Copies of Quran Translation in Maranao on Way to Philippines
Maranao is a Filipino language spoken by more than 1.3 million people, who are natives of the southern Philippines.
The translation of the Holy Quran to Maranao is quite a fascinating story in itself: it took 10 years to complete and another five years to review and validate.
The Maranao Quran was translated through the painstaking work of Shaikh Abdulaziz Gurualim Saromantang, a Muslim Filipino scholar.
In the 1990s, the first copies were printed in Madinah, Saudi Arabia, according to GNews.
Saromantang was the first and only Filipino Muslim scholar allowed by the Saudi government in the 1980s to translate the Quran into his native Maranao language, which preceded the Tagalog Quran.
Rashid Gurualim, 32, grandson of Saromantang, said: "We're grateful for this book, and for my grandfather's work. This translation is meant to be shared as it helps our community, our faith."
"It took my grandfather around 10 years to complete the translation. It took another five years for Saudi authorities to validate his translation with the help of other Maranao-speaking scholars," added Gurualim, who has been working in the UAE for seven years at a retail network.
Saromantang, a home-grown scholar who taught in Islamic schools, also served as the mayor of Tugaya town of Lanao Del Sur province in the 1960s.
Ramadan project
The shipment last week to the Philippines was facilitated by Dar Al Ber Society with the help of the Dubai Islamic Centre, as well as the Maranao Community in the UAE (Marcom) and LBC Cargo.
Sahron Tamano, an Overseas Filipino worker and a Marcom leader who is a grand nephew of Saromantang, said: "We're aiming for the copies to reach our brethren in the Philippines during this Ramadan."
"Last year," said Tamano, "we sent about 800 copies to Lanao del Sur and Lanao del Norte. This year, we aim to distribute the copies in the NCR (National Capital Region) and Luzon (the main northern island, where Manila is) area."
After the Maranao Quran was printed and distributed in the 1990s, no other printing of the translation was made.
"For about two decades, no additional copies were reprinted and distributed," he said.
Tamano added that many Filipino Muslims all over the world are eager to get their copy, especially those from Marawi City whose houses were destroyed during the seven-month siege of the city by Asian branch of the Daesh terror group.
The "Moros" are indigenous peoples in the southern Philippine islands who embraced Islam about 100 years before the first Christian missionaries reached the archipelago of "about" 7,641 islands.
There are at least 13 ethnic groups comprising the indigenous peoples of the Philippines, including the Moros.
Maranao (also spelled Meranao) means "people of the lake". Alternatively, the word Maranao may be a mix of "Malay" and "Lanao".
Maranao refers not just to a people group but also to their language, spoken by people living in the provinces of Lanao del Sur and Lanao del Norte.
There are an estimated 1.3 million Maranaos who identify themselves closely with other Muslim groups that inhabit the island of Mindanao, in southern Philippines.
While the majority of Maranao live in the area surrounding Lake Lanao, many have relocated to Manila as well as overseas.
