A research on the Qur’anic expression haqh ul-ma’loum (specified share)

Interpreters of the Qur’an disagree on the meanings of haqh (share) and haqh ul-ma’loum (specified share) appearing respectively in the verses ‘a share of their property is for the poor’ (51:19) and ‘a specified share of their property is for the poor’ (70:24). Some interpreters consider haqh ul-ma’loum as the ritual zakat. They base their idea on the presence of the word ma’loum (specified) as well as the association of the two verses with verses on salat (ritual prayer). The terms haqh and haqh ul-ma’loum appear in chapters Al-Zharyat and Al-Ma’arij. Since these two chapters were revealed to the prophet in Mecca and the ritual zakat was enacted in Medina, interpreters have resolved the discrepancy by considering the verses as exceptional ones which were nullified by the verse on zakat in Medina. In this research, the term ma’loum and its connection to the enacted amount of zakat as well as the relationship of zakat and salat is investigated along with a criticism on considering the verses exceptional and nullified. It is concluded that the terms haqh and haqh ul-ma’loum in these two verses do not denote the ritual zakat; rather, they refer to charity and financial help. This result is gained on the basis of certain contextual clues in the Qur’an, quotations from Imams, semantic features of the words sa’il (beggar) and mahroum (deprived) as well as usages of ritual zakat and haqh ul-ma’loum.