Translating the Glorious Quran: Arberry’s approach as a Case in Point

Abstract

The paper is an investigation into the approach to translating the Quran adopted by the English orientalist A.J. Arberry. This study aims to follow his soul which is felt to be squeezed into this work while living hard personal experience he referred to in the closing paragraph of his preface to the 1964 edition of the 'Koran Interpreted'.The study hypothesizes that Arberry’s approach is appropriate to a large extent since he believes that to understand the Quran, appreciate it, one has to take it as a whole, and that for its translation to be successful depends on the translator because the reader's role in comprehending the Quran is fundamental. The study has come up with the conclusion that Arberry's rendering of the glorious Quran differs from others in the spirit and motive, and demonstrates a serious attempt at reflecting a glimpse of the captivating beauty found in it