–– Paul Schlehlein

The audio version of this article is available here: YouTube, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.

The religion of Islam produces learners capable of quoting the entire Quran, their holy book about 10% the size of the Bible and about 80% of the New Testament.  

A town in Nigeria has yielded at least 10,000 students who have memorized the entire Quran from the same parchment. Hour after hour they pour over the book, reciting it before their teacher, many of them between 12-15 years old. Since paper can sometimes be a luxury in Africa, these hafiz (Quran memorisers) learn it by ear or on wooden tablets.