This article takes a closer look at some of the Qur'anic verses that imply its author assumed the earth is flat.

Taken from Zekeriya Kazvinî's "Acaib-ül Mahlûkat" (The Wonders of Creation). Translated into Turkish from Arabic. Istanbul: ca. 1553.This map depicts "a traditional Islamic projection of the world as a flat disk surrounded by the sundering seas which are restrained by the encircling mountains of Qaf".

For plentiful evidence that the earliest Muslims believed in a flat Earth, and a discussion of the failed attempts by ibn Taymiyyah and others to demonstrate that they believed in a round Earth, see the article Did Muhammad and the Earliest Muslims Know the Earth is Round? .

If the Qur'an is a letter-by-letter dictation from Allah , it should also concur with this fact that was known throughout the world before its revelation , and it should contradict the flat Earth model widely believed in by the 7 th century Bedouins of Arabia. Yet the evidence is that the Qur'an supports the flat Earth model (as well as geocentrism ).

The fact that the Earth is not flat has been known for thousands of years. The Ancient Greeks Pythagoras (570 - 495 BC), Aristotle (384 - 322 BC) and Hipparchus (190 - 120 BC) all knew this. The Indian astronomer and mathematician, Aryabhata (476 - 550 AD) knew this. And so did the early Christian scholars Anicius Boëthius (480 - 524 AD), Bishop Isidore of Seville (560 - 636 AD), Bishop Rabanus Maurus (780 - 856 AD), the monk Bede (672 - 735 AD), Bishop Vergilius of Salzburg (700 - 784 AD) and Thomas Aquinas (1225 - 1274 AD). In fact, contrary to what we are often told, the sphericity of the Earth was common knowledge among early medieval Europeans [2] and the Holy Roman Empire from as early as 395 AD used an orb to represent the spherical Earth. [3]

In this analysis, we look at direct references to the shape of the Earth in the Qur'an. Verse 88:20 is particularly worth highlighting for its use of a word that was deeply associated with flat surfaces.

Arabic word definitions in English are from Lane's Lexicon of classical Arabic (not to be confused with modern Arabic). Note that the Arabic word al-ard can mean the land or the Earth. However, it is perfectly obvious from the context that in the verses below al-ard means the entire Earth, not a local area of land.

The section after this one discusses indirect evidence that the Qur'an supports a flat Earth model, and perhaps contains even stronger evidence than the direct statements below.

Qur'an 2:22 - firashan (thing spread to sit or lie upon)

ٱلَّذِى جَعَلَ لَكُمُ ٱلْأَرْضَ فِرَٰشًا وَٱلسَّمَآءَ بِنَآءً وَأَنزَلَ مِنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ مَآءً فَأَخْرَجَ بِهِۦ مِنَ ٱلثَّمَرَٰتِ رِزْقًا لَّكُمْ ۖ فَلَا تَجْعَلُوا۟ لِلَّهِ أَندَادًا وَأَنتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ وَٱلسَّمَآءَ بِنَآءً وَأَنزَلَ مِنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ مَآءً فَأَخْرَجَ بِهِۦ مِنَ ٱلثَّمَرَٰتِ رِزْقًا لَّكُمْ ۖ فَلَا تَجْعَلُوا۟ لِلَّهِ أَندَادًا وَأَنتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ Allathee jaAAala lakumu alarda firashan [He] who made for you the earth a bed [spread out] and the sky a ceiling and sent down from the sky, rain and brought forth thereby fruits as provision for you. So do not attribute to Allah equals while you know [that there is nothing similar to Him].

Quran 2:22 and the sky a ceiling and sent down from the sky, rain and brought forth thereby fruits as provision for you. So do not attribute to Allah equals while you know [that there is nothing similar to Him].

فِرَٰشًا = firashan = a thing that is spread upon the ground, a thing that is spread for one to sit or lie upon.[4]

Qur'an 15:19 - madad (extend, stretch out)

والارض مددناها والقينا فيها رواسي وانبتنا فيها من كل شئ موزون والقينا فيها رواسي وانبتنا فيها من كل شئ موزون Waal-arda madadnaha waalqayna feeha rawasiya waanbatnafeeha min kulli shay-in mawzoonin And the earth We have spread out (like a carpet); set thereon mountains firm and immovable; and produced therein all kinds of things in due balance.

Quran 15:19 (like a carpet); set thereon mountains firm and immovable; and produced therein all kinds of things in due balance.

مَدَدْ = madad = extend by drawing or pulling, stretch out, expand[5]

Qur'an 20:53 - mahdan (bed)

الذي جعل لكم الارض مهدا وسلك لكم فيها سبلا وانزل من السماء ماء فاخرجنا به ازواجا من نبات شتى وسلك لكم فيها سبلا وانزل من السماء ماء فاخرجنا به ازواجا من نبات شتى Allathee jaAAala lakumu al-arda mahdan wasalaka lakum feeha subulan waanzala mina alssama-imaan faakhrajna bihi azwajan min nabatinshatta He Who has, made for you the earth like a carpet spread out; has enabled you to go about therein by roads (and channels); and has sent down water from the sky." With it have We produced diverse pairs of plants each separate from the others.

Quran 20:53 ; has enabled you to go about therein by roads (and channels); and has sent down water from the sky." With it have We produced diverse pairs of plants each separate from the others.

مَهْدًا = mahdan = cradle or bed; a plain, even, or smooth expanse[6]

Qur'an 43:10 - mahdan (bed)

الذي جعل لكم الارض مهدا وجعل لكم فيها سبلا لعلكم تهتدون وجعل لكم فيها سبلا لعلكم تهتدون Allathee jaAAala lakumu al-arda mahdan wajaAAala lakum feeha subulan laAAallakum tahtadoona (Yea, the same that) has made for you the earth (like a carpet) spread out, and has made for you roads (and channels) therein, in order that ye may find guidance (on the way);

Quran 43:10 , and has made for you roads (and channels) therein, in order that ye may find guidance (on the way);

مَهْدًا = mahdan = cradle or bed; a plain, even, or smooth expanse[7]

Qur'an 50:7 - madad (expand, stretch out)

والارض مددناها والقينا فيها رواسي وانبتنا فيها من كل زوج بهيج والقينا فيها رواسي وانبتنا فيها من كل زوج بهيج Waal-arda madadnaha waalqayna feeha rawasiya waanbatnafeeha min kulli zawjin baheejin And the earth- We have spread it out, and set thereon mountains standing firm, and produced therein every kind of beautiful growth (in pairs)-

Quran 50:7 , and set thereon mountains standing firm, and produced therein every kind of beautiful growth (in pairs)-

مَدَدْ = madad = extend by drawing or pulling, stretch out, expand[8]

Qur'an 51:48 - farasha (spread out) mahidoon (spreaders)

والارض فرشناها فنعم الماهدون Waal-arda farashnaha faniAAma almahidoona And the earth have We laid out, how gracious is the Spreader (thereof)!

Quran 51:48 And the earth have We laid out, how gracious is the Spreader (thereof)!

فَرَشَْ = farasha (see also 2:22 above for the noun) = spread or expand, spread a bed or carpet[9]

الْمَهِدُونَ = mahidoon from مهد = make plain, even, smooth, spread a bed[10]

There is also a hadith in which the plural noun furushaat is used, meaning "beds":

It was narrated from Abu Dharr that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “I see what you do not see, and I hear what you do not hear. The heaven is creaking and it should creak, for there is no space in it the width of four fingers but there is an angel there, prostrating to Allah. By Allah, if you knew what I know, you would laugh little and weep much, and you would never enjoy women in your beds (الْفُرُشَاتِ, al-furushaat), and you would go out in the streets, beseeching Allah.’”

Sunan Ibn Majah 5:37:4190

Qur'an 71:19 - bisaatan (carpet)

والله جعل لكم الارض بساطا WaAllahu jaAAala lakumu al-arda bisatan And Allah has made the earth for you as a carpet (spread out),

Quran 71:19 And Allah has made the earth for you as a carpet (spread out),

بِسَاطًا = bisaatan = A thing that is spread or spread out or forth, and particularly a carpet (from the same root we also have بَسَاطٌ = bisaatun = Land, expanded and even; and wide or spacious) [11]

This word is also used in a hadith in At-Tirmidhi:

... Then he came to hug the Prophet (s.a.w) and uttered that his father and mother should be ransomed for him. Then he went to grove of his and he spread out a mat for them (فَبَسَطَ لَهُمْ بِسَاطًا, fa-basata la-hum bisaatan, literally "and-(he)spread for-them a-mat"). Then he went to a date-palm and returned with a cluster of dates which he put down. ...

Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2369

So the derived verb basata refers to spreading out (thus flattening) a carpet.

Qur'an 78:6-7 - mihadan (bed)

أَلَمْ نَجْعَلِ ٱلْأَرْضَ مِهَٰدًا وَٱلْجِبَالَ أَوْتَادًا Alam najAAali al-arda mihadan Waaljibala awtadan Have We not made the earth as a wide expanse, And the mountains as pegs?

Quran 78:6-7 Have We not made the earth as a wide expanse, And the mountains as pegs?

مِهَٰدًا (same as مَهْدًا mahdan) = cradle or bed; a plain, even, or smooth expanse[12]

Qur'an 79:30 - daha (spread out or ostrich egg?)

Many Islamist apologists attempt to deflect criticism that the Qur'an promotes the mistaken belief of a flat earth by the word دَحَىٰهَآ (dahaha) used in Qur'an 79:30, commonly translated as ‘He spread it’ or ‘He stretched it’.

Arabic: والارض بعد ذلك دحاها والارض بعد ذلك دحاها Transliteration: Waal-arda baAAda thalika dahaha Literal: And the earth/Planet Earth after that He stretched/spread it. [13]

Quran 79:30

Word by word:

وَٱلْأَرْضَ وَ - wa - and ٱلْ - al - the أَرْضَ - ard - Earth feminine in Arabic

بَعْدَ - ba'ada - after

- after ذَٰلِكَ - dhalika - that

- that دَحَىٰهَآ دَحَىٰ - dahaa - (he) spread verb [14] هَآ - ha - her or "it" in the English translation, referring to the Earth.



دَحَىٰهَآ is a verb with a suffixed pronoun, so it cannot mean a noun "ostrich egg". In the apologist interpretation the verb would have to mean "he made it in a shape of an ostrich egg". It is absurd to think that such a little word could mean something so complex.

The هَا (-ha) suffix pronoun meaning literally "her" is also repeated in the surrounding verses as a literary device:

أَأَنْتُمْ أَشَدُّ خَلْقًا أَمِ السَّمَاءُ ۚ بَنَاهَا 79:27 Aantum ashaddu khalqan ami alssamao banaha 79:28 رَفَعَ سَمْكَهَا فَسَوَّاهَا RafaAAa samkaha fasawwaha 79:29 وَأَغْطَشَ لَيْلَهَا وَأَخْرَجَ ضُحَاهَا Waaghtasha laylaha waakhraja duhaha 79:30 وَالْأَرْضَ بَعْدَ ذَٰلِكَ دَحَاهَا Waalarda baAAda thalika dahaha 79:31 أَخْرَجَ مِنْهَا مَاءَهَا وَمَرْعَاهَا Akhraja minha maaha wamarAAaha 79:32 وَالْجِبَالَ أَرْسَاهَا Waaljibala arsaha

Quran 79:27-32

So the -ha in 79:30 is a pronoun as well as in other verses and the pronoun is completely missing in the translation "ostrich egg".

Qur'an Translations

Yusuf Ali: And the earth, moreover, hath He extended (to a wide expanse); [13]

And the earth, moreover, hath He extended (to a wide expanse);

Pickthal: And after that He spread the earth, [13]

And after that He spread the earth,

Arberry: and the earth-after that He spread it out, [13]

and the earth-after that He spread it out,

Shakir: And the earth, He expanded it after that. [13]

And the earth, He expanded it after that.

Sarwar: After this, He spread out the earth, [13]

After this, He spread out the earth,

Hilali/Khan: And after that He spread the earth; [13]

And after that He spread the earth;

Malik: After that He spread out the earth, [13]

After that He spread out the earth,

Maulana Ali: And the earth, He cast it after that. [13]

And the earth, He cast it after that.

Free Minds: And the land after that He spread out. [13]

And the land after that He spread out.

Some translations have attempted to translate the word dahaha to mean made egg-shaped or like an ‘ostrich egg’.

Khalifa: He made the earth egg-shaped. [13]

He made the earth egg-shaped.

QXP: And after that He made the earth shoot out from the Cosmic Nebula and made it spread out egg-shaped. ('Dahaha' entails all the meanings rendered (21:30), (41:11)). [13]

And after that He made the earth shoot out from the Cosmic Nebula and made it spread out egg-shaped. ('Dahaha' entails all the meanings rendered (21:30), (41:11)).

Apologetic Claims

[15]

Anyway, to answer your question about why did Allah Almighty use the word "dahaha" in Noble Verse 79:30, well it's because the word is the most precise out of all. It describes the roundness and the flatness of the earth at once.

Some will also falsely claim that the root word for dahaha is duhiya, which they claim means ostrich egg.

4. Earth is geo-spherical in shape The Qur’an mentions the actual shape of the earth in the following verse: “And we have made the earth egg shaped”. [Al-Qur’an 79:30] The Arabic word Dahaha means egg shaped. It also means an expanse. Dahaha is derived from Duhiya which specifically refers to the egg of an ostrich which is geospherical in shape, exactly like the shape of the earth.

Thus the Qur’an and modern established science are in perfect harmony.[16]

Thus the Qur’an and modern established science are in perfect harmony.

A further apologetic is to point to a game played by Meccans in their attempt to link dahaha with roundness.

In 79:30, Allah says, [Transliteration] Waal-arda baAAda thalika dahaha [79:30] The key word in the above verse is “dahaha”. In Arabic, there is a phrase, “iza dahaha” which means “when he throws the stones over the ground to the hole”. The hole is called “Udhiyatun”. “Almadahi” signify round stones according to the size of which a hole is dug in the ground in which the stones are thrown in a game. “Almadahi” also signify a round thing made of lead by the throwing of which persons contend together. So there is a signification of ROUNDNESS in the root of the word “dahaha”. According to some etymologists, the word for the “egg of an ostrich” also has the same root as “dahaha”. They also take from this that the earth is of the shape of the egg of an ostrich. Latest science findings confirm that the earth is not exactly spherical but the earth is an ellipsoid, i.e. flattened by its poles,[ just like the shape of an egg of an ostrich]. The Arabic words for “flat” or “level” or “straight shaped” are “sawi” and “almustavi”. There is not a single place in Quran where there is any indication of the earth being “flat” or “straight shaped”. The word “faraash” in 2:22, 51:48; the word “wasia” in 4:97, 29:56, 30:10; the word “mahd” in 20:53, 43:10, 78:6; the word “basaat” in 71:19; the word “suttihat” in 88:20; and the word “tahaaha” in 91:6, all may mean, “to spread”, “to expand” or “to extend” with slight differences in their connotations but none signify the earth being straight-shaped or flat.[17]

The Arabic words for “flat” or “level” or “straight shaped” are “sawi” and “almustavi”. There is not a single place in Quran where there is any indication of the earth being “flat” or “straight shaped”. The word “faraash” in 2:22, 51:48; the word “wasia” in 4:97, 29:56, 30:10; the word “mahd” in 20:53, 43:10, 78:6; the word “basaat” in 71:19; the word “suttihat” in 88:20; and the word “tahaaha” in 91:6, all may mean, “to spread”, “to expand” or “to extend” with slight differences in their connotations but none signify the earth being straight-shaped or flat.

One of the meanings of dahaha is to 'throw' and that is the derivation of the words 'almadahi and udhiyatun'. It is not anything to do with their shape. In any case, the contention that almadahi and udhiyatun conveys the concept of roundness which they link to the root of dahaha is false for the reason that the 'roundness' of the almadahi and udhiyatun is only in two dimensions. The almadahi is round like a piece of Arab bread (i.e. shaped like a disc) and the udhiyatun is also round in two dimensions.

Oblate and prolate spheroids

There are two problems with the egg-shaped Earth claim. One is that their statements about the words daha and duhiya are false, as proven further below. But even if they were right about that, it would prove the Qur'an to be incorrect because while the Earth and an ostrich egg are both spheroids, they are of fundamentally different types of spheroid.

The Earth is very nearly, but not absolutely a perfect sphere. It is in fact an oblate spheroid, which means that the radius from its centre to either of its two poles is shorter than the radius to the equator. In other words, there is a very slight bulge around the equator. The radius from the centre of the Earth to the north or south poles is 6,357km, and the radius from the centre to the equator is 6,378km, a difference of less than 1 percent. This is caused by the rotation of the Earth around its polar axis, which produces a centripetal force that is greatest at the equator.

An ostrich egg, much like all eggs, can be described as a prolate spheroid. This is because the radius from its centre to either of its two poles is longer than the radius to the equator, as though it were a sphere that had been pulled from two ends. It certainly is not an oblate spheroid. You can see in the image an oblate spheroid (top left), and a prolate spheroid (bottom left). Even holding an egg on its side (top), you cannot make it look like an oblate spheroid in 3D. The shape of the ostrich egg is in fact like a prolate spheroid (bottom). No matter how you hold the egg, it is a prolate spheroid and not an oblate spheroid.

In a flat 2d image without texture or shading oblate and prolate spheroids might look the same, but in three dimensions you cannot make one look like the other no matter how you turn it. They are fundamentally different shapes.

Daha and Duhiya

In Arabic, each word must be derived from its root. The root usually consists of three letters that can be manipulated, by adding vowels, prefixes and suffixes in order to produce different words with different meanings. For example, "ka-ta-ba" (to write) is the root for many words such as kitab (book), maktaba (library), katib (author), maktoob (written), kitabat (writings) et cetera.

Let's now take the word claimed to mean egg of an ostrich, "Duhiya". This word is not a root. It is a noun and is derived from "da-ha-wa" (دحو)[18], the same root that the verb "dahaha" (دَحَىٰهَآ) in 79:30 comes from (the 'ha' at the end there is just a pronoun suffix meaning 'it'). Furthermore, Duhiya does not even mean the egg of an ostrich. This is what the most respected dictionaries have to say on this subject:

Lisan Al Arab

الأُدْحِيُّ و الإدْحِيُّ و الأُدْحِيَّة و الإدْحِيَّة و الأُدْحُوّة مَبِيض النعام في الرمل , وزنه أُفْعُول من ذلك , لأَن النعامة تَدْحُوه برِجْلها ثم تَبِيض فيه وليس للنعام عُشٌّ . و مَدْحَى النعام : موضع بيضها , و أُدْحِيُّها موضعها الذي تُفَرِّخ فيه .ِ



Translation: Al-udhy, Al-idhy, Al-udhiyya, Al-idhiyya, Al-udhuwwa:The place in sand where an ostrich lays its egg. That's because the ostrich spreads out (تَدْحُوه, tadhooh) the earth with its feet then lays its eggs there, an ostrich doesn't have a nest.

الدَّحْوُ البَسْطُ . دَحَا الأَرضَ يَدْحُوها دَحْواً بَسَطَها . وقال الفراء في قوله والأَرض بعد ذلك دَحاها قال : بَسَطَها ; قال شمر : وأَنشدتني أَعرابية : الحمدُ لله الذي أَطاقَا بَنَى السماءَ فَوْقَنا طِباقَا ثم دَحا الأَرضَ فما أَضاقا قال شمر : وفسرته فقالت دَحَا الأَرضَ أَوْسَعَها ; وأَنشد ابن بري لزيد بن عمرو بن نُفَيْل : دَحَاها , فلما رآها اسْتَوَتْ على الماء , أَرْسَى عليها الجِبالا و دَحَيْتُ الشيءَ أَدْحاهُ دَحْياً بَسَطْته , لغة في دَحَوْتُه ; حكاها اللحياني . وفي حديث عليّ وصلاتهِ , اللهم دَاحِيَ المَدْحُوَّاتِ يعني باسِطَ الأَرَضِينَ ومُوَسِّعَها , ويروى ; دَاحِيَ المَدْحِيَّاتِ . و الدَّحْوُ البَسْطُ . يقال : دَحَا يَدْحُو و يَدْحَى أَي بَسَطَ ووسع

و دَحَيْتُ الشيءَ أَدْحاهُ دَحْياً بَسَطْته , لغة في دَحَوْتُه ; حكاها اللحياني . وفي حديث عليّ وصلاتهِ , اللهم دَاحِيَ المَدْحُوَّاتِ يعني باسِطَ الأَرَضِينَ ومُوَسِّعَها , ويروى ; دَاحِيَ المَدْحِيَّاتِ . و الدَّحْوُ البَسْطُ . يقال : دَحَا يَدْحُو و يَدْحَى أَي بَسَطَ ووسع

Translation: To daha the earth: means to spread it out. Then it mentions a couple of Arabic poems that confirm this meaning. Anyone who can read Arabic will find this to be the definitive proof that Daha means to spread out.

Al Qamoos Al Muheet

(دَحَا): الله الأرضَ (يَدْحُوهَا وَيَدْحَاهَا دَحْواً) بَسَطَها



Translation: Allah daha the Earth: He spread it out.

Al Waseet

دَحَا الشيءَ: بسطه ووسعه. يقال: دحا اللهُ الأَرض



Translation: To daha something: means to spread it out. For example: Allah daha the Earth.

Lane's Lexicon

Dahw (دحو) 1. Daha (., MM_b;,, 1,) first pers. Dahouth aor, yad'hoo inf. N. dahoo He spread; spread out, or forth; expanded; or extended; (S, Msb, K; ) a thing; (K; ) and, when said of God, the earth; (Fr, S, Mb, 1V; ) As also daha first pers. dahaithu (K in art. daha) aor. yaad’heae inf. n. dahae: (Msb, and K in art. dahae : ) or He (God) made the earth wide, or ample; as explained by an Arab woman of the desert to Sh: (TA : ) also, said of an ostrich, (S, TA,) he expanded, and made wide, (TA,) with his foot, or leg, the place where he was about to deposit his eggs: (S, TA : ) and, said of a man, he spread, &c., and made plain, even, or smooth. (TA in art. dhaha ) - Also, said of a man, (K,,) aor. yad’hoo, inf. n. dahwu(TA,) i.q. Jamie as also daja; on the authority of 1Abr. (TA.) (You say, dhahaha He compressed her; like as you say, dhajaha.) _ Also He threw, or cast, and impelled, propelled, oi removed from its place, a stone, with his hand (TA.) One says also, to him who is playing with walnuts, abidil maddha va adhhuhu, meaning (Make thou the distance far, and) throw it. (S,TA.: See also midh’hath, in two places. And of a torrent one says, dhaha bilbat’hai It cast along (the soft earth and pebbles in its course; or drove then along). (TA.) And of rain, one says, dhaha Al hissa an waj’hil Ardhi (S,Msb) It drove the pebbles from the surface of the earth; (Msb; ) or removed them. (TA.) (See also dhaha, in the next art.) And aldhahwu bilhijarathi also signifies The vying, one with another, in throwing stones, and striving to surpass (in doing so); as also al Midahath (inf. n- of dahee). (TA marra yad’hoo inf.n. dahow said of a horse, He went along throwing out his fore legs without raising his hoofs much from the ground. (S,TA.) = dhahal bathan The belly was, or became, large, and hanging down; (Kr, K; ) and Indhahee (the belly) was, or became, wide, or distended: (MF : ) or both signify it (the belly) became swollen, or inflated, or big,. and hung down, by reason of fatness or disease; as also Dhau and Indah (TA in art dooh.) 3. Dhahee inf.n. Mudahath: see 1. 5. Thud'hee He spread out, or extended, himself; syn. Thabassuth. (K: in art. Daha.) You say, nama fulan fathadhahha Such a one slept, and (extended himself so that he) lay upon a vide space of ground (TA in that art.) - And thadhahhathil ibilu fil ardhi The camels made hollows in the ground where they lay down, it being soft; leaving therein cavities like those of bellies: thus they do only when they are fat. (El-'Itreefee, TA in art. Daha. ) 7. see 1, last sentence. 9. id'havi (of the measure if’alath for if’alle like Ar’awa) It (a thing, TA) was, or became, spread, spread out or forth, expanded, or extended. (K.) Dhahin (act. part n. of 1). Allahumma dhahil Mad’huwwath in a prayer of ‘Alee, means O God, the Spreader and Expander of the (seven) earths: (TA : ) al Mdhuwwath (properly) signifies the things that are spread, &c.; as also Al Mudh’hiyyath. (TA in art. dhaha ) _ Al’Matharuddahee The rain that removes (or drives) the pebbles from the surface of the earth. (TA.) Ud'hiyy (S.K) (Originally od'huwa of the measure Uf’ool from dhahaithu but said in the S to be of that measure from dhahouthu the dial. var. dhahaithu not being there mentioned,) and and id’hiyy and Ud’hiyyath and ud’huwwath (K) The place of the laying of eggs, (S, K,) and of the hatching thereof, (S,) , of the ostrich, (S. K. ) in the sand; (K; ) because that bird expands it, and makes it wide, with its foot, or leg; for the ostrich has no (nest such as is termed) Ush (S: ) pl. Adahin (TA in the present art.) and Adahee (i. e., if not a mistranscription, Adahiyyu agreeably with the sing.): (TA in art. dhaha and mudhhiyya (likewise) signifies the place of the eggs of the ostrich. (S.) (Hence,) binthu Adh’hiyyathun A female ostrich. (TA.)_(Hence also,) Al Udkhiyyu and Al Id’hiyyu A certain Mansion of the Moon, (K, TA,) (namely, the Twenty-first Mansion,) between the Na’aai’m sa’dha zabih (more commonly) called Al Baldath likened to the Adhahhee of the ostrich. (TA.) Ud’huwwath and udh’hiyyath: see the next preceding paragraph, in three places: - and for the latter, see also mid’hath, below. Mad’han see ud’hiyy Mid’hath A wooden thing with which a child is driven along (yud’ha), and which, passing over the ground, sweeps away everything against which it comes (K, TA.) - Accord. to Sh, A certain thing with which the people of Mekkeh play: he says, I heard El-Asadee describe it thus: Almadahiyy and Almasadiyy signify stones like the (small round cake of bread called) qursath, according to the size which a hole is dug, and widened a little: then they throw those stones (yad’hoona biha) to that hole and if the stone fall therein, the person wins; but if not, he is overcome: you say of him yad’hoo and yasdoo when he throws the stones (Iza dhahaha) over the ground to the hole: and the hole is called ud'hiyyath. (TA.) (Accord. to Freytag, the authority of the Deewan El-Hudhaleeyeen, A round thing made of lead, by the throwing of which persons contend together.) Almadhuwwath and almad’hiyyath see Dahin.[18]

Almadhuwwath and almad’hiyyath see Dahin.

Note above that Lane also translates udhiyy (أُدْحِىٌّ) to mean the place in the sand where the ostrich lays its eggs, and not the eggs themselves.

Tafsirs on the verse 79:30

The tafsirs explain that this verse describes the Earth to be flat.

Al-Jalalayn:

He made it flat for it had been created before the heaven but without having been spread out;

[19] Al-Jalalayn and after that He spread out the earthfor it had been created before the heaven but without having been spread out;

Tanwir Al-Miqbas:

(And after that He spread the earth) even then He spread it on the water; it is also said: 2,000 years after that He spread it on the water,

[20] Tanwir Al-Miqbas





"Ostrich egg" mentioned in a hadith

There is no hadith saying that the Earth is shaped like an ostrich egg. But "ostrich egg" is mentioned in one hadith so we can check whether the word دَحَىٰهَآ (dahaha) is used in the original Arabic.

حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ مُوسَى الْقَطَّانُ الْوَاسِطِيُّ، حَدَّثَنَا يَزِيدُ بْنُ مَوْهَبٍ، حَدَّثَنَا مَرْوَانُ بْنُ مُعَاوِيَةَ الْفَزَارِيُّ، حَدَّثَنَا عَلِيُّ بْنُ عَبْدِ الْعَزِيزِ، حَدَّثَنَا حُسَيْنٌ الْمُعَلِّمُ، عَنْ أَبِي الْمُهَزِّمِ، عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ قَالَ فِي بَيْضِ النَّعَامِ يُصِيبُهُ الْمُحْرِمُ ‏ "‏ ثَمَنُهُ ‏"‏ ‏ It was narrated from Abu Hurairah that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, concerning an ostrich egg (بَيْضِ النَّعَامِ) taken by a Muhrim: “Its cost (must be paid as a penalty).”

Sunan Ibn Majah 4:25:3086[21]

Of course it isn't, because "ostrich egg" needs two words. "Egg" is بَيْضِ (baydi) and "ostrich" is النَّعَامِ (an-na'ami). So ostrich egg is called baydi an-na'ami and not dahaha in Arabic.

Qur'an 88:20 - sutihat (spread out flat)

وَإِلَى ٱلْأَرْضِ كَيْفَ سُطِحَتْ Wa-ila al-ardi kayfa sutihat And at the Earth, how it is spread out?

Quran 88:20 And at the Earth, how it is spread out?

سَطَّحَ = spread out or forth, expand

The word was used to describe making the flat top or roof of a house or chamber and making a top surface flat.

Words from the same root mean the flat top surface or roof of a house or chamber, a flat plane in geometry, a level place upon which dates can be spread, a rolling pin (which expands the dough), plane or flat.[22]

In the tafsir Al-Jalalayn (from 15. century) we can read that the word sutihat means the Earth is flat which is the opinion of the Islamic scholars:

And the earth how it was laid out flat? and thus infer from this the power of God exalted be He and His Oneness? The commencing with the mention of camels is because they are closer in contact with it the earth than any other animal. As for His words sutihat ‘laid out flat’ this on a literal reading suggests that the earth is flat which is the opinion of most of the scholars * of the revealed Law and not a sphere as astronomers ahl al-hay’a have it even if this latter does not contradict any of the pillars of the Law.

Tafsir Al-Jalalayn on 88:20

(*) The Arabic original says "وعليه علماء الشرع", literally "and-on-it (are) scholars (of) law" [23] . The word "most" was added by English translators, probably to make it less embarrassing.

. The word "most" was added by English translators, probably to make it less embarrassing. The phrase "flat earth" today is commonly translated as الأرض مسطحة (al-ard musattaha)[24], the word musattaha is from the same root as the word sutihat.

Qur'an 91:6 - taha (spread out)