The Koran

The Koran, more traditionally spelled as the Qur'an or Quran, is the principal "holy book" of the religion of Islam. Most Muslims consider it to be "The Word of God" (or "Allah"). The work is different than other religious texts in that it is believed to be the literal words of God, through the prophet Muhammad. Similar to how Christians have the "Old" and "New" testaments, some Muslims refer to the Koran as "The Final Testament."

Because Europe was primarily Christian, and Arab-controlled territories were the only regions that practiced Islam for the first 700 years of the religion's existence, the Koran was copied and read only in Arabic for more over a millinium. In modern times of globalization and rapid iternationalization however, despite some Muslims feeling that only Arabic Korans were legimate copies, the Koran began to translated to other languages, so that non-Arabic-speaking Muslims/readers can also understand. Still, some Muslims believe that these translations are not the true Qur'an; only the Arabic copy is the true Qur'an. The Quran is used with the hadith to interpret sharia law.

History
According to Islamic belief, the

Qur'an was first revealed to the prophet Muhammad by the archangel Gabriel in a cave on Hira Mountain in Mecca, and then over a period of twenty-three years until his death.

The Qur'an was not written all together in book-form while Muhammad was alive; it was kept by oral communication and brief written records. The prophet did not know how to read nor write, but according to Islamic belief, the prophet's cousin Ali ibn abi Talib, among others, used to write the texts on something when Muhammad was alive. After prophet Muhammad died, Omar ibn Khattab, one of the khulafa u rashidan, compiled the quran into a single book.