Rasm, Diction, and Repetition in the Qur’an: Their Implications for Translation Accuracy into Indonesian

Alvin Tubagus Cahya Nugraha; Cecep Moch Ramli Al-Fauzi; Muhammad Hanif Athallah; Akmaliyah Akmaliyah

doi:10.15575/ta.v5i2.52676

Authors

Alvin Tubagus Cahya Nugraha Universitas Islam Negeri Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung, Indonesia
Cecep Moch Ramli Al-Fauzi Institut Agama Islam Latifah Mubarokiah (IAILM) Suryalaya Tasikmalaya, Indonesia
Muhammad Hanif Athallah Universitas Islam Negeri Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung, Indonesia
Akmaliyah Akmaliyah Universitas Islam Negeri Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung, Indonesia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15575/ta.v5i2.52676

Keywords:

Arabic Linguistics, Diction, Rasm, Repetition, Translation Accuracy

Abstract

Translating the Qur’an into Indonesian presents challenges in preserving the linguistic characteristics of the source text, particularly in terms of rasm, diction, and repetition. This study aims to analyze these three aspects and explain their implications for the accuracy of Qur’anic translation. It employs a qualitative-descriptive approach through library research. The data are analyzed using content analysis with a comparative approach, supported by Qur’anic exegesis, Arabic linguistics, the science of Qur’anic orthography, balaghah, and translation theory. The findings indicate that rasm must be examined in light of the orthographic conventions of the Qur’anic codex, variant readings (qira’at), and exegetical context, as differences in written forms do not necessarily produce differences in meaning. Regarding diction, the use of overly general equivalents may obscure semantic nuances between words with related meanings. Meanwhile, repetition contributes to textual cohesion, emphasis, and rhetorical effects, which may be diminished when repeated elements are omitted or replaced with pronouns. This study concludes that translation accuracy depends not only on semantic equivalence but also on preserving the linguistic functions of the source text while maintaining naturalness and readability in the target language.

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