Toshihiko Izutsu's Semantics on the Multicultural Education of the Qur'an in Arabic Language Learning
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32332/an-nabighoh.v27i2.379-400Keywords:
Semantics, Toshihiko Izutsu, Multicultural Education, Arabic language learningAbstract
This study aims to analyze Qur’anic verses for multicultural values using Toshihiko Izutsu’s semantic approach and to present pedagogical illustrations, informed by student reflections, that show how semantic awareness may emerge in Arabic language learning contexts. The study adopts a conceptual–qualitative research design that emphasizes textual interpretation and pedagogical reflection rather than the empirical evaluation of instructional effectiveness. Conceptual semantic analysis based on Izutsu’s framework is applied to selected Qur’anic verses through four interrelated layers of meaning: basic meaning, relational meaning, historical meaning, and worldview (Weltanschauung). The analysis demonstrates that multicultural values, such as diversity, justice, dialogue, social cooperation, and recognition of religious plurality, are constructed through relational networks of meaning linking key concepts, syntactic structures, and discourse patterns. Pedagogical illustrations drawn from reflective student accounts suggest that semantic-oriented engagement with Qur’anic texts can foster contextual, relational, and ethical awareness in Arabic language learning.
Downloads
References
Agirdag, Orhan, Michael S. Merry, and Mieke Van Houtte. “Teachers’ Understanding of Multicultural Education and the Correlates of Multicultural Content Integration in Flanders.” Education and Urban Society 48, no. 6 (2016): 556–82. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013124514536610.
Al-Akoub, Eisa. “Izutsu’s Study of the Qur’an from an Arab Perspective.” Journal of Qur’anic Studies 14, no. 1 (2012): 107–30. https://doi.org/10.3366/jqs.2012.0039.
Albayrak, İsmail. “The Reception of Toshihiko Izutsu’s Qur’anic Studies in the Muslim World: With Special Reference to Turkish Qur’anic Scholarship.” Journal of Qur’anic Studies 14, no. 1 (2012): 73–106. https://doi.org/10.3366/jqs.2012.0038.
Al-Khafaji, Abdul Hussein Ahmed, and Zafar Adel Al-saedi. “Employing Educational Poetic Songs as Grammatical Rules in the Achievement of Fifth Grade Students in Arabic Grammar and Measuring Their Concentration Intensity.” Journal of Ecohumanism 4, no. 1 (2025). https://doi.org/10.62754/joe.v4i1.6018.
Allawi, Mahmoud Raheem, and Mohammed Sa’eed Abd. “The Importance of Dialogue in the Qur’an - Surah (Al-Nahl) as a Model.” KnE Social Sciences, ahead of print, March 13, 2023. https://doi.org/10.18502/kss.v8i6.13137.
Alon, Yoav. “Tribalism in the Middle East: A Useful Prism for Understanding the Region.” International Journal of Middle East Studies 53, no. 3 (2021): 477–81. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0020743821000787.
Alwaely, Suad Abdal Kareem, and Maitha Fahd Al-Jasari. “Students’ Involvement Level in Arabic Language Textbook Communication for Cycle One in the United Arab Emirates.” Journal of Intercultural Communication, August 30, 2022, 33–40. https://doi.org/10.36923/jicc.v22i2.50.
Alzahrani, Ibrahim H. “Exploring Learners’ Beliefs on Grammar Learning: Importance and Preferred Methods.” Theory and Practice in Language Studies 14, no. 5 (2024): 1475–85. https://doi.org/10.17507/tpls.1405.20.
Al-Zarāl, Ṣalāḥ Al-Dīn. “Applied Semantics and the Qur’an: Izutsu’s Methodology as a Case Study.” Journal of Qur’anic Studies 14, no. 1 (2012): 200–173. https://doi.org/10.3366/jqs.2012.0047.
Arfaton, Arfaton, Rhoma Dwi Aria Yuliantri, Nurul Ismi Lestari, Mhd Asrian Syah, Iqbal Ainur Rizki, and Umar Umar. “Implementation of Multicultural Education as a Means of Forming Characters of Tolerance and Mutual Respect.” Jurnal Eduscience 12, no. 2 (2025): 377–91. https://doi.org/10.36987/jes.v12i2.6819.
Badrun, Muhammad, Alhafidh Nasution, Herlina Yunita Amroin, et al. “The Significance of the Quranic Language as a Fundamental Concept of Semantics: An Analysis of Toshihiko Izutsu’s Thought.” QURANICA - International Journal of Quranic Research 15, no. 1 (2023). https://ejournal.um.edu.my/index.php/quranica/article/view/44859.
Banks, James A. An Introduction to Multicultural Education. Allyn and Bacon, 1994.
Byram, Michael. Teaching and Assessing Intercultural Communicative Competence: Revisited. Multilingual Matters, 2021.
Christie, Fh. “Systemic Functional Linguistics and a Theory of Language in Education.” Ilha Do Desterro Jan/June 2004, no. 46 (2004). https://findanexpert.unimelb.edu.au/scholarlywork/267647-systemic-functional-linguistics-and-a-theory-of-language-in-education.
Creswell, John W. Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches. SAGE, 2014.
Eldin, Ahmad Abdel Tawwab Sharaf. “Teaching Culture in the Classroom to Arabic Language Students.” International Education Studies 8, no. 2 (2015): p113. https://doi.org/10.5539/ies.v8n2p113.
Ellis, Rod. “Current Issues in the Teaching of Grammar: An SLA Perspective.” TESOL Quarterly 40, no. 1 (2006): 83. https://doi.org/10.2307/40264512.
Fadhilah, Umi, and Kharis Nugroho. “Semantic Analysis of Toshihiko Izutsu in the Phrase ’Al-’Urwatul Wutsqo.” Proceeding ISETH (International Summit on Science, Technology, and Humanity), January 30, 2024, 1510–16. https://doi.org/10.23917/iseth.4333.
Fakhrurrozi, Ach, Rofiqi Rofiqi, and Achmad Gazali. “The Development of an Inclusive Social Science Based Contextual Interpretation Model: A New Approach to Address Contemporary Challenges in Quranic Studies.” Al-Insyiroh: Jurnal Studi Keislaman 10, no. 2 (2024): 249–85. https://doi.org/10.35309/alinsyiroh.v10i2.303.
Falihin, Dalilul, Zulaeha Zulaeha, Ahmad Muzzammil, and M. Saleh Mude. “Multiculturalism Insight Based on Qur’an and Its Relevance to Plurality in Indonesia.” Jurnal Adabiyah 24, no. 1 (2024): 90–118. https://doi.org/10.24252/jad.v24i1a5.
Ghafar, Zanyar Nathir, and Murad Hassan Mohammed Sawalmeh. “Exploring the Pedagogical Significance of Grammar: A Comprehensive Review of Its Role in Language Learning and Teaching.” British Journal of Applied Linguistics 4, no. 1 (2024): 13–16. https://doi.org/10.32996/bjal.2024.4.1.2.
Gonzalez-Dogan, Shyla. “Linguistic Othering and ‘Knowledge Deserts’: Perspectives on Arabic Use in Linguistically Diverse Islamic Institutions.” Linguistics and Education 71 (October 2022): 101076. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.linged.2022.101076.
Halliday, Michael Alexander Kirkwood. An Introduction to Functional Grammar. Hodder Arnold, 1994.
Halliday, Michael Alexander Kirkwood, and Ruqaiya Hasan. Language, Context, and Text: Aspects of Language in a Social-Semiotic Perspective. Deakin University, 1985.
Haque, Shahzaman. “Language Use and Islamic Practices in Multilingual Europe.” Signs and Society 8, no. 3 (2020): 401–25. https://doi.org/10.1086/710157.
Huang, Li-Jung Daphne. “Developing Intercultural Communicative Competence in Foreign Language Classrooms – A Study of EFL Learners in Taiwan.” International Journal of Intercultural Relations 83 (July 2021): 55–66. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2021.04.015.
Izutsu, Toshihiko. Ethico-Religious Concepts in the Qur’an. McGill-Queen’s Press - MQUP, 2002.
Izutsu, Toshihiko. God and Man in the Qur’an: Semantics of the Qur’anic Weltanschauung. Islamic Book Trust, 2002.
Jamil, Ikrom Nurdin, and Ainur Rhain. “Semantic Analysis of the Meaning of Al-‘Ilmu in the Qur’an from Toshihiko Izutsu’s Perspective.” Al-Afkar, Journal For Islamic Studies 8, no. 2 (2025). https://al-afkar.com/index.php/Afkar_Journal/article/view/2163.
Kamil, Mokhalad Naji. “A Review Study: Critique and Review of Izutsu’s Qur’anic Semantic Methodology.” Manar Elsharq Journal for Literature and Language Studies 3, no. 1 (2025): 36–42. https://doi.org/10.56961/mejlls.v3i1.871.
Kramsch, Claire. “The Multilingual Subject.” International Journal of Applied Linguistics 16, no. 1 (2006): 97–110. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1473-4192.2006.00109.x.
Kudhori, Muhammad, Muhammad Faiq, and Ibnu Farhan. “Reinterpreting Religious Pluralism in QS. al-Baqarah: 62 (A Method of al-Qaraḍâwî’s Interpretation).” Jurnal Ushuluddin 29, no. 2 (2021). https://ejournal.uin-suska.ac.id/index.php/ushuludin/article/view/10662.
Larsen-Freeman, Diane. “Saying What We Mean: Making a Case for ‘Language Acquisition’ to Become ‘Language Development.’” Language Teaching 48, no. 4 (2015): 491–505. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444814000019.
Liddini, Laily, Ade Surya Wilia Prabandani, and Wardatun Nadhiroh. “The Concept of Justice in The Qur’an and Hadith (Study of Quraish Shihab’s Interpretation QS. An-Nisa: 135 on Youtube).” AQWAL Journal of Qur’an and Hadis Studies 3, no. 2 (2022): 91–108. https://doi.org/10.28918/aqwal.v3i2.6145.
Lütge, Christiane, and Michelle Stannard. “Multiliteracies.” In The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Computer-Assisted Language Learning, edited by Lee McCallum and Dara Tafazoli. Springer Nature Switzerland, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-51447-0_242-1.
Muzaqqi, Muzaqqi. “Semantic Approaches in Islamic Studies; The Review of Toshihiko Izutsu’s Thought.” PEDAGOGIK: Jurnal Pendidikan 3, no. 1 (n.d.). Accessed December 25, 2025. https://ejournal.unuja.ac.id/index.php/pedagogik/article/view/118.
Nuruddin, Nuruddin, Budiaman Budiaman, Andri Ilham, and Ahmad Muzayin Haqi. “The Need for Arabic Language Teaching Materials Based on Multicultural Education for Indonesian Diaspora Students.” ALSINATUNA 7, no. 1 (2021): 45–63. https://doi.org/10.28918/alsinatuna.v7i1.4768.
Park, Kwanghyun. “Learner–Corpus Interaction: A Locus of Microgenesis in Corpus-Assisted L2 Writing.” Applied Linguistics 33, no. 4 (2012): 361–85. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/ams012.
Pennycook, Alastair. Language as a Local Practice. Routledge, 2010.
Rose, David. “A Systemic Functional Approach to Language Evolution.” Cambridge Archaeological Journal 16, no. 1 (2006): 73–96. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0959774306000059.
Roussel, Stéphanie. “‘Attention’ in Second Language Learning: Implications for Teaching Practice.” Journal of the European Second Language Association 9, no. 1 (2025): 200–215. https://doi.org/10.22599/jesla.146.
Saeed, Abdullah. Reading the Qur’an in the Twenty-First Century. Routledge, 2013. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315870922.
Solihu, Abdul Kabir Hussain. “Semantics of the Qur’anic Weltanschauung: A Critical Analysis of Toshihiko Izutsu’s Works.” American Journal of Islam and Society 26, no. 4 (2009): 1–23. https://doi.org/10.35632/ajis.v26i4.387.
Sulistyaningsih, and Dailatus Syamsiyah. “Arabic Language Learning Through Multicultural Approach in Indonesia and Malaysia: (A Comparative Descriptive Analysis).” An Naba 8, no. 1 (2025): 91–105. https://doi.org/10.51614/3a2dzd64.
Tracy, Sarah J. “Qualitative Quality: Eight ‘Big-Tent’ Criteria for Excellent Qualitative Research.” Qualitative Inquiry 16, no. 10 (2010): 837–51. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077800410383121.
Warner, Chantelle, and Beatrice Dupuy. “Moving toward Multiliteracies in Foreign Language Teaching: Past and Present Perspectives … and Beyond.” Foreign Language Annals 51, no. 1 (2018): 116–28. https://doi.org/10.1111/flan.12316.
Yılmaz, Fatih. “Multiculturalism and Multicultural Education: A Case Study of Teacher Candidates’ Perceptions.” Cogent Education 3, no. 1 (2016): 1172394. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2016.1172394.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Nasarudin Nasarudin, Ahmad Syagif Hannany Mustaufiy, Isnol Khotimahis, Siti Rauhillah, Alvia Putri Prima Sari, Janudin Sardi

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.