Qur'an, Sura 18 (al-Kahf): Companions of the Cave and Dhu al-Qarnayn
c. c. 615 – c. 622
Place: mecca
21.422, 39.826 · On the map
The text and the parallels are attested. The Syriac Alexander Legend's c. 630 date raises a chronology question that remains under debate.
Sura 18 is traditionally Meccan. It tells of the sleepers in the cave (18:9–26) and of Dhu al-Qarnayn, who travels to the setting and rising sun and builds a barrier against Gog and Magog (18:83–102). Both stories closely parallel Syriac Christian legends. Tradition says Jews of Medina suggested these questions to test Muhammad.
People named here
- Dhu al-Qarnayn
- Companions of the Cave
Where scholars disagree
For
- Sidney H. Griffith — 2008, 2021
- Kevin van Bladel — 2008
- Tommaso Tesei — 2013–14
Against
No names on this side.
Links
Text and wording
In
Legend of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus
Companions of the Cave (Q 18:9–26), retold with commentary on disputes about their number.
text_parallel
attestedIn
Syriac Alexander Legend (Neṣḥānā d-Aleksandros)
Dhu al-Qarnayn's journey to the sun's setting and rising and his barrier against Gog and Magog (Q 18:83–102).
text_parallel
attested
Report and reading
Out
Birmingham Qur'an folios (radiocarbon 568–645)
The Birmingham folios contain part of Sura 18.
witnessed_by
attested
Sources
- Qur'an, Surat al-Kahf (18)
Quran.com. Accessed 2026-11-11.
- Sidney H. Griffith, 'Narratives of the Companions of the Cave, Moses and His Servant, and Dhu 'l-Qarnayn in Surat al-Kahf', Journal of the International Qur'anic Studies Association 6 (2021)
JIQSA. Accessed 2026-11-11.
- Kevin van Bladel, 'The Alexander Legend in the Qur'an 18:83–102', in G. S. Reynolds (ed.), The Qur'an in Its Historical Context (2008), 175–203
Routledge. Accessed 2026-11-11.