The Formation of the Quran

The Quran was revealed over a period of about 20 years (610 to 632 A.D.) to Muhammad. As the revelation progressed, the prophet and the believers following him recited the text by heart while also writing it down. Muhammad died in 632 AD.

After Muhammad’s death, Zaid Ibn Thabit, Muhammad’s main scribe retained a copy of the Quran at the request of Abu Bakr, the first caliph (leader). In 634 A.D., Abu Bakr’s successor, Omar, the second Caliph (leader), gave a copy of Zaid’s Quran to his daughter, Hafsa, the widow of Muhammad. Uthman, the third caliph (leader) from 644-656 A.D. faced with the explosive expansion of Islam among people of other languages, held a commission in 653 AD that verified the authenticity of the document held by Hafsa as being an authentic version of the original held by Zaid Ibn Thabit, Muhammads main scribe. Muhammads main scribe, Zaid Ibn Thabit, was present at this meeting in 653 AD. The commission also consulted Muslims who new the Quran by heart as well as those who had written versions of it; this was done in order to provide a double-check for every verse. Hence, multiple copies of the text were sent to the centers of the Islamic Empire and subsequently translated into other languages. These copies makes up the VERY EXACT Koran we have today! Thus, the Quran we have today is an exact mirror copy of the original that was maintained by Muhammad and his main scribe Zaid Ibn Thabit.