July 2025
  • Publish Date: 01 October 2025

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