The Qur’aan was revealed in sections to Prophet Muhammad (r) from the beginning of his prophethood until shortly before his death. Thus, the Qur’aan came down continuously over a period of twenty-three years.

The various sections of the Qur’aan were generally revealed to solve the problems which existed among the Muslim communities in both Makkah and Madeenah. Since the prob-lems and needs of Makkah were different from those of Madeenah, the revelations of Makkah and Madeenah have special characteristics of their own.

It is very important that the differences between the revelations of Makkah and Madeenah be clearly understood if the Qur’aan itself is to be clearly understood. Because of the great importance of the Qur’aan to Islaam, Islaamic scholars from the time of the sahaabah have devoted much time and effort in this area of study