Orientalist studies

The concept of myth within the Qur’an has been a subject of extensive scholarly inquiry among Orientalists, offering diverse perspectives and methodologies. Angelika Neuwirth, a prominent Qur’anic scholar, has made significant contributions to this field by examining the Qur’anic historical narratives and proposing a connection between these narratives and the concept of myth. In her view, myths function as narratives that employ archetypes to illuminate and interpret the world. To substantiate her claims, Neuwirth adopts a contextual approach, drawing upon the methodologies of biblical criticism. Emphasizing microstructures and contextual details of Qur’anic verses, this approach aims to uncover the origins of the stories and historical narratives in the Qur’an, attributing them to the social and theological milieu of early Muslims. It posits that these narratives are deeply rooted in the socio-theological milieu of early Muslims. Aligning with this approach, Neuwirth characterizes numerous Qur’anic stories and events as myths that have been shaped by archetypes embedded in the collective unconscious of the Qur’an’s audience. This paper employs a descriptive-analytical methodology, coupled with a comprehensive review of relevant literature, to critically evaluate the methodological underpinnings and presuppositions of the contextual approach to Qur’anic myth. Neuwirth's perspective is examined as a representative of this scholarly trend. The findings of this study reveal that, beyond methodological shortcomings, Neuwirth's approach is subject to several criticisms. These include an overemphasis on context as the sole determinant of Qur’anic knowledge, a neglect of the fundamental distinctions between the Qur’an and the Bible concerning the concept of revelation, and an overlooking of the distinct processes of compilation and canonization that shaped these two texts.