Özet:

The efforts to ensure the correct understanding of the Qurʾān have a history dating back to the time of its revelation. Based on the same concern, the Qurʾān, which was revealed in the language of its first addressees, has been translated into different languages, and even the number of Turkish translations of it has exceeded three hundred. No single child-centered Turkish translation of the Qurʾān containing all the verses has been found in the relevant literature. Among about one hundred and seventy English Qurʾān translations, only one study for this purpose is identified and thus is at the center thereof in this article. It can be assumed that theological and pedagogical sensitivities played a role in the absence of child-centered Qurʾān translations. However, although it is a fact that there are verses in the Qurʾān that are difficult for children to make sense of and that are not urgent for them, it is also a fact that there are many verses that will contribute to their moral and religious development, primarily through Qurʾānic narratives (qiṣaṣ) and parables (emthāl). In addition, it is seen that children who are already exposed to all kinds of information through communication tools such as websites and social media find themselves in various discussions, especially atheism and deism. Such platforms also raise the possibility of children encountering verses in a way that are taken out of context and even distorted. In this context, it now seems more essential -despite all the difficulties- to take steps to ensure that children meet the Qurʾānic verses with the correct meaning. Based on this background, the article opens the issue of child-centered Qurʾān translation for discussion by focusing on the work titled The Meaning of the Holy Qurʾān for School Children, which was written for the addressees corresponding to children at secondary school and above in Turkey. The aim of the article is to discuss the issue from a point of view limited to the tafsīr perspective and to carry it to wider academic platforms where different disciplines are to be involved. The article subjects the mentioned translation to content analysis and makes comparative analyses of it with some translations in Turkish and English in order to determine what distinguishes it from others. Considering its general features, it has many drawings aiming at helping children understand the verses and attracting their attention. In addition, the translation of many verses which the translator deemed requiring further explanation are preceded by “background info” sections, where explanations or the historical background of the verses are given. These parts provide a "maʾāl-tafsīr" feature to the work, and it is understood that they have an important function in children's understanding the verses. On the other hand, it is noticeable that these parts contain two problematic issues. The first of these is ignoring the historical context of some verses in order to make sense of the children's mental and emotional worlds. The second, contrary to the first, is that the verses in which appropriate explanations about their historical contexts and occasions of revelations (asbāb al-nuzūl) are not sufficiently conveyed to the world of children, and that the answers to possible questions that may come to mind are not included. In this respect, observing a two-way context that illuminates the historical background of the verses and includes the messages they can give to children for today and the answers to possible questions that may come to their mind emerges as a difficult but ideal goal for a child-centered translation. One of the remarkable features in the translation is that the words that emphasize the main theme of the verses on a page or that are thought to deserve the most emphasis on that page are written in different and larger fonts. In addition to the above-mentioned general features of the translation, the article focuses on the analysis of the translation and explanation of some verses that are more likely to raise questions in children's minds under the headings of “mutashābihāt and majāz”, “descriptions of heaven and hell”, “aḥkām” and “main concepts of the Qurʾān”. It is concluded that the translations and background information of some verses examined under these headings have a content to facilitate children’s understanding of the verses. On the other hand, it is recognized as an important shortcoming that some verses which children will need background information on for an easier understanding have been simply translated. Another shortcoming is the absence of Arabic originals of the verses. In fact, this issue is important in terms of children's acquiring familiarity with the language of revelation. As a result of the analysis, it seems possible to make some recommendations for the future child-centered Qurʾān translations.

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