This qirāʾah or recitation of the Quran (literally "reading") is conducted according to the rules of tajwid,[2] in accordance with the ahruf.[3]
This method is attributed to Warsh, who himself obtained it from his teacher Nafiʽ al-Madani, who was one of the seven readers who transmitted the Ten Readings.[4]
The recitation of Warsh is one of the two major traditions of qirāʾāt.[5]
This recitation relates to Imam Warsh (716-813 CE), whose real name is Uthman Ibn Sa‘id al-Qutbi and was born in Egypt.[6]
His nickname Warsh (Arabic: وَرْش), a milk substance, came from his teacher Nafiʽ al-Madani due to his fair complexion.[7]
He studied his recitation according to Naafiʽ in Medina.[8]
After completing his studies, he returned to Egypt where he became the senior Qāriʾ of the Quran.[9]
In the tenth century, the Muslim scholar Abu Bakr Ibn Mujāhid canonized the seven readings of the Quran, including Warsh ʽan Naafiʽ.[10]
Although having emerged in Egypt, the recitation of Warsh ʽan Naafiʽ has become widespread in North Africa.[11]
In medieval times, it was the main Quranic recitation in Al-Andalus.[12]
The transmission of Warsh ʽan Naafiʽ represents the reciting tradition of Medina.[13]
It is, alongside the Hafs recitation [ar] tradition which represents the recitation tradition of Kufa, one of the two main oral transmissions of the Quran in the Muslim world.[14]
