Translation and Interpreting Research
Research Institute for Translation Studies (RITS)

Constructing Legitimacy Through Paratext in Omid Majd’s Versified Qur’an Translation

Document Type : Translation Studies

Authors

Marzieh Maddahi 1
Zeinab Shams Motlagh 2

1 PhD in Translation Studies, Department of English Translation Studies, Faculty of Persian Literature and Foreign Languages, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran

2 BA in English Translation Studies, Department of English Translation, Faculty of Persian Literature and Foreign Languages, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran

https://doi.org/10.22054/tir.2026.95002.1076
Abstract
This study examines how paratextual features contribute to the construction of legitimacy in Omid Majd’s (2000) Persian Versified Translation of the Holy Qur’an. Drawing on Genette’s (1997) theory of paratext and Bourdieu’s (1993) conceptualization of legitimacy as socially constructed recognition, the study qualitatively analyze the translation’s peritextual apparatus. The analysis examines key peritextual features and how they frame the translation in relation to the Qur’anic source, translator, readership, and religious and literary traditions. The findings indicate three forms of paratextual positioning: religious and cultural association, authorial and literary positioning, and institutional and scholarly recognition. Facing-page presentation of the Arabic source and Persian versified translation maintains a visible relationship with the sacred source, while introductory materials and external endorsements provide complementary literary, religious, scholarly, and institutional recognition. The study argues that paratexts actively frame, position, and present the translation as a credible and culturally acceptable engagement with the Qur’anic text. The study demonstrates the value of a paratextual perspective for examining legitimacy in translating and presenting sacred texts.

Keywords

Legitimacy, paratext, Qur&rsquo
an translation, religious translation, versified translation
Translation and Interpreting Research
Volume 3, Issue 9
Winter 2026
Pages 45-60

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