Surah Fajr (Al-Fajr): full text and meaning

What is Surah Al-Fajr?

Al-Fajr is the 89th surah in the Mushaf, the written Quran in its standard order, and it has 30 verses (source 1). The Tanzil metadata names it Al-Fajr, meaning The Dawn (source 2), and classes it as Meccan (from the Makkan period, before the move to Madinah) (source 3). It lies in the 30th juz, which the Tanzil table begins at 78:1 (surah 78, verse 1; source 5).

Ibn Kathir's commentary heading also classes the surah as Makki, Meccan (source 4). Surah Fajr and Surah Al-Fajr are two spellings of the same chapter.

What does al-Fajr mean in the first verse?

Verse 1 begins "By the Dawn" (source 6). Ibn Kathir says that al-Fajr is well known and means the dawn. He attributes that meaning to Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, Mujahid, Ikrimah and al-Suddi. He also records the dawn of the Day of Sacrifice, attributed to Masruq, Mujahid and Muhammad ibn Ka'b (source 7). He records two further meanings: the prayer performed at that time, attributed to Ikrimah, and the whole day, in a report from Ibn Abbas (source 8). This page uses the name Al-Fajr for chapter 89 only, and does not choose between these meanings.

Surah Al-Fajr in full: Arabic and English

Copy the Arabic above if you need it. Below, our own division into five parts, for reading and not marked in the text, gives each verse in Arabic and English.

What are the ten nights in Surah Al-Fajr?

Verse 2 says "And ten nights" (source 6) and names no month. Ibn Kathir's commentary records more than one reading. Only the first is his stated preference.

Ibn Kathir identifies the ten nights as the first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah (the last month of the Islamic calendar). He attributes this view to Ibn Abbas, Ibn al-Zubayr, may Allah be pleased with him, and Mujahid, and to others among earlier and later scholars. He says this first view is the sound one (source 9).

His commentary also records two further readings: the first ten days of Muharram (the first month), which Ibn Jarir reports without naming a source, and the first ten days of Ramadan, which it reports through a chain traced to Ibn Abbas (source 10). This page does not vouch for that attribution. The Dhul-Hijjah identification is therefore one reading among several in the commentary. The verse itself does not state it.

What does Al-Fajr say about provision, honour and the orphan?

In verses 15 and 16, a person says that his Lord honours him when He tries him by honouring him, and that his Lord despises him when He straitens his means of life. Verse 17 opens with "No!" and names the orphan who is not honoured. Verses 18 to 20 name the poor who are not urged to be fed, inheritance devoured with greed, and wealth loved with abounding love (source 12). The verses do not say why any particular person is rich or poor.

What do the final verses mean?

Verses 27 to 30 address the soul at peace. It is told to return to its Lord, content in His good pleasure, to enter among His bondmen and to enter the Garden. In the order of the verses, the address follows the account of judgement in 89:21 to 26 (source 14, source 13).

The verses name no person, and this page makes no claim about any particular living or dead person's condition. For personal questions about grief or belief, speak with a scholar you trust.

Does the chapter prescribe a recitation routine?

This page gives no count, time or reward for reciting the chapter: a specific routine or a promised reward would need a graded source, and none is cited here. The dawn in the opening verse is one of the oaths, not a recitation schedule (source 6).