Compilation of Quran During Uthman's and Abu Bakar's Caliphate

During Prophet's Time:
After Muhammad would receive revelations, he would later

recite it to his Companions, who also memorized it or
wrote it down. Before the Quran was commonly available
in written form, speaking it from memory prevailed as the
mode of teaching it to others. As it was initially spoken,
the Quran was recorded on tablets, bones, the wide flat
ends of date palm fronds, wood, walls of mosques.
skin of goats and on pieces of leather. At the time of
Holy Prophet, the Quran did exist in written form but not
an official complete compiled copy was formed. The whole
Quran was safely preserved in the memory of Sahabas.
Abu Bakar:
Abu Bakr was instrumental in preserving the Quran in

written form. It is said that after the hard-won victory over
Musaylimah in the Battle of Yamama in 632, Umar saw
that some five hundred of the Muslims who had
memorised the Quran had been killed. It was a huge loss
to the Muslim community. Fearing that it may become lost
or corrupted, Umar requested that Abu Bakr to authorise
the compilation and preservation of the scriptures in
written format. The caliph was initially hesitant, being
quoted as saying "how can we do that which the
Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless and keep him,
did not himself do?" He eventually relented however,
and appointed Zayd ibn Thabit, who had previously
served as Muhammad's secretary, for the task of
gathering the scattered verses.Realizing the significance
of this task, Hazrat Zayd said " By God if you had put
the task of taking away a certain mountain, it would
not have been heavier to me that what you have
ordered me."
The fragments were recovered from every quarter,

including from the ribs of palm branches, scraps of leather,
stone tablets and "from the hearts of men". Hazrat Zayd
use extremely cautious methods and meticulous
techniques in the compilation of Quran. First he would
testify any verse being presented to him
by using his own better judgement and secondly seeking
Hazrat Umar's advice. He would aslo seek two trustworthy
witnesses to testify this claim. Abu Bakr had not
authorized him to record except what was already
available [on parchment]. That is why Zaid refrained from
including the final ayah of Sura Bara'a until he came upon
it in written form, even though he and his fellow
Companions could recall it perfectly well from memory.
The finished codex, termed the Mus'haf, was presented to

Abu Bakr, who prior to his death, bequeathed it to his
successor Umar. Upon Umar's own death, the Mus'haf
was left to his daughter Hafsa, who had been one of the
wives of Muhammad. It was this volume, borrowed from
Hafsa, which formed the basis of Uthman's legendary
prototype, which became the definitive text of the Quran.
All later editions are derived from this original. This copy
came to be known as " Mashal-al-Hafsa.".
Uthman:
Reasons:
By the time of Uthman's caliphate, there was a perceived
need for clarification of Qur'an reading. The Caliphate had
grown considerably, expanding into Iraq, Syria, Egypt, and
Iran, bringing into Islam's fold many new converts from
various cultures and there was a huge disparity in the
pronunciation and accent of the recitation of the Quran.
These converts spoke a variety of languages but were not
well learned in Arabic, and so Uthman felt it was important
to standardize the written text of the Quran into one
specific Arabic dialect.
An unified text was to be issued immediately and this

problem was put to light by Hudayfha-ibn-al-Yaman.
According to the history of al-Tabari, during the expedition
there were 10,000 Kufan warriors, 6,000 in Azerbaijan and
4,000 at Rayy, many soldiers disagreed about the correct
way of reciting.
It is believed upon Hudhayfah's request Uthman obtained

the sheets of the Quran from Ḥafṣa and appointed a
commission consisting of Zayd and three prominent
Meccans, Abdur Rahman Bin Harris, Abdullah Bin Zubair
and Sad Bin Aas who rewrite the manuscripts in perfect
copies and instructed them to copy the sheets into several
volumes based on the dialect of Quraysh, the main tribe of
Mecca.
In these copies, these surahs were reaaranged based on
the surahs length from shortest to longest consecutively.
Uthman kept one copy in Medina and sent others to Kufa,

Baṣra, Damascus, and, according to some accounts,
Mecca, and ordered that all other variant copies of the
Quran be destroyed in order to ensure a standardize
version of recitation. On Uthman's orders, other variants of
the Quran with vowel marks were burnt. That text became
the model from which copies were made and promulgated
throughout the urban centers of the Muslim world.

Compilation of Quran During Uthman's and Abu Bakar's Caliphate

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Compilation of Quran During Uthman's and Abu Bakar's Caliphate

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During Prophet's Time:

After Muhammad would receive revelations, he would later

Abu Bakr was instrumental in preserving the Quran in

The fragments were recovered from every quarter,

The finished codex, termed the Mus'haf, was presented to

An unified text was to be issued immediately and this

It is believed upon Hudhayfah's request Uthman obtained

Uthman kept one copy in Medina and sent others to Kufa,

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