Mufassir
/muˈfæsɪər/noun
A Muslim scholar who interprets and explains the Qur’an.
Did you know?The word comes from the Arabic root f-s-r, associated with making something obscure clear; its related noun tafsīr became the traditional discipline of Qur’anic interpretation.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Semitic
Proto-Semitic
*pšr
“To explain, interpret, or make clear; a reconstructed root associated with interpretation.”
Late Antiquity
Aramaic/Syriac
pšar / פשר
“Interpretation or explanation, especially of an enigmatic text or dream.”
Early Islamic Period
Arabic
فَسَّر (fassara)
“He explained, interpreted, or made clear; the causative form of the root f-s-r.”
8th–9th Century
Arabic
تَفْسِير (tafsīr)
“Explanation or interpretation, particularly Qur’anic commentary.”
Medieval Arabic
Arabic
مُفَسِّر (mufassir)
“An interpreter or explanatory commentator, especially a scholar of Qur’anic exegesis.”
Modern English
English
mufassir
“A Muslim scholar who interprets the Qur’an.”