List of tafsir works


The following is a list of tafsir works. Tafsir is a body of commentary and explication, aimed at explaining the meanings of the Qur'an, the central religious text of Islam. Tafsir can broadly be categorized by its affiliated Islamic schools and branches and the era it was published, classic or modern.
According to American scholar Samuel Ross, there are 2,700 Qur’an commentaries extant in manuscript form, and 300 commentaries have been published. Considering that around 96% of the Arabic-language manuscripts remain unstudied, Ross argues that "by extrapolation there may be thousands of additional commentaries still waiting to be discovered."

Early tafsir

Arabic

Tanwir al-Miqbas attributed to Abd Allah ibn Abbas although there is a dispute about its authenticity Tafsir al-Kabir by Muqatil ibn Sulayman. The first full tafsir attributed to Muqatil ibn Sulayman ibn Bashiral-Balkhi.Tafsir Ibn Jurayj by Ibn Jurayj. Published for the first time in 2019, after a partial manuscript of the work was identified.

English

Original work
  • "The Message of the Qur’ān" by Muhammad Asad 1940.
  • "The Meaning of the Glorious Quran" by Marmaduke Pickthall 1929
  • "The Koran : Commonly Called the Alkoran of Mohammed-with large commentary, by George Sale.
  • "Quran to English" by Arab born American Talal Itani.
TranslationTafsir Ibn 'Abbas: Great Commentaries of the Holy Qur'an translated by Mokrane Guezzou. Fons Vitae, Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought.
  • "The Meaning of the Glorious Quran" by Marmaduke Pickthall 1929
  • "The Koran: Commonly Called the Alkoran of Mohammed, by George Sale

Sunni

Arabic

Legal TafsirAhkam al-Qur’an by Al-Jaṣṣās. Based on the legal rulings of the Hanafi school of Islamic law. This was published in three volumes and remains popular amongst the Hanafis of India, the Middle East and Turkey.Ahkam al-Qur’an by Abu Bakr ibn al-Arabi. The author is also known as 'Qadi ibn al-Arabi' to distinguish him from the famous Sufi Ibn Arabi. He was a jurist from Andalusia His interpretation has been published in three volumes and contains commentary on the legal rulings of the Qur’an according to the Maliki school.Al-Jami' li-Ahkam al-Qur’an by Al-Qurtubi, the famous Maliki Ash'ari jurist of Cordoba, in Andalusia. This 10-volume tafsir is a commentary on the Qur’anic verses dealing with legal issues. Although the author was a Maliki, he also presents the legal opinions of other major schools of Islamic jurisprudence; thus it is popular with jurists from all of the schools of Islamic law. One volume of this tafsir has been translated into English by Aisha Bewley. Available online.Nukat al-Qur’an al-Dallah ala al-Bayan by Al-Qassab a commentary primarily from the viewpoint of applied Islamic law.
Partial and Unfinished TafsirMa'ani Al-Qur'an al-Karim by Abu Jaʿfar an-Nahhas - It contains tafsir from Surah Al-Fatihah to Surah Al-Fath. It has been edited and annotated by Muhammad 'Ali As-Sabina.Al-Bustanu Fi I'rawbi Mushkilati al-Qur'an by Ahmad Ibn Ahnaf Abi Bakr Al-Yamani Ibn 'Umar Al-Hanbali.Rawa'i' al-Tafsir by Ibn Rajab Tafsir Ibn 'Arawfah by Ibn Arafa Tafsir Ibn Kamal Basha by Ibn Kemal At-Tafsirat al-Ahmadiyyah Fi Bayani al-ayati-sh-Shar'iyyah by Mulla Ahmad Jiwan. This is the Hanafi tafsir of only those ayat which are concerned with matters of Fiqh.Mushkilat al-Qur’an by Anwar Shah Kashmiri, edited with references and one of the introductions by Ahmad Bijnuri, and another introduction by the author's favourite student Muhammad Yusuf Banori. The book predominantly in Arabic but passages in Persian also appear throughout the work. The main objective for undertaking to write this work was to interpret only those verses of the Qur’an which are generally considered to be difficult to understand. A special feature of this particular work is that the author has, in addition, set aside 190 verses that, in his opinion, required further discussion and repeated consideration. Published posthumously in Maligaon, Surat, Gujarat, India, by Majlis al-'Ilmi in 1974.
ModernHashiyah ala Tafsir al-Qadi al-Baydawi by Ibn 'Abidin Tafsir Ash-Sharawi by Muhammad Metwali Alsharawi, a famous Egyptian scholar.Al-tafsir al-waset by Muhammad Tantawy, Grand Imam of Al-Azharal-Tafsīr al-Bayānī Iil-Qurʾān al-Karīm by Aisha Abd al-Rahman, first work written by a woman.Fi Zilal al-Quran by Sayyid Qutb
  1. Safwat al-Tafasir
  2. At-Tafsir al-Wadwih al-Muyassar
  3. Rawa'i' al-Bayan Tafsir ayati al-Ahkam mina al-Qur'an Minhat Al-Jalil Fi Bayan ma Fi Ma’alimal-Tanzil by Aziz-ul-Rahman Usmani Tafsir al-Qur'an bi-Kalamal-Rahman by Sanaullah AmritsariRuh al-Ma'ani by Mahmud al-Alusi Mawahib al-Rahman Fi Tafsir al-Qur'an by Abdul Karim Mudarris - the mufti of Iraq and a Shafi'i juristAl-Anwaral-Muttaqin - This is the combination of five Tafsirs by six Ash'ari scholars Fakhr al-Din al-Razi, Shams/Shahabal-din AhmadIbn Khawlil Al-Khauli/Khau'i Ad-Dimashqi/Najjmal-Din Ahmad Ibn Muhammad Ibn Abal-Hazm Al-Makhzumi Al-Qawmuli Al-Missri, Al-Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir, Ebussuud Efendi, and Mahmud al-Alusi, edited by Anwar Shah Kashmiri, Muhammad Yusuf Banori, and Taqi UsmaniAysar al-Tafasir li Kalami al-'Aliyyi al-Kabir by Abu Bakr al-Jazaerial-Iklil ʻala Madarik al-tanzil wa-ḥaqaʼiq al-taʼwil lil-Imam al-Nasafi by Muhammad Abdul Haq bin Shah al-Hindi al-Hanafi - A commentary of An-Nasafi's Tafsir, with elements ofTafsir al-Baydawi by al-Baydawi and ''Tafsir Al-Kashshaf by Al-Zamakhshari, which is famous for its linguistic analysis, some of which al-Baydawi and then an-Nasafi amended and some omitted.Nahw tafsir mawdu`i li-suwar al-Qur'an al-Karim by Muhammad al-GhazaliTafsir Al-Nabulsi by Mohammed Rateb al-NabulsiAl-Mo'jamul Mufahras Li Alfadh Al-Qur'an Al-Kareem by Mohammad Fuad Abdul Baqial-Tafsir al-Bayan lil Quran al-Karim by Aisha Abd al-RahmanNazarat fi Kitab Allah by Zaynab al-GhazaliAl-Mubasir al-Nur al-Quran by Nayla Hashem SabriTaysir al-Tafsir'' by Fawkiya Ibrahim al-Shirbini

Persian

TranslationsTafsir-e-Tabari: a 10th-century translation of the Tafsir al-Tabari in Persian. Tafsir-e-Nasafi: an 11th-century translation and tafsir by Abu Hafs Umar an-Nasafi.
OriginalMawaheb-e-'Aliyya : by Husayn KashifiMushkilat al-Qur’an by Anwar Shah Kashmiri, edited with references and one of the introductions by Ahmad Bijnuri, and another introduction by the author's favourite student Muhammad Yusuf Banori. This partial commentary is predominantly in Arabic but passages in the Persian language also appears throughout the work. The main objective for undertaking to write this work was to interpret only those verses of the Holy Qur’an which are generally considered to be difficult to understand. A special feature of this particular work is that the author has, in addition, set aside 190 verses that, in his opinion, required further discussion and repeated consideration. Published posthumously in Maligaon, Surat, Gujarat, India, by Majlis al-'Ilmi in 1974.

Urdu

OriginalTibyan ul-Quran by Ghulam Rasool Saeedi is the most comprehensive and detailed Tafsir of Quran in Urdu it contains complete,direct and full references Tafseer e Siddiqui by
Translations
Partial and Unfinished TafsirAhkam Al-Qur’an by Muhammad Ashraf Ali Thanwi, ' Zafar Ahmad Usmani, Jamil Ahmad Thanawi, Muhammad Idris Kandhlawi, and Muhammad Shafi Uthmani, with introduction by Taqi Usmani - the 2nd and the 4th Manzil is left to be written.Tarjuman al-Quran by Abul Kalam AzadMa'alimal-Qur'an by Muhammad 'Ali As-Swiddiqi Kandhlawi

Bengali

OriginalQur'an Bangla Anubad, by Dr. Zohurul Hoque. Tafsir Zakaria by Abubakar Muhammad Zakaria. Available online.Tafsir-e-Haqqani) by Shamsul Haque Faridpuri.Nural-Qur'an by Muhammad Aminal-Islam Tafsir al-Quran by Delwar Hossain Sayidi
TranslationsAhkam al-Qur’an by Al-JaṣṣāsTafsir Ibn Kathir translated by Akhtar Faruq.Tafsir Ibn Kathir translated by Mujibur-RahmanTafsir al-Jalalayn with its Urdu commentaries Jamalayn and Kamalayn by 'Abdal-Ghawffar Shahpuri, Amiral-Islam Faridabadi, and Habibal-Rahman Hobiganji.Bayanal-Qur'an by Ashraf Ali Thanwi Tafsir-e-Usmani by Mahmud al-Hasan Deobandi and ' Shabir Ahmad UsmaniTafsir-e-Majidi by Abdul Majid DaryabadiMa'ariful Quran by Muhammad Shafi. Translated from Urdu to Bengali by Muhiuddin Khan. Fully available online. Anwar al-Qur'an by Abal-Kalam Ma'sum, translated by Muhammad MustawfaTauzih al-Qur'an by Taqi Usmani translated by Abal-Bashar Muhammad Saifal-Islam.
  • Fi Zilal al-Qur'an by Masihuzzaman Falahi Nadvi, Lar, Deoria Uttar PradeshTafhim ul Quran by Abul A'la Maududi. Translated from Urdu by Abdul Mannan Talib. Available online.
  • "Shohoj Bangla Quran" Translated by Engr M Alauddin, 2023. Publisher: Mowla Brothers, Dhaka, Bangladesh.

English

OriginalThe Noble Quran: Meaning With Explanatory Notes by Taqi UsmaniThe Majestic Quran: An English Rendition of Its Meanings translation and commentary by Nureddin Uzunoglu, Ali Ozek, Tevfik Rüştü Topuzoğlu, and Mehmet Maksutoğlu
Translations
  1. Tafsir ibn Kathir: The Exegesis of the Grand Holy Qur'an translated by Muhammad Mahdi Al-Sharif. Daral-Kutub 'Ilmiyah, Beirut, Lebanon 2006.
  2. Tafsir Ibn Kathir translated by Safiur-Rahman Al Mubarakpuri and team, Darussalam Publications.
  3. Tafsir Ibn Kathir translated by Muhammad Anis Gad Khalil, Dar al-ManarahQur’an Made Easy by Shabir Ahmad Usmani, Afzal Husen Elias, Ismail Ibrahim, and Ismail Khathrada.Tafsir-e-Uthmani by Mahmud Hasan Deobandi and Shabir Ahmad Usmani has been translated as:
  4. The Glorious Qur'an based on the Tafsir-e-'Uthmani translated and edited by the teachers of Madrasah Ayesha Siddiqua, Karachi. Al-Bushra Publishers
  5. Tafsir-e-Uthmani translated by Mohammad Ashfaq Ahmad, Idara Impex, IndiaMa'ariful Quran by Muhammad Shafi. Translated from Urdu to English. Fully available online. Illuminating Discourses on the Noble Qur’an by Ashiq Ilahi Bulandshahri, translated into English by Ismail Ebrahim, and edited by Ismail Khathrada and Afzal Hoosen EliasTafhim al-Quran by Abul A'la Maududi translated as Towards Understanding the Qur'an Nahw tafsir mawdu`i li-suwar al-Qur'an al-Karim by Muhammad al-Ghazali has been translated as
  6. A Thematic Commentary on the Qur’an translated by A.A Shamis, The International Institute of Islamic Thought
  7. Journey Through The Qur'an: The Content and Context of the Suras translated by Aisha BewleyTafsir al-Qur’an by Abdul Majid DaryabadiTafsir al-Tabari by al-Tabari has been partially translated by Scott Lucas as Selections from The Comprehensive Exposition of the Interpretation of the Verses of the Qur'an in two volumes, Islamic Texts SocietyFi Zilal al-Qur'an by Sayyid Qutb has been translated as In the Shade of the Quran by Adil Salahi and A.A Shamis, Islamic FoundationThe Noble Quran: Meaning With Explanatory Notes by Taqi UsmaniTadabbur-e-Qur'an has been translated as Pondering over the Qur'an by Mohammad Saleem Kayani. Incomplete, in two volumes, Islamic Book Trust Tafsir al-Jalalayn by Jalal ud Din Suyuti and Jalal ud Din al Mahalli has been translated as:
  8. Tafsir al-Jalalayn: Complete English Translation by Aisha Bewley, Dar al-Taqwa
  9. Tafsir al Jalayan: Great Commentaries of the Holy Qur'an translated by Feras Hamza, Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought, Fons VitaeTafsir al-Kabir by al-Razi has been partially translated as The Great Exegesis: al-Tafsir al-Kabir by Sohaib Saeed. Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought, Islamic Texts Society

Sindhi

Tafsir Al-Maqam Al-Mahmud by Ubaidullah Sindhi.Tafsir Surah Saba by Ghulam Mustafa Qasmi.Tafsir Sahalul Bayan by Mufti Abdul Wahab Chachar.

Kurdish

Nami Tafsir by Abdul Karim Mudarris, the mufti and Shafi'i jurist of IraqTafsiri Raman by Ahmad Kaka Mahmood, a Kurdish scholar from Halabja

Malay

Tarjuman al-Mustafid by Abd al-Rauf al-Sinkili Tafsir At Tibbyan by Abdul Hadi Awang

Indonesian

Tafsir Qur'an Karim by Mahmud Yunus Tafsir al-Azhar by Hamka. Published in 10 volumes.Tafsir Al-Mishbah by Quraish ShihabTafsir Rahmat by Oemar Bakry Tafsir Al-Qur'anul Majid An-Nur by Muhammad Hasbi Ash-Shiddieqy Tafsir Al-Bayan by Muhammad Hasbi Ash-ShiddieqyTafsir Al-Lubab by Quraish Shihab. Published in 4 volumes.Tafsir Qur'an by Zainuddin Hamidy and Fachruddin HSTafsir Raudhatul Irfan fi Ma'rifat Al-Qur'an by Ahmad SanusiTafsir Al-Furqan by Ahmad HassanTafsīr al-Qur’ān al-Karīm by Abdul Halim Hasan, Zainal Arifin Abbas and Abdul Rahim Haitami

Javanese

Serat Al-Fatekah by an anonymous Surakartan palace writerSTafsir Qur'an Jawen by Bagus NgarofahTafsir Al-Iklil fi Ma'ani Tanzil by Misbah Mustafa. Published in 10 volumes.Tafsir Al-Ibriz Lima'rifati Tafsiril Qur'an bi Lughati al-Jawa by Bisri MusthafaTaj al-Muslimin min Kalami Rabbi al’Alamin by Misbah MustafaFaidl al-Rahman by Saleh Darat as-Samarani Tafsir Al-Mahalli by Mujab Mahalli

Sundanese

Tafsir Raudhatul Irfan fi Ma'rifat Al-Qur'an by Ahmad Sanusi. Published in 2 volumes.

Madurese

Al-Qur’an al-Karim Nurul Huda by Mudhar Tamim

Buginese

Tafsir Al-Munir by Anre Gurutta Daud Ismail

Turkish

Risale-i Nur by Said Nursî written mainly in Turkish, is a large work, with four main volumes. It consists of extensive exegesis of certain verses and explanation of the fundamentals of how to approach the Qur’an. It especially explains the verses that 21st century people need most. In other words, it studies the verses about the six articles of belief of Islam such as believing in God and the day of judgment. It also gives logical answers to the questions asked by Atheists. This work is written in a more accessible style to the general public and is translated into 52 languages.Elmalılı Tefsir by Elmalılı Muhammed Hamdi Yazır. Published in 10 volumes, it remains one of the most popular commentaries in Turkish.Okuyucu Tefsiri by Semra Kürün Çekmegil - The first tafsir written by a female Turkish scholarKur’an Tahlili: Arapça Gramer Işığında Sözlük-Meal-Tefsir by Necla Yasdıman

Sunni Sufi

Arabic

Tafsir al-Qur'an al-Azim by Sahl al-Tustari Tafsir al-Mahaimi by Makhdoom Ali MahimiRuh al-Bayan by Ismail Hakki Bursevi. A ten-volume Arabic work by the founder of the Hakkiyye Jelveti Sufi Order from Turkey.Haqa'iq al-tafsir by Abu Abd Rahman al-Sulami Ara'is al-Bayan fi haqa'iq al-Koran by Abu Mohammad Shirazi Bahr al-Madid by Ahmad ibn Ajiba, generally known as Tafsir ibn Ajibah — an 6/8 volume work by a Moroccan Sheikh of the Darqarwi branch of the Shadhili Order of Sufism.Laṭā'if al-Isharat bi-Tafsir al-Qur'ān by Al-QushayriAl-Mohit al-azam by Haydar Amuli that was completed around 1375 or 1376 CETafsir al-Mazhari by Qadi Thanaullah PanipatiGhara'ib al-Qur'an wa Ragha'ib al-Furqan by Nizam al-Din al-Nisaburi Tafsir Safi by Mohsen Fayz Kashani Tafasir al-Quran by Mulla Sadra Bayan al-Sa‘ada by Sultan Alishah'Ara'is al-bayan fi ḥaqa'iq al-Qur'an by Ruzbihan Baqlial-Tawilat al-Najmiyah by Najamuddin Daya and Ala al-Dawla Simnani

Bengali

TranslationTafsir-e-Mazhari by Qadi Thanaullah Panipati, translated by Mamunal-Rawshid

English

OriginalThe Qur'an with Annotated Interpretation in Modern English by Ali Ünal - Ünal is a member of the Gülenist movement.
Translations
  • Noor ul-Irfan by Asrar al-Tanzil by Ameer Muhammad Akram Awan Laṭā'if al-Isharat bi-Tafsir al-Qur'ān has been partially translated as Abu'l-Qasim Al-Qushayri's Lata'if Al-Isharat: Subtleties of The Allusions by Kristin Zahra Sands, Dar Ul ThaqafahA Sufi Commentary on the Qur'an: Ta'wilat al-Qur'an by Abd al-Razzaq Al-Kashani, translated by Khalid Williams. The Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought, Islamic Texts SocietyTafsir Al-Tustari: Great Commentaries on the Holy Qur’an translated by Annabel and Ali Keeler, The Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought, Fons Vitae

Persian

Kashf al-Asrar by Rashid al-Din MaybudiFath al-Aziz: an 18th-century tafsir in Persian by Shah Abdul Aziz Dehlavi, son of Shah Waliullah Dehlawi.

Sindhi

Ahsan ul Bayan by Allama Muhammad Idris Dahiri in 9 volumes.

Urdu

TranslationsTafsir-e-Mazhari by Qadi Thanaullah Panipati
Original
  1. Akram al-Tafasir
  2. Asrar al-Tanzil Bayan al-Quran by Ashraf Ali Thanwi.Sabq al-ghayat fi nasaq al-ayat by Ashraf Ali Thanwi.Hawashi-e-Qur'an Majid by Shah 'Abdul Qadir Dihlawi and Ahmad 'Ali Lahori

Sunni Salafi

Arabic

Fath al-Qadir by Muhammad ash-Shawkani.Tafsir As-Sa'di by Abdul-Rahman al-Sa'di

Bengali

  • Tafsir al-Quran by Muhammad Asadullah Al-GhalibTafsir-Aini 1-15 Parah/Juz' explained by Ainul Bari Aliavi. Published by Sufia Prakashani, Kolkata, India. & .

English

Original
  • Tafsir Ishraq Al-Ma'ani by Syed Iqbal Zaheer. In eight volumes, this tafsir summarizes the exegesis of the most prominent writings of Muslim scholars from Tabari to Sayyid Qutb from a Salafi perspective.
TranslationTafseer as-Sa'di by Abdul-Rahman al-Sa'di, translated by Nasiruddin al-Khattab and edited by Huda Khattab, International Islamic Publishing House Ahasanul Bayan by Hafiz Salahuddin Yusuf, translated by Mohammad Kamal Myshkat, Dar-us-Salam Publications

Urdu

Ahasanul Bayan by Hafiz Salahuddin Yusuf

Twelver Shia

Arabic

ClassicTafsir Qomi by Ali Ibn Ibrahim Qomi Tafsir Ayyashi by Mohammad ibn Masoud Ayyashi Tafsir Furat Kufi by Furat Ibn Furat Ibn Ibrahim al-Kufi.
Jurisprudential
Partial and Unfinished TafsirTafsir Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq collection of hadiths reportedly narrated by Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq . Tafsir Imam Hasan Askari attributed to Imam Hasan al-Askari
ModernTafsir Shobar by Abdullah Alavi Hosseini Mosavi.
Translations

Persian

Rawz al-jinan wa ruh al-jinan by Abu al-Futuh al-Razi

English

TranslationTafsir al-Mizan by Muhammad Husayn Tabataba'i..An Enlightening Commentary into the Light of the Holy Qur'an by Kamal Faqih Imani.

Urdu

Translation
OriginalTafsir Anwar-e-Najaf fi Asrar Mushaf by Hussain Bakhsh Jarra Al Kauthar fi Tafsir al-Quran by Mohsin Ali Najafi

Zaydi Shia

Arabic

Tafsir Furat Kufi by Furat Ibn Furat Ibn Ibrahim al-KufiAl-Burhan by Abu'l-Fath an-Nasir ad-DailamiTaysir at-Tafsir by Badreddin al-Houthi

Mu'tazila

Al-Kashshaf by Al-Zamakhshari. - Considered to be the standard work of Mu'tazila tafsir, with emphasis on Arabic grammar and lexicography. The author later converted to Sunni Islam.

Ibadi

Arabic

  1. Da‘i l-‘Amal li- Yawm al-Ajal
  2. Himyan al-Zad ild Dar al-Ma‘ad
  3. Taysir al-TafsirJawahir al-Tafasir by Ahmed bin Hamad al-Khalili

Modernist

Arabic

Tafsir al-Tahrir wa'l-Tanwir by Muhammad al-Tahir ibn Ashur. Notable of its emphasis on the rhetorical aspect of the Qur’an.

Urdu

Al-Bayan by Javed Ahmad Ghamidi.
  • Mafhoom Al Quran by

English

The Message of the Qur'an by Muhammad Asad, 1980.

Other

English

The Study Qur’an — authored by an editorial collective led by noted Islamic philosopher Seyyed Hossein Nasr, published in 2015 by HarperCollins. This work seeks to highlight the depth and diversity of interpretations that exist within traditional Islam, drawing on 40 major classical commentaries from a wide range of orientations, including both Sunni and Shi'a viewpoints, the Maturidi, Ashari, Mutazili and Athari schools of Islamic theology, as well as Sufi interpretations; but excluding modern reformist and fundamentalist views. Has been hailed by academics as an unparalleled reference work in the field of Islamic studies.The Ascendant Qur'an: Realigning Man to the Divine Power Culture by Muhammad al Asi