A Comparative Study of the English Translations of Four Selected Surahs of Qur’an

Abstract

The main objective of the research is to gain a greater comprehension of Allah's message, which He has revealed in the form of the Holy Quran. The purpose of this research is to investigate which translation has succeeded in presenting the most accurate interpretation of the meaning of the verses. In this research, three different translations of 4 selected Surahs of the Qur'an, also known as the four Quls, are analyzed by using a comparative approach. The selected translators are Abdullah Yusuf Ali, Muhammad Marmaduke Pickthall, and Muhammad Asad. Qualitative and quantitative methodologies have been employed. The verses are first evaluated qualitatively. To be more accurate, the total amount of words in every translation is compared to the total number of words in the target language's surah. The study shows that Pickthall's translation is "formal correspondences," while M. Asad's translation is "dynamic." The translation of Yusuf Ali follows both paths. In the case of Surah Ikhlas and Surah Falaq, it is more "formal", and in the case of the other two surahs, it is "dynamic translation".