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The original was posted on /r/academicquran by /u/slmklam on 2023-09-24 00:21:09.
I wrote this Reddit post because I want to receive feedback (especially from historical-linguists) on the etymological origin of زَكىَ (zakā/zakē), which might change the perspective on the ʾasḥāb al-kahf ('companions of the cave,' vv. Q18:9-27) narrative.
Basically, my theory is that the Arabic zakē is ultimately derived from Aramaic daḵē, via Hebraism, and later merged with a similar Arabic root z-k-w/y, expanding its meaning. This post will not have all the citations ready, coz this text is kinda in a proto-type stage and is not finished. I will perhaps edit it in the future when I have time, but kinda busy at the moment. The only purpose I get is the feedback on the idea and all. Forgive me if the text appears unclear or anything like that coz I am merging notes together too. Anyways, let's start.
For those who do not know what the Qurʾānic story of ʾasḥāb al-kahf is about, it recounts a brief tale of young believers who sought refuge in a cave to escape pagan persecution and miraculously fell asleep for many years, only to wake up later to server as a proof for resurrection, sign of the hour, acknowledgment of divine knowledge, and the importance of faith.
Beyond the Islamic tradition, the Qurʾānic account finds parallels with the Christian traditions, primarily the Syriac versions like ṭalyē d-efesōs (“youths of Ephesus”), authored by the eminent Syriac bishop Jacob of Serugh (c. 451-521 AD)². This Syriac version narrates the story of eight young Christian men who refused a pagan ruler named ܕܩܝܘܣ (deqyūs)³, which mirroring the historical Roman emperor Decius (249–251 AD), by offering sacrifices to pagan gods. The young men escaped to the mountains outside Ephesus (modern-day Selçuk, Turkey) during the emperor's absence, seeking refuge in a cave, asking God for help until God ascended their spirit to heaven and left an angelic guardian over their physical bodies. Emperor Decius sealed the cave to trap them, hoping they would die, but they awoke when the wall was later removed during Christian emperor Theodosius II's reign (401–450 AD). One sleeper attempted to use Decius-era coins, which caused a lot of unwanted attention. The city's bishop⁴ investigated, highlighting the miraculous nature of their story. The youths slept once more, challenging a contemporary heresy denying bodily resurrection, and ultimately affirming the legend's purpose.
Our focus on this post is this Qurʾānic verse:
Transliteration: fa-lī-ʾunẓur ʾayuhā ʾazkā ṭaʿāman fa-lī-ʾatukum birizqin minhu…Translation: And then let him find which food is the purest, and bring your provisions from it.- Q18:19
Perhaps one of the most overlooked aspects of the ʾaṣḥāb al-kahf narrative is the implications and connotations woven into the phrase ʾazkā ṭaʿām ("purest food”). Interestingly, compared to the Jacob's version, this phrase is absent. In the Syriac narrative, after the youths woke up from their sleep, a certain companion named ܠܡܠܝܟܐ (lamlīḵā) among them was willing to go down and check if they were still hunted by the pagans. The youths added to lamlīḵā:
“Take small change and bring back some ܠܚܡܐ (laḥmā, “bread”): ever since evening we have been short of bread, and we have not had a meal”(Brock translation, Guidi, Testi Orientali Inediti, )
In this specific context, lamlīḵā was instructed to get laḥmā ("bread"), as opposed to the Qurʾānic reference to ʾazkā ṭaʿāmin ("purest food"), takes on distinct significance. Evidently, a discernible disparity emerges in the depth of discourse among the companions, evident within Q18:19, with a notably more elaborate portrayal in comparison to its Syriac counterpart. Zellentin (PPQ; 2022, 286) suggests that the context of v. 19 indicates an attempt to avoid food contamination from religious errors, such as idol worship, improper slaughter, or the consumption of prohibited animals. I would argue that the Qurʾānic usage of "purest food”, as found in v. 19, pertains to dietary law, particularly those rooted in Jewish purity laws. Numerous biblical passages address the concept of something called טומאה (ṭumah, "impure") and טהרה (ṭaharah, "pure"), representing the notion of ritual purity. The combination of "pure" + “food" is recurrent in many biblical verses (e.g. v. Lev. 11:47).
Considering the Christian perspective, it begs the question: Did they have dietary regulations? Early Christians did have some sort of dietary law, which was influenced by Judaism, e.g. abstain from food sacrificed for idols. This might echo the Apostles’ Decree as described in Acts v. 15:20:
“Instead we should write to them (the gentilic Christians), telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood.”
The idea of being κᾰθᾰρός (kaṯarós, "pure”, Mat 5:8, Rom 14:20, 1Ti 1:5, 1Pe 1:22, etc) in Christian world was crucial in late antiquity. Purity played a significant role in defining distinctions, hierarchies, and transformations within these communities. Early Christians pondered questions like what distinguishes them from non-Christians, and maybe more important to our focus, abstaining from certain foods were seen as forms of purification (Blidstein, 2017). The dietary law in early Christendom was still limited and understood significantly different from the Jewish counterpart. As 1 Timothy 4:4-5 says:
“For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving: for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer”
This verse emphasises that food is not inherently impure or unclean, and that it is only through human attitudes and actions that it can become so. Or in Acts 10:9-16, the apostle Peter has a vision of unclean animals and is told by God to "kill and eat." Peter initially objects, given his adherence to Jewish purity laws, but ultimately comes to understand that God's message is one of inclusion and acceptance beyond the boundaries of these laws.
As the 2nd-century, Christian writers, such as Barnabas, Aristides, and Galen, of the period held a negative attitude towards Jewish dietary rules, rejecting them to establish Christian identity. They used various strategies to incorporate these laws into their theological and ethical systems while downplaying their practical significance. Christian customs were seen as morally valuable, while Jewish law was viewed as lacking moral worth. Symbolic interpretations infused spiritual elements into the laws, while non-symbolic interpretations integrated them into moral discourse. The concept of impurity was contested, and Christian writers sought to understand the laws within a cosmic battle of good and evil framework, finding Jewish practice inadequate and illogical. Their explanations aimed to make the biblical laws more comprehensible from a Christian perspective (Blidstein, 2017). In 4th-5th century Upper Mesopotemia, the idea of biblical dietary law was discussed due to it’s relation to the Old Testament in certain Syriac communities. It appears that many considered them to be a matter of personal choice or preference rather than an obligation. While some Syriac Christian writers, including Aphrahat, recognised the value of the dietary laws in the past, they tended to view the practice of these laws as of less importance in the present reality of the Christian community. This attitude was reinforced by the cultural context of the Syriac-speaking regions of the Near East, which were characterised by a mix of Christian, Jewish, and some pagan populations, and where food practices and taboos were not necessarily tied to religious identity.
One might argue that the Quranic concept of "purest food" could reflect this Christian historical context, even though it's not explicitly mentioned in the original source material. However, it may seem peculiar to some why this concept was expanded upon instead of retaining the Syriac meaning of "bread". Some have said that the Qurʾānic author was just "Islamising" the story, but it did not make sense if it could just use the word ḥalāl in this context. I have seen Christian stories turning into a more Muslim version like found in the Sīrah of ibn ʾisḥāq Faymyūn and Ṣālih instead of Paul and John (Butts; Young; 2020). There are several intriguing details in sūrah al-kahf, such as "stoning" instead of "beating with a rod," the mysterious Quranic al-raqīm (Q18:9) instead of Syriac lōḥē ("tablets"), the maximum mention of seven sleepers while Jacob is mentioned as eight, and various other noteworthy features. Even the word itself, zakē, doesn't align with the Syriac Aramaic usage of daḵyā.
Now, the theoryThe Qurʾānic term أَزْكَىٰ (ʾazkā/ʾazkē, “purest; purer”, also Q2:23, Q24:28, 30), in relation to Q18, is the elative form of زَكَىٰ (, zakā/zakē, “pure”), which also appears as a verb in Q24:21. According to Köhl's dictionary (HALOT, 1997; 221), the Hebrew זָךְ (zāḵ) and Aramaic דַכיָ (daḵyā/daḵē) share a cognate with the Arabic zakā/zakē. Nicolai Sinai, in his dictionary (KTQ, 2023), states that zakā is fro...
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