Imam al-Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on him) said: I recited to Isma'il bin Qustantin, and he used to say: "Al-Quran" (the Qur'an) is a name, and it is without a hamzah; this word is not derived from "qara'tu" (I read), because if it had been derived from "qara'tu", then everything that is read would be called a Qur'an. Rather, it is a specific name for the Speech of Allah, like the Torah and the Injil. When we say "qara'tu" we pronounce it with a hamzah, but when we say "al-Quran" we do not pronounce a hamzah in it. (It should be noted that Imam al-Shafi'i learned the recitation from Isma'il, he from Shibl, he from Abdullah bin Kathir, he from Mujahid, he from Ibn Abbas, and Ibn Abbas from Sayyiduna Ubayy bin Ka'b (may Allah be pleased with him), and Ubayy received the recitation directly from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him).)

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) that a Bedouin came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: "Ya nabi'a Allah" (O Prophet of Allah, with a hamzah). So the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I am not 'nabi'a Allah' (the word with a hamzah); rather, I am 'nabiyyu Allah' (the Prophet of Allah, without a hamzah)." This hadith is sahih (authentic) on the condition of the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim), but they did not record it, and it has a detailed supporting narration (shahid) whose chain is not on the condition of this book.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) that neither the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) ever pronounced a hamzah (in words such as "nabi"), nor Abu Bakr, nor Umar, nor the other Caliphs. Rather, pronouncing the hamzah (in such words) is an innovation invented by the people who came after them. (Note that regarding one of the narrators in its chain, Musa bin Ubaydah, Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal said: I do not write the hadith of Musa bin Ubaydah al-Rabadhi and Abd al-Rahman bin Ziyad al-Ifriqi, because they are weak.)

Abu Abdullah Muhammad bin Ya'qub al-Shaybani al-Hafiz narrates from Abu Zakariyya Yahya bin Muhammad bin Yahya, and he from Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal, that he said: "I neither write the hadith of Musa bin Ubaydah al-Rabadhi, nor do I record (as proof) the hadith of Abd al-Rahman bin Ziyad al-Ifriqi."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Zayd bin Thabit (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The Noble Qur'an was revealed with tafkhim (pronouncing the letters full and heavy)"; such as the form of these words: "'udhuran", "nudhuran", "al-sudufayn", and "Unquestionably, His is the creation and the command" [Al-A'raf: 54] , and other similar examples in the Qur'an. This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain, but the two Shaykhs did not record it.