Muslims believe no human wrote the Quran: it is the word of God, revealed to the Prophet Muhammad through the angel Gabriel between 610 and 632 CE. The Prophet recited each passage aloud, and his companions memorized it and wrote it down, with scribes such as Zayd ibn Thabit recording the text under his direction.
So the honest answer to "who wrote the Quran" has two parts. There is the question of authorship, which Muslims answer with revelation, and the question of who physically wrote the words down and gathered them into one book. This article covers both, and briefly explains how academic historians approach the subject.
Key takeaways
- Muslims believe the Quran's author is Allah, the Arabic word for God, and that the Prophet Muhammad received it through the angel Gabriel (Jibril).
- The Quran was revealed gradually over about 23 years, from 610 CE in the Cave of Hira until the Prophet's death in 632 CE.
- Companions known as scribes of revelation, including Zayd ibn Thabit, Ubayy ibn Ka'b and Ali ibn Abi Talib, wrote down verses as they were revealed.
- The first caliph, Abu Bakr, had the written Quran gathered into one collection, and the third caliph, Uthman, sent standardized copies to the major cities around 650 CE.
- Many academic historians, Muslim and non-Muslim, agree that the Quranic text took its fixed form very early, supported by manuscripts dated to the 7th century.
Who wrote the Quran according to Islam?
In Islamic belief, the Quran was not written or composed by any person. It is the speech of Allah, sent down through the angel Gabriel to the heart of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), who then recited it to the people exactly as he heard it.
And indeed, the Qur'an is the revelation of the Lord of the worlds. The Trustworthy Spirit has brought it down Upon your heart, [O Muhammad] - that you may be of the warners - In a clear Arabic language.
The "Trustworthy Spirit" in this passage is understood by Muslim scholars to be the angel Gabriel. The Quran also says the Prophet did not speak from his own desire when delivering it.
Nor does he speak from [his own] inclination. It is not but a revelation revealed,
This is why Muslims distinguish clearly between the Quran, which they see as God's words, and the hadith, which record the Prophet's own sayings and actions.
When was the Quran written?
The Quran was revealed and written down in stages between 610 and 632 CE. According to the well-known account in Sahih al-Bukhari, the first revelation came in the Cave of Hira near Makkah, when Gabriel commanded Muhammad to "Recite." Those first words are the opening verses of Surah al-Alaq.
Revelation continued for about 13 years in Makkah and 10 years in Madinah. Verses came in response to events, questions and the needs of the young community, rather than all at once. The Quran itself explains this gradual pace.
And [it is] a Qur'an which We have separated [by intervals] that you might recite it to the people over a prolonged period. And We have sent it down progressively.
So when people ask when the Quran was written, the answer is: during the Prophet's lifetime, as it was revealed, and then gathered into a single bound collection within a few years of his death. You can read more about the two phases of revelation in Meccan and Medinan surahs.
If Muhammad was illiterate, who wrote the Quran?
Islamic sources describe the Prophet Muhammad as ummi, usually translated as "unlettered," meaning he did not read or write. The Quran mentions this directly, and Muslims see it as strengthening the case that the Quran did not come from his own learning.
And you did not recite before it any scripture, nor did you inscribe one with your right hand. Otherwise the falsifiers would have had [cause for] doubt.
Because he did not write himself, the Prophet dictated new verses to trusted companions. These scribes wrote them on whatever materials were available in Arabia at the time, such as parchment, palm-leaf stalks, flat stones and the shoulder blades of animals. At the same time, many companions memorized the verses, so the Quran was preserved both in writing and in memory.
Which companions wrote the Quran down?
Several companions served as scribes of revelation (kuttab al-wahy). The most famous is Zayd ibn Thabit, a young man from Madinah who wrote for the Prophet regularly and later led the work of compiling the Quran.
Other companions known for writing down revelation include:
- Ubayy ibn Ka'b, one of the most respected reciters among the companions
- Ali ibn Abi Talib, the Prophet's cousin and later the fourth caliph
- Uthman ibn Affan, who later became the third caliph
- Mu'awiya ibn Abi Sufyan, who wrote for the Prophet in the later years in Madinah
Alongside the scribes, many companions memorized the entire Quran. Recitation in daily prayer and the Prophet's habit of reviewing the Quran with Gabriel each Ramadan, reported in Sahih al-Bukhari, kept the text fresh in the community's memory.
How was the Quran compiled under Abu Bakr and Uthman?
During the Prophet's lifetime, the whole Quran existed in written pieces and in people's memories, but not as one bound volume. That changed in two well-documented steps, both described in Sahih al-Bukhari.
The first collection under Abu Bakr
After the Battle of Yamamah in 632–633 CE, a number of companions who had memorized the Quran were killed. Umar ibn al-Khattab urged the caliph Abu Bakr to gather the Quran into one collection so that nothing would be lost.
Abu Bakr gave this task to Zayd ibn Thabit. Zayd collected the verses from written materials and from "the chests of men," meaning those who had memorized them. He accepted written verses only with careful verification. The finished sheets stayed with Abu Bakr, then Umar, and then Umar's daughter Hafsah, a wife of the Prophet.
The standard copies under Uthman
As Islam spread, people in different regions recited with slightly different pronunciations, and disputes began to arise. The companion Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman warned the caliph Uthman about this.
Around 650 CE, Uthman appointed Zayd ibn Thabit with Abdullah ibn az-Zubayr, Sa'id ibn al-As and Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Harith to make copies from Hafsah's sheets. Copies were sent to major cities, and other personal copies were destroyed to prevent confusion. This text, called the Uthmanic codex, is the basis of every printed Quran today.
How was the Quran preserved?
Muslims believe God has promised to protect the Quran from change.
Indeed, it is We who sent down the Qur'an and indeed, We will be its guardian.
In practice, this preservation has two strands. The first is oral: an unbroken chain of teachers and students reciting the Quran from memory, back to the companions, continuing today with millions of people who know it by heart. The second is written: the Uthmanic copies, which later scholars added dots and vowel marks to, without changing the words, to help readers pronounce them correctly.
The Quran also invites readers to test its consistency for themselves.
Then do they not reflect upon the Qur'an? If it had been from [any] other than Allah, they would have found within it much contradiction.
How do academic historians discuss who wrote the Quran?
Historians who study the Quran from outside the faith do not start from the belief in revelation, so they ask different questions. Many non-Muslim scholars see the Prophet Muhammad as the source of the Quran's message, while Muslims see him as the one who received and conveyed it. Both groups study the same history, but interpret its origin differently.
On the history of the text itself, there is a good deal of common ground. Most academic historians today accept that the Quran took its fixed form very early, close to the time Islamic tradition describes. Early manuscripts support this. For example, leaves held at the University of Birmingham were radiocarbon dated in 2015 to roughly 568–645 CE, and other early fragments, such as those found in Sana'a in Yemen, are widely dated to the 7th century.
Some scholars in the 20th century proposed much later dates, but manuscript evidence has led most of the field to favor an early date. Debates continue on details, such as the order of revelation and the history of spelling, which is normal for any ancient text. For Muslims, these findings are consistent with the traditional account of careful compilation.
Read the Quran on Quran Universe
The best way to form your own view is to read the text. On Quran Universe you can read every verse in Arabic with the Sahih International translation, a short context card and Tafsir Ibn Kathir. You might begin with Surah al-Alaq, which contains the first words revealed, or start with our overview of what the Quran is.
Frequently asked questions
Who wrote the Quran first?
Muslims believe the Quran was not written by a human author but revealed by God to the Prophet Muhammad through the angel Gabriel. The first people to write it down were the Prophet's companions who served as scribes, most famously Zayd ibn Thabit. They recorded verses as the Prophet recited them, starting during his lifetime.
Who wrote the Quran for Muhammad?
Because the Prophet Muhammad did not read or write, he dictated revelation to trusted scribes. These included Zayd ibn Thabit, Ubayy ibn Ka'b, Ali ibn Abi Talib, Uthman ibn Affan and Mu'awiya ibn Abi Sufyan. Many other companions memorized the verses, so the text was preserved both on paper and by heart.
When was the Quran written and compiled?
The Quran was revealed and written down in parts between 610 and 632 CE. Shortly after the Prophet's death, Abu Bakr had Zayd ibn Thabit gather it into one collection. Around 650 CE, the caliph Uthman sent standardized copies to the major Muslim cities.
Is the Quran today the same as the original?
Muslims believe the Quran today is the same text the Prophet recited, preserved through continuous memorization and the Uthmanic copies. Early manuscripts dated to the 7th century closely match the text in use today. Later additions such as dots and vowel marks helped pronunciation without changing the words.
How did Muhammad receive the Quran?
According to Islamic belief, the Prophet Muhammad received the Quran through the angel Gabriel, known in Arabic as Jibril. Revelation began in 610 CE in the Cave of Hira near Makkah and continued in parts for about 23 years. Hadith collections describe it coming in different ways, sometimes like the ringing of a bell and sometimes with Gabriel appearing in human form.