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For the friends who are not aware of this controversial issue in Qur’an , we will try to highlight it concisely . Prophet Joseph ( Yusuf in Qur’an) was a patriarch who believed to exist in the Hyksos period in Egypt. Hyksos realm sustained from 19th century BC to 15th century BC . Archaeological and traditional reports agree that Prophet Joseph lived concisely in 16th century BC or around that time . Now we have the following passage from Qur’an about trading Prophet Joseph :
[12:20]"[Joseph's] brethren sold him for a miserable price, for a few dirhams counted out: in such low estimation did they hold him!"
Dirham was the name of the currency which was not introduced before 12th-11th century BC which implies that the above verse presents a historical anachronism - dirham was transacted for trading Joseph though it came into existence only 400-500 years after the incident took place .
However, the word dirham (دراهم) is not predicted to be any definite proper noun . The root word for this currency is derived from Greek word ‘Drachma’ which is/was also the currency for the Greek nations from the ancient to modern periods .
The word ‘Drachma’(δραχμή) * is derived from the verb ‘drassomai’ (δράσσομαι)* which is Mycenaean Greek , the most ancient Greek language , spoken in between 16th to 12th Century BC . This language is preserved in inscriptions in Linear B tablets attested before the 14th Century BC . Now we can see that the word dirham was not an unknown term to that period when Prophet Joseph existed .
Interestingly the word and its derivatives means fistful , handful, a grasp . It carries the meaning of a small number or small amount , which perfectly matches with context of the verse that the Prophet Joseph was sold for only few countable amounts which were fistful only .
In summary , what the above discussion upholds that the word dirham in verse 12.20 is not presenting a name of a currency but a mare word which has a root of expressing a small amount and also historically this word was used by the Greeks that same time of Prophet Joseph to express the same meanings .
* Henry George Liddell. Robert Scott. A Greek-English Lexicon. revised and augmented throughout by. Sir Henry Stuart Jones. with the assistance of. Roderick McKenzie. Oxford. Clarendon Press. 1940.
δράσσομαι, Att.δράττομαι,Hdt.3.13; impf.
A.“ἐδραττόμην”Ar.Ra.545: fut. “δράξομαι”APl.4.275.10(Posidipp.),LXXNu.5.26: aor. “ἐδραξάμην”Pl.Ly.209e, etc.: pf.δέδραγμαι,2pers. “δέδραξαι”E.Tr.750, part. “δεδραγμένος”Il.13.393:—the Act.,δράσσωonly inPoll.3.155,EM285.43, prob. inPLond.3.1170v113(iii A. D.), cf.δράξαι:κρατῆσαι,Hsch.: (cf.δράξ,δράγμα,δραχμή):—graspwith the hand, c. gen. rei,κόνιοςδεδραγμένοςαἱματοέσσηςclutching handfulsof gory dust,Il.l. c.: metaph., “ἐλπίδοςδεδραγμένος”S.Ant.235(vv. ll.πεπρ-,πεφρ-), cf.Plb.36.15.7;δραξάμενοιτῶνἁλῶνtaking a handfulof salt,Pl.l. c., etc.
2.lay hold of,“τίμουδέδραξαιχερσί;”E.Tr.750;δραξάμενοςφάρυγοςhaving seized[them] by the throat,Theoc.24.28, cf.25.145,POxy.1298.10(iv A. D.): metaph., “δράξασθαικαιροῦ”D.S.12.67;μείζονοςοἴκου(i.e. by marriage),Call.Epigr.1.14; “μεγάληςἀπήνης”AP11.238(Demod.); “τᾶςκραδίας”Theoc.30.9; [ὧνχρ]ὴδράξασθαιτὸστόμαsounds the mouth has togrip,i.e.make,dub. inPhld.Po.2.41.
II.c. acc.,take by handfuls,“ταύτας[τὰςμνέας]δ.”Hdt.3.13; also,catch,“τοὺςσοφοὺςἐντῇπανουργίᾳαὐτῶν”1 Ep.Cor.3.20.
[12:20]"[Joseph's] brethren sold him for a miserable price, for a few dirhams counted out: in such low estimation did they hold him!"
Dirham was the name of the currency which was not introduced before 12th-11th century BC which implies that the above verse presents a historical anachronism - dirham was transacted for trading Joseph though it came into existence only 400-500 years after the incident took place .
However, the word dirham (دراهم) is not predicted to be any definite proper noun . The root word for this currency is derived from Greek word ‘Drachma’ which is/was also the currency for the Greek nations from the ancient to modern periods .
The word ‘Drachma’(δραχμή) * is derived from the verb ‘drassomai’ (δράσσομαι)* which is Mycenaean Greek , the most ancient Greek language , spoken in between 16th to 12th Century BC . This language is preserved in inscriptions in Linear B tablets attested before the 14th Century BC . Now we can see that the word dirham was not an unknown term to that period when Prophet Joseph existed .
Interestingly the word and its derivatives means fistful , handful, a grasp . It carries the meaning of a small number or small amount , which perfectly matches with context of the verse that the Prophet Joseph was sold for only few countable amounts which were fistful only .
In summary , what the above discussion upholds that the word dirham in verse 12.20 is not presenting a name of a currency but a mare word which has a root of expressing a small amount and also historically this word was used by the Greeks that same time of Prophet Joseph to express the same meanings .
* Henry George Liddell. Robert Scott. A Greek-English Lexicon. revised and augmented throughout by. Sir Henry Stuart Jones. with the assistance of. Roderick McKenzie. Oxford. Clarendon Press. 1940.
δράσσομαι, Att.δράττομαι,Hdt.3.13; impf.
A.“ἐδραττόμην”Ar.Ra.545: fut. “δράξομαι”APl.4.275.10(Posidipp.),LXXNu.5.26: aor. “ἐδραξάμην”Pl.Ly.209e, etc.: pf.δέδραγμαι,2pers. “δέδραξαι”E.Tr.750, part. “δεδραγμένος”Il.13.393:—the Act.,δράσσωonly inPoll.3.155,EM285.43, prob. inPLond.3.1170v113(iii A. D.), cf.δράξαι:κρατῆσαι,Hsch.: (cf.δράξ,δράγμα,δραχμή):—graspwith the hand, c. gen. rei,κόνιοςδεδραγμένοςαἱματοέσσηςclutching handfulsof gory dust,Il.l. c.: metaph., “ἐλπίδοςδεδραγμένος”S.Ant.235(vv. ll.πεπρ-,πεφρ-), cf.Plb.36.15.7;δραξάμενοιτῶνἁλῶνtaking a handfulof salt,Pl.l. c., etc.
2.lay hold of,“τίμουδέδραξαιχερσί;”E.Tr.750;δραξάμενοςφάρυγοςhaving seized[them] by the throat,Theoc.24.28, cf.25.145,POxy.1298.10(iv A. D.): metaph., “δράξασθαικαιροῦ”D.S.12.67;μείζονοςοἴκου(i.e. by marriage),Call.Epigr.1.14; “μεγάληςἀπήνης”AP11.238(Demod.); “τᾶςκραδίας”Theoc.30.9; [ὧνχρ]ὴδράξασθαιτὸστόμαsounds the mouth has togrip,i.e.make,dub. inPhld.Po.2.41.
II.c. acc.,take by handfuls,“ταύτας[τὰςμνέας]δ.”Hdt.3.13; also,catch,“τοὺςσοφοὺςἐντῇπανουργίᾳαὐτῶν”1 Ep.Cor.3.20.