Al-Qur'an Surah Al-Mu'minun Verse 12

Mufti Taqi Usmani

We have created man from an extract of clay.

Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran

And indeed, We created humankind[[ Adam (ﷺ). ]] from an extract of clay,

Ruwwad Translation Center

We created man from an extract of clay,

A. J. Arberry

We created man of an extraction of clay,

Abdul Haleem

We created man from an essence of clay,

Abdul Majid Daryabadi

And assuredly We created man of an extract of clay.

Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Man We did create from a quintessence (of clay);

Abul Ala Maududi

We created man out of the extract of clay,

Ahmed Ali

We created man from the finest extract of clay,

Ahmed Raza Khan

Indeed We created man from a chosen soil.

Ali Quli Qarai

Certainly We created man from an extract of clay.

Ali Ünal

We created humankind (in the very beginning) from a specially sifted extract of clay.

Amatul Rahman Omar

We create a human being from an extract of clay;

English Literal

And We had created the human from (a) descendent/gene/extract from mud/clay .

Faridul Haque

Indeed We created man from a chosen soil.

Hamid S. Aziz

Who shall inherit Paradise; they shall dwell therein.

Hilali & Khan

And indeed We created man (Adam) out of an extract of clay (water and earth).

Maulana Mohammad Ali

Who inherit Paradise. Therein they will abide.

Mohammad Habib Shakir

And certainly We created man of an extract of clay,

Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall

Verily We created man from a product of wet earth;

Muhammad Sarwar

We have created the human being from an extract of clay

Qaribullah & Darwish

We created the human from an essence of clay:

Safi-ur-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri

And indeed We created man out of an extract of Tin.

Wahiduddin Khan

We created man from an essence of clay,

Talal Itani

We created man from an extract of clay.

Tafsir jalalayn

And, by God, We certainly created man, Adam, from an extraction (min sullatin, derives from [the verbal expression] salaltu'l-shay'a mina'l-shay', `I drew one thing out of another', meaning, `I extracted it therefrom') his [Adam's] substance being, of clay (min tnin is semantically connected to sullatin, `an extraction').

Tafseer Ibn Kathir

The Sign of Allah in the progressive creation of Man from Clay then from Nutfah and thereafter

Allah tells;

وَلَقَدْ خَلَقْنَا الاِْنسَانَ مِن سُلَلَةٍ مِّن طِينٍ


And indeed We created man out of an extract of Tin.

Allah tells us how He initially created man from an extract of Tin. This was Adam, peace be upon him, whom Allah created from sounding clay of altered black smooth mud.

Ibn Jarir said,

"Adam was called Tin because he was created from it."

Qatadah said,

"Adam was created from Tin."

This is the more apparent meaning and is closer to the context, for Adam, upon him be peace, was created from a sticky Tin, which is a sounding clay of altered black smooth mud, and that is created from dust, as Allah says;

وَمِنْ ءَايَـتِهِ أَنْ خَلَقَكُمْ مِّن تُرَابٍ ثُمَّ إِذَا أَنتُمْ بَشَرٌ تَنتَشِرُونَ

And among His signs is this that He created you (Adam) from dust, and then -- behold you are human beings scattered! (30;20)

Imam Ahmad recorded from Abu Musa that the Prophet said;

إِنَّ اللهَ خَلَقَ ادَمَ مِنْ قَبْضَةٍ قَبَضَهَا مِنْ جَمِيعِ الاَْرْضِ فَجَاءَ بَنُو ادَمَ عَلَى قَدْرِ الاَْرْضِ جَاءَ مِنْهُمُ الاَْحْمَرُ وَالاَْبْيَضُ وَالاَْسْوَدُ وَبَيْنَ ذلِكَ وَالْخَبِيثُ وَالطَّيِّبُ وَبَيْنَ ذلِك

Allah created Adam from a handful which He picked up from throughout the earth, so the sons of Adam came forth accordingly, red and white and black and in between, evil and good and in between.

Abu Dawud and At-Tirmidhi recorded something similar.

At-Tirmidhi said, "It is Sahih Hasan.