Quran Talk Blog
Sura 27 Word Count
Quran Talk Blog · Article · September 5, 2023
Appendix 1 of the Authorized English Translation of the Quran, translated by Dr. Rashad Khalifa, states that the number of words between the Bismillah at the opening of the Sura to the Bismillah in verse 30 is 342 words = 19 x 18.
Some claim the total number of words is 349 rather than 342. The discrepancy depends on how the words are counted. For example, should the Bismillah at the start or the one in 27:30 be included in the count? For instance, in Dr. Rashad Khalifa’s translation of the Quran in the footnote for 40:34, he states the following:
**40:34 It is noteworthy that we find the name “Rashad” in the Arabic text precisely four verses ahead of the injunction against saying “the last messenger,” and also four verses after it.