Angelika Neuwirth and Contemporary Qur’anic Studies: A Critical Analytical Reading of Context, Method, and Impact

Abstract

This study presents a critical analytical reading of the work of German scholar "Angelika Neuwirth" in the field of Qur’anic studies. It examines her methodology, which combines rhetorical analysis of the Qur’anic text with its historical and cultural setting in Late Antiquity. The paper evaluates the coherence of Neuwirth’s approach within academic standards, explores its impact on modern Islamic thought and Qur’anic interpretation, and addresses the major critiques leveled against her from both Islamic and Western perspectives. The study argues for the necessity of an integrative hermeneutic that respects the sacred nature of the Qur’an while engaging with rigorous scholarly tools. A comparative analytical table is also provided to synthesize Neuwirth’s core ideas and their reception in diverse intellectual contexts.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Arkoun, Mohammed. (1996). Islamic Thought: Critique and Ijtihad. Beirut: Markaz al-Inma’ al-Qawmi.
• Abu Zayd, Nasr Hamid. (1999). Discourse and Interpretation. Beirut: Arab Cultural Center.
• Al-Sharfi, Abdelmajid. (2002). Islam and Modernity. Beirut: Dar al-Tali‘a.
• Al-Qaradawi, Yusuf. (2003). Interview, Al Jazeera Channel.
• Berg, H. (2000). The Development of Exegesis in Early Islam: The Authenticity of Muslim Literature from the Formative Period. Routledge.
• Cook, M. (2000). Commanding Right and Forbidding Wrong in Islamic Thought. Cambridge University Press.
• Donner, F. (2010). Muhammad and the Believers: At the Origins of Islam. Harvard University Press.
• McAuliffe, J. D. (2006). The Cambridge Companion to the Qur'an. Cambridge University Press.
• Mir, M. (1986). Coherence in the Qur’an. American Trust Publications.
• Neuwirth, A. (2010). Scripture, Poetry and the Making of a Community: Reading the Qur’an as a Literary Text. Oxford University Press.
• Neuwirth, A. (2011). “Qur’anic Studies and Historical-Critical Method.” In Approaches to the Qur'an in Contemporary Indonesia. Oxford University Press.
• Neuwirth, A. (2014). Der Koran als Text der Spätantike: Ein europäischer Zugang. Verlag der Weltreligionen, Berlin.
• Reynolds, G. S. (2008). The Qur’an and Its Biblical Subtext. Routledge.
• Rippin, A. (2001). The Qur'an and Its Interpretative Tradition. Variorum.
Published
2025-12-27
How to Cite
Elboukhari , S. (2025). Angelika Neuwirth and Contemporary Qur’anic Studies: A Critical Analytical Reading of Context, Method, and Impact. Journal of Science and Knowledge Horizons, 5(02), 226-246. https://doi.org/10.34118/jskp.v5i02.4442