Translatability of the Qur'an regional vernacular : discourses and diversities within the Mappila Muslims of Kerala, India

Abstract

Engagements of non-Arab Muslim communities with the Qur’an, the Arabic-specific scripture of Islam, are always in a form of improvement. Although a number of theological and linguistic aspects complicate the issue of translatability of the Qur’an, several communities have gradually embraced the practice of translating it. The case of Mappila Muslims of Kerala, India, the earliest individual Muslim community of south Asia, is not different. There is a void of adequate academic attention on translations of the Qur’an into regional vernaculars along with their respective communities in general, and Malayalam and the rich Mappila context, in particular. Thus, this research attempts to critically appraise the Mappila engagements with the Qur’an focusing on its translatability-discourses and methodological diversities. In order to achieve this, the procedure employed is a combination of different research methods, namely, inductive, analytical, historical and critical. The study suggests that, even in its pre-translation era, the Mappilas have uninterruptedly exercised different forms of oral translation in an attempt to comprehend the meaning of the Qur’an both at the micro and macro levels. The translation era, which commences from the late 18th century, witnessed the emergence of huge number of Qur’an translations intertwined with intense debates on its translatability. The Mapplia version of translatability-discourses is particularly remarkable for its outstanding intensity and peculiar detachment from the discourses of global Muslim scholarship. After examining the standpoint of major Islamic factions within the Mappila community, the researcher categorizes them into four camps: pro-translation, inclination towards pro-translation, anti-translation, and inclination towards anti-translation. It has been also identified that Malayalam, the official language of Kerala, possesses 40 translations of the Qur’an, an astoundingly high proportion for such a Muslim-minority regional vernacular. Furthermore, almost all these works are highly influenced by certain ideological premises including the traditional, modernist, Salafi and AÍmadi orientations. An assessment of such translation works puts forth that, rather than conveying the true message of the Qur’an, the endorsement of specific ideological interests comes among the priority of many translations, which in effect leads to distorting the message in target language. Accordingly, the study proposes a framework for systematically translating the Qur’an into Malayalam. In examining a largely unexplored area of the Mappila Muslims, the study has given insights into the development and diversity of translations of the Qur’an in a regional vernacular, as well as its remarkable contribution to the burgeoning Mappila Studies.