MOTIVES FOR ORIENTALIST STUDIES OF THE QUR'AN: HISTORICAL FRAMEWORK, MOTIVES, AND EPISTEMOLOGICAL IMPLICATIONS IN CONTEMPORARY ISLAMIC STUDIES

Abstract

This article examines Orientalism in Qur’anic studies by exploring its historical framework, underlying motives, and epistemological implications within contemporary Islamic studies. Historically, Western scholarship on the Qur’an emerged from the dynamics of interaction between the Islamic world and the West, marked by theological conflicts, political expansion, and colonialism. In its early phase, Orientalist studies were largely polemical and apologetic, particularly in the context of the Crusades and missionary activities. Entering the modern era, this approach underwent a methodological transformation through the use of philology, historical criticism, and textual analysis, as reflected in the works of Theodor Noldeke, Ignaz Goldziher, and Arthur Jeffery. Despite offering significant academic contributions, Orientalist scholarship has not been entirely free from ideological bias, as it often rests upon epistemological assumptions that differ from the Islamic intellectual tradition, which regards the Qur’an as divine revelation. This indicates that the motives behind Orientalist studies of the Qur’an are multidimensional, encompassing religious, intellectual, economic, and political factors. In contemporary developments, the influence of Orientalism presents complex epistemological implications for Islamic studies, particularly in the tendency to reduce revelation to a purely historical product. Therefore, an integrative approach is required—one that combines rational and historical methods with recognition of the transcendental dimension of revelation. Such integration is expected to foster Qur’anic studies that are critical, proportional, and academically robust while remaining grounded in Islamic epistemology.