Translating the Qur’an into English: Target Readers’ Expectations

Although the overwhelming majority of Muslims are non-Arabic speakers and depend on translations of the Qur’an to access the meaning of the text in their respective languages, their preferences and expectations have not been systematically surveyed. This research, the first of its kind in the area of Qur’an translation, is based on a survey which I have designed and conducted in order to establish what readers of Qur’an translations into English prefer in terms of layout, translation strategies, and the translators’ backgrounds, amongst other things. The survey also gives the respondents the opportunity to offer their recommendations for future Qur’an translations.