Ili kitabu chochote kiweze kutambuliwa kuwa ni wahyi wa Mungu, lazima kiwe sahihi kabisa katika maelezo yake ya uhalisia: wa zamani, wa sasa na wa baadaye. Qur'aan ina visa vingi kuhusu manabii waliotangulia na watu wao. Baadhi ya visa hivyo vina vipengele vinavyoweza kuchunguzwa ili kuthibitisha usahihi wake.

For a scripture to qualify as divinely revealed it must be totally accurate in its descriptions of reality: the past, the present and the future. The Qur’aan has many stories about previous prophets and their peoples. Some of these stories have elements in them that can be checked out for their accuracy.

Mfano mmoja wa usahihi wa Qur-aan katika maelezo yake ya kihistoria ni hadithi ya Nabii Yoosuf (Joseph), ambaye aliuzwa kama mtumwa huko Misri, lakini akapanda hadi kuwa afisa mkuu serikalini, jambo lililomwezesha kuleta familia yake yote kuishi huko kwa heshima. Wanahistoria wengi wanakubaliana kwamba kuingia kwa Wana wa Israeli Misri kulitokea wakati nusu ya kaskazini ya nchi hiyo ilitawaliwa na Hyksos, wavamizi wa Kisemiti ambao walikuwa wasio Wamisri wa kwanza kutawala nchi hiyo tangu kuinuka kwa Ufalme wa Kale. Qur-aan daima humwita mtawala wa Misri aliyekabiliana na Musa ﷺ kwa cheo cha "Firauni." Kila mtawala wa Misri aliitwa kwa cheo hiki kuanzia utawala wa Amenhotep IV katika karne ya 14 KK, lakini si kabla ya hapo. Yoosuf aliishi angalau miaka mia mbili kabla ya Amenhotep IV. Qur-aan kwa uthabiti inamrejelea mtawala wa wakati wa Yoosuf kama "al-malik," mfalme.

One example of the Qur’aan’s precision in its historical descriptions is in the story of Prophet Yoosuf (Joseph), who was sold as a slave in Egypt, but rose to become an important official in the government, which made it possible for him to bring his whole family to live there in honor. Most historians agree that the entry of the Children of Israel into Egypt occurred when the northern half of the country was ruled by the Hyksos, Semitic invaders who were the first nonEgyptians to rule that country since the rise of the Old Kingdom. The Qur’aan always calls the Egyptian ruler who confronted Moses by the title of “Pharaoah.” Every Egyptian ruler was called by this title starting from the reign of Amenhotep IV in the 14th century BC, but not before that. Yoosuf lived at least two hundred years before Amenhotep IV. The Qur’aan consistently refers to the ruler in Yoosuf’s time, as “ al-malik,” the king:

Inapaswa kufahamika kwamba Biblia inamtaja mtawala wa wakati wa Yusuf kama "Farao", ambalo lilikuwa ni kosa la kihistoria lililoingizwa na waandishi wa vitabu vya Agano la Kale karne nyingi baada ya Musa.50

It should be noted that the Bible refers to the ruler of Joseph’s time as “Pharaoah,” which was an anachronism inserted by the scribes who wrote the books of the Old Testament centuries after Moses.50

Baadhi ya wakosoaji wamechukua baadhi ya maelezo maalum kujaribu kushambulia usahihi wa kihistoria wa Qur'an. Mfano maarufu ni kauli ya watu wake kwa Maryam (Kiar. Maryam) alipojitokeza na mtoto Yesu baada ya kumzaa mahali pa faragha:

Some critics have seized on certain details to try attack the Qur’aan’s historical accuracy. A famous example is the statement of her people to Mary (Ar.Maryam) when she appeared with the baby Jesus after giving birth to him in an isolated place:

Wakosoaji wanasema kwamba mwandishi alichanganya watu wawili wa kihistoria: Maryamu, mama wa Yesu, na Miriamu, dada wa Haruni. Mkanganyiko huu kwa kweli unatokana na ujinga wao kuhusu jinsi Waarabu wanavyotumia lugha yao. Qur’ani inamtaja Nabii Hudi kuwa ndugu wa 'Ad.

The critics argue that the author confused two historical figures: Mary, the mother of Jesus, and Miriam, the sister of Aaron. The confusion here is really a result of their ignorance about how the Arabs use their language. The Qur’aan refers to Prophet Hood as the brother of ‘Aad:

Waarabu huzitaja makabila kwa jina la babu mkuu ambaye walishuka kutoka kwake. Kabila la 'Aad lilishuka kutoka kwa mtu aliyeitwa 'Aad. Hood hakuwa kaka wake halisi wa mtu huyo, wala hakuwa kaka halisi wa kila mwanachama wa kabila lake, lakini huu ni usemi unaotumiwa na Waarabu kuonyesha uhusiano na watu fulani. Maryam alikuwa mzao wa Harun. Ndiyo sababu anatajwa kama dada wa Harun. Katika matumizi yanayofanana na hayo, Agano Jipya linamtaja Elisabeti, mama wa Yohana Mbatizaji, kama binti wa Haruni.53

The Arabs refer to tribes by the patriarch from whom they are descended. The tribe of ‘Aad was descended from a man named ‘Aad. Hood was not literally that man’s brother, nor was he literally the brother of every member of his tribe, but this is an expression used by the Arabs to indicate association with a people. Mary was a descendant of Aaron. That is why she is referred to as the sister of Aaron. In a similar usage, the New Testament refers to Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist as a daughter of Aaron.53