Abstract

M. Quraish Shihab is among the greatest Indonesian exegetes in the Malay Archipelago who contributed considerably to Qur’anic exegetical work. Due to the extremely close relationship between Qur’anic exegesis and Arabic, he is also considered by many as being highly skilled in Arabic and its various branches. In fact, numerous studies have resulted from Shihab’s immensely rich contributions. Thus, this study elaborates on Shihab’s contributions towards advancing the Arabic language in Indonesia. To identify this objective in more compactly, the document analysis method was applied by adopting his works in the field of Arabic as the main source of study. From the analysis, the research concludes that Shihab’s parents were instrumental in shaping his interest and passion of the Qur’an and Arabic. His persona shines brightly in Arabic linguistics with quality works appreciated by many. Furthermore, Shihab was committed to ensuring Arabic proficiency to produce qualified prospective Qur’anic exegetes in Indonesia.

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