Title:
A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF QURAN ENGLISH TRANSLATION BY ABDULLAH YUSUF ALI AND MUHAMMAD ASSAD WITH A FOCUS ON VOCABULARY

Authors:
Shahin al-Hadi Ibrahim Mohammed ,Saudi Arabia

Abstract:
Translating the meaning of the Noble Quran has become very important. The study aimed at making a comparison between two books of translation of meaning of the Holy Quran conducted by Abdullah Yusuf Ali (1938) entitled “The Holy Quran: Text, Translation and commentary' 'and the translation of Muhammad Assad (1980) entitled ''The Message of the Quran'' to detect the similarities and differences. The study adopted the comparative method and content analysis. The findings of the study are: Ali uses outdated speech and writing; he writes in the language that Shakespeare and other old English poets have written. The two translations are completely different Ali uses poetic old English whereas Mohammed Assad uses contemporary English for translating the meaning of the Noble Qur'an corrects some of the problems which exist in Abdullah Yusuf Ali’s translation. The two translators use literal translation, cultural voids and transliteration. The two translators fail to render the exact meaning of the Noble Quran. Translation is a challenge that poses various difficulties which face the translator of the Noble Quran. The study provides a number of recommendations among which: Translators should produce a translation with natural style which uses modern English vocabulary and free from transliteration unless there is lack of equivalence at word levels or the absence of the equivalent of some Islamic lexemes. The translators should simply avoid personality impact on their translations. The translation of the Islamic texts should be viewed as a group of mission rather than as an individual task. This task is supposed to be carried out by specialized institutions staff. The translators of the meaning of the Holy Quran should be knowledgeable of Arabic, English, exegesis, and Quranic sciences.