Assessing the English Translations of the Semantically Changed Words in the Quran as Linguistic-Cultural Intersections

Section: Article
Issue
Vol. 6 No. 24 (2026): Volume 6 / Issue 24

Abstract

This study investigates the translation of the semantically changed words in the Noble Quran when they are used with their original meanings, although gaining new meanings. Even though Quranic semantic change has been considerably focused on by a number of studies, no sufficient attention has been paid to this phenomenon as being a linguistic-cultural intersection. This research aims to investigate the ability of the Noble Quran's translators to recognise the linguistic-cultural intersections in the Quranic semantic change and produce accurate translations. In this study, a comparative descriptive design enhanced by descriptive statistics analysis was adopted to analyse five selected Quranic ayahs across six translations representing two groups of interpretation-dependent and interpretation-independent translators. The data analysis was done through qualitative analysis using a constructed model based on Muslim interpreters' criteria. Findings revealed that interpretation-dependent translators achieved higher translation appropriateness and effective performance regarding the awareness of linguistic-cultural intersection. However, their performance was inferior compared to interpretation-independent translators when translation required contextual reasoning. The study concludes that Quranic interpretations consultation plays a significant role in recognising the linguistic-cultural intersections in semantic change; however, when integrated with linguistic verification and contextual reasoning, more appropriate translations would be produced.   

Keywords:

Semantic Change, Quranic Semantic Change, linguistic-cultural Intersection, Semantically changed words, Quranic Translations

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Author

Ali Sheekhoo

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DOI: 10.33899/jeh.v6i333333333.62223

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Assessing the English Translations of the Semantically Changed Words in the Quran as Linguistic-Cultural Intersections . (2026). Journal of Education for the Humanities , 6(24). https://doi.org/10.33899/jeh.v6i333333333.62223
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Assessing the English Translations of the Semantically Changed Words in the Quran as Linguistic-Cultural Intersections . (2026). Journal of Education for the Humanities , 6(24). https://doi.org/10.33899/jeh.v6i333333333.62223