The Chronological Order of Surahs
The chronological order of suras (i.e., the order in which Qur’an surahs were revealed to the holy prophet) is specified in several reliable sources most of which are based on the narrations received from the great prophet’s companion, Ibn Abbas (Radhi-allahu-anhu)
The traditional order of revelation is provided in the table below. The detailed information is extracted from “The History of the Quran” by Allamah Abu Abd Allah al-Zanjani [1][2]. Professor Noldeke in his famous work “Geschichte des Korans”[3] has provided an ordering which is slightly different from the traditional order in the following two items:
- Sura 110 (An-Nasr) is the last in the traditional order, but Noldeke has placed it between 59 and 24.
- Sura 62 (Al-Jumu’a) is after 64 and 61 in the traditional order, but Noldeke has placed it before 64 and 61.
Note that the order of a sura is specified based on the revealation of the first ayas of the sura, not the revelation of the whole sura.
Chronological Order of Suras
| Order | Sura Name | Number | Type | Note |
| 1 | Al-Alaq | 96 | Meccan | |
| 2 | Al-Qalam | 68 | Meccan | Except 17-33 and 48-50, from Medina |
| 3 | Al-Muzzammil | 73 | Meccan | Except 10, 11 and 20, from Medina |
| 4 | Al-Muddaththir | 74 | Meccan | |
| 5 | Al-Faatiha | 1 | Meccan | |
| 6 | Al-Masad | 111 | Meccan | |
| 7 | At-Takwir | 81 | Meccan | |
| 8 | Al-A’laa | 87 | Meccan | |
| 9 | Al-Lail | 92 | Meccan | |
| 10 | Al-Fajr | 89 | Meccan | |
| 11 | Ad-Dhuhaa | 93 | Meccan | |
| 12 | Ash-Sharh | 94 | Meccan | |
| 13 | Al-Asr | 103 | Meccan | |
| 14 | Al-Aadiyaat | 100 | Meccan | |
| 15 | Al Kawther | 108 | Meccan | |
| 16 | Al- Takathur | 102 | Meccan | |
| 17 | Al- Maa’un | 107 | Meccan | Only 1-2 from Mecca; rest from Medina |
| 18 | Al-Kaafiroon | 109 | Meccan | |
| 19 | Al-Fil | 105 | Meccan | |
| 20 | An-Falaq | 113 | Meccan | |
| 21 | An-Nas | 114 | Meccan | |
| 22 | Al-Ikhlaas | 112 | Meccan | |
| 23 | An-Najm | 53 | Meccan | Except 32, from Medina |
| 24 | Abasa | 80 | Meccan | |
| 25 | Al-Qadr | 97 | Meccan | |
| 26 | Ash-Shams | 91 | Meccan | |
| 27 | Al-Burooj | 85 | Meccan | |
| 28 | At-Tin | 95 | Meccan | |
| 29 | Quraish | 106 | Meccan | |
| 30 | Al-Qaari’a | 101 | Meccan | |
| 31 | Al-Qiyaama | 75 | Meccan | |
| 32 | Al-Humaza | 104 | Meccan | |
| 33 | Al-Mursalaat | 77 | Meccan | Except 48, from Medina |
| 34 | Qaaf | 50 | Meccan | Except 38, from Medina |
| 35 | Al-Balad | 90 | Meccan | |
| 36 | Al-Taariq | 86 | Meccan | |
| 37 | Al-Qamar | 54 | Meccan | Except 44-46, from Medina |
| 38 | Saad | 38 | Meccan | |
| 39 | Al- A’raaf | 7 | Meccan | Except 163-170, from Medina |
| 40 | Al- Jinn | 72 | Meccan | |
| 41 | Yaseen | 36 | Meccan | Except 45, from Medina |
| 42 | Al Furqaan | 25 | Meccan | Except 68-70, from Medina |
| 43 | Al Faatir | 35 | Meccan | |
| 44 | Maryam | 19 | Meccan | Except 58 and 71, from Medina |
| 45 | Taa-Haa | 20 | Meccan | Except 51 and 71, from Medina |
| 46 | Al-Waaqia | 56 | Meccan | Except 130 and 131, from Medina |
| 47 | Ash-Shu’araa | 26 | Meccan | Except 197 and 224-227 from Medina |
| 48 | An-Naml | 27 | Meccan | |
| 49 | Al- Qasas | 28 | Meccan | Except 52-55 from Medina and 85 from Juhfa at the time of the Hijra |
| 50 | Al-Israa | 17 | Meccan | Except 26, 32, 33, 57, 73-80, from Medina |
| 51 | Yunus | 10 | Meccan | Except 40, 94, 95, 96 from Medina |
| 52 | Hud | 11 | Meccan | Except 12, 17, 114 from Medina |
| 53 | Yusuf | 12 | Meccan | Except 1, 2, 3, 7 from Medina |
| 54 | Al Hijr | 15 | Meccan | Except 87 from Medina |
| 55 | Al-An’aam | 6 | Meccan | Except 20, 23, 91,93, 114, 151, 152, 153 from Medina |
| 56 | As-Saaffat | 37 | Meccan | |
| 57 | Luqman | 31 | Meccan | Except 27-29 from Medina |
| Order | Sura Name | Number | Type | Note |
| 58 | Saba | 34 | Meccan | |
| 59 | Az-Zumar | 39 | Meccan | |
| 60 | As-Ghaafir | 40 | Meccan | Except 56, 57 from Medina |
| 61 | Fussilat | 41 | Meccan | |
| 62 | Ash-Shuraa | 42 | Meccan | Except 23, 24, 25, 27 from Medina |
| 63 | As-Zukhruf | 43 | Meccan | Except 54 from Medina |
| 64 | Ad-Dukhan | 44 | Meccan | |
| 65 | Al-Jaathiya | 45 | Meccan | Except 14 from Medina |
| 66 | Al-Ahqaf | 46 | Meccan | Except 10,15,35 from Medina |
| 67 | Adh-Dhaariyat | 51 | Meccan | |
| 68 | Al-Ghaashiya | 88 | Meccan | |
| 69 | Al-Kahf | 18 | Meccan | Except 28, 83-101 from Medina |
| 70 | An-Nahl | 16 | Meccan | Except last three verses 127-129 from Medina |
| 71 | Nooh | 100 | Meccan | |
| 72 | Ibrahim | 108 | Meccan | Except 28,29 from Medina |
| 73 | Al-Anbiyaa | 102 | Meccan | |
| 74 | Al-Muminoon | 107 | Meccan | |
| 75 | As-Sajda | 32 | Meccan | Except 16-20 from Medina |
| 76 | At-Tur | 52 | Meccan | |
| 77 | Al-Mulk | 67 | Meccan | |
| 78 | Al-Haaqqa | 69 | Meccan | |
| 79 | Al-Ma’aarij | 70 | Meccan | |
| 80 | An-Naba | 78 | Meccan | |
| 81 | An-Naazi’aat | 79 | Meccan | |
| 82 | Al-Infitaar | 82 | Meccan | |
| 83 | Al-Inshiqaaq | 84 | Meccan | |
| 84 | Ar-Room | 30 | Meccan | Except 17 from Medina |
| 85 | Al-Ankaboot | 29 | Meccan | Except 1-11 from Medina |
| 86 | Al-Mutaffifin | 83 | Meccan | Last from Mecca |
| 87 | Al-Baqara | 2 | Medinan | Except 281 from Mina at the time of last Haj |
| 88 | Al-Anfaal | 8 | Mediinan | Except 30-36 from Mecca |
| 89 | Aaal-i-Imraan | 3 | Medinan | |
| 90 | Al-Ahzaab | 33 | Medinan | |
| 91 | Al-Mumtahana | 60 | Medinan | |
| 92 | An-Nisa | 4 | Medinan | |
| 93 | Az-Zalzala | 99 | Medinan | |
| 94 | Al-Hadid | 57 | Medinan | |
| 95 | Muhammad | 47 | Medinan | Except 13, from during the Hijrah |
| 96 | Ar-Ra’d | 13 | Medinan | |
| 97 | Ar-Rahman | 55 | Medinan | |
| 98 | Al-Insaan | 76 | Medinan | |
| 99 | At-Talaaq | 65 | Medinan | |
| 100 | Al-Bayyina | 98 | Medinan | |
| 101 | Al-Hashr | 59 | Medinan | |
| 102 | An-Noor | 24 | Medinan | |
| 103 | Al-Hajj | 22 | Medinan | Except 52-55, from between Mecca and Medina |
| 104 | Al-Munnafiqoon | 63 | Medinan | |
| 105 | Al-Mujaadida | 58 | Medinan | |
| 106 | Al-Hujuraat | 49 | Medinan | |
| 107 | At-Tahrim | 66 | Medinan | |
| 108 | At-Taghaaabun | 64 | Medinan | |
| 109 | As-Saff | 61 | Medinan | |
| 110 | Al-Jumu’a | 62 | Medinan | |
| 111 | Al-Fath | 48 | Medinan | While returning from Hudaybiyya |
| 112 | Al-Maaida | 5 | Medinan | Except 3, from Arafat on last haj |
| 113 | At-Tawba | 9 | Medinan | Except last two verses from Mecca |
| 114 | An-Nasr | 110 | Medinan | Last one, from Mina on last Haj |
References
- The History of the Quran by Abu Abd Allah al-Zanjani (pdf book, English translation).
- Chronological Order of Quranic Surahs, rendered by Kevin P. Edgecomb.
- Geschichte des Korans by Theodor Noldeke (pdf book, Arabic translation)
Courtesy: tanzil.infowww.yassarnalquran.wordpress.com
