Yemeni Quranic variation findings were a red herring.
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Peace all,
Some time ago I'd posted regarding the finding of Yemeni Quran fragments in Sanaa that had showed textual variations in the Quran. These findings were published in the Atlantic Monthly and were based on findings by orientalist Gerd Puin - and had caused great controversy in the Islamic world.
I found the following information in relation to it - where Puin a short time after the article admitted that the findings were hardly amazing. The fact that nothing else has emerged had already indicated to me that the whole thing was a red herring.
At most, it is claimed that there is a fragment where the end of sura
26 is followed by 37. But this amounts to nothing, since it is
permissable to place suras in any order in a partial mushaf. So this
is hardly "news" or a "shocking" discovery.Moreover, after the publication of the Atlantic Monthly, Puin wrote a
letter in which he revealed"The important thing, thank God, is that these Yemeni Qur'anic
fragments do not differ from those found in museums and libraries
elsewhere, with the exception of details that do not touch the Qur'an
itself, but are rather differences in the way words are spelled. This
phenomenon is well-known, even in the Qur'an published in Cairo in
which is written
Ibrhim next to Ibrhm
Quran next to Qrn
Simahum next to Simhum
In the oldest Yemeni Qur'anic feagmenrs, for example, the phenomenon
of not writing the vowel alif is rather common."Prof. Amazi comments
"This deflates the entire controversy, dusting away the webs of
intrigue that were spun around Puin's discoveries and making them a
topic unworthy of further speculation."This is just for your information - since we are Quran alone we must know the latest information on such things.
Peace.