Where Each Prophet Appears in the Quran
The Quran names 25 prophets, 509 times in all. Musa (Moses) is named most often, 136 times in 34 surahs, followed by Ibrahim (Abraham), 69 times, and Nuh (Noah), 43 times. Idris, Dhul-Kifl, Ilyas and Al-Yasa are each named twice. The table below counts every mention of each name in the Arabic text, with the surahs that name him and the first verse that does.
Key facts
- 25 prophets are named in the Quran, 509 times in all.
- The five most named: Musa (Moses) 136, Ibrahim (Abraham) 69, Nuh (Noah) 43, Lut (Lot) 27, Yusuf (Joseph) 27.
- Named twice each: Idris, Dhul-Kifl, Ilyas (Elijah), Al-Yasa (Elisha).
- Six surahs carry a prophet's name: Yunus (10), Hud (11), Yusuf (12), Ibrahim (14), Muhammad (47) and Nuh (71).
- Yusuf is named 27 times, 25 of them in Surah Yusuf, the one surah that tells a single prophet's story from start to end.
The table
| # | Prophet | Arabic | Times named | Surahs | Named most in | First named | Story |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Adam | آدم | 25 | 9 | Al-A'raf (7), 7× | 2:31 (Al-Baqarah) | Read the story |
| 2 | Idris | إدريس | 2 | 2 | Maryam (19), 1× | 19:56 (Maryam) | Read the story |
| 3 | Nuh (Noah) | نوح | 43 | 28 | Hud (11), 8× | 3:33 (Ali 'Imran) | Read the story |
| 4 | Hud | هود | 7 | 3 | Hud (11), 5× | 7:65 (Al-A'raf) | Read the story |
| 5 | Salih | صالح | 9 | 4 | Hud (11), 4× | 7:73 (Al-A'raf) | Read the story |
| 6 | Ibrahim (Abraham) | إبراهيم | 69 | 25 | Al-Baqarah (2), 15× | 2:124 (Al-Baqarah) | Read the story |
| 7 | Lut (Lot) | لوط | 27 | 14 | Hud (11), 5× | 6:86 (Al-An'am) | Read the story |
| 8 | Ismail (Ishmael) | إسماعيل | 12 | 8 | Al-Baqarah (2), 5× | 2:125 (Al-Baqarah) | Read the story |
| 9 | Ishaq (Isaac) | إسحاق | 17 | 12 | Al-Baqarah (2), 3× | 2:133 (Al-Baqarah) | Read the story |
| 10 | Yaqub (Jacob) | يعقوب | 16 | 10 | Al-Baqarah (2), 4× | 2:132 (Al-Baqarah) | Read the story |
| 11 | Yusuf (Joseph) | يوسف | 27 | 3 | Yusuf (12), 25× | 6:84 (Al-An'am) | Read the story |
| 12 | Shu'ayb | شعيب | 11 | 4 | Al-A'raf (7), 5× | 7:85 (Al-A'raf) | — |
| 13 | Ayyub (Job) | أيوب | 4 | 4 | An-Nisa (4), 1× | 4:163 (An-Nisa) | Read the story |
| 14 | Dhul-Kifl | ذو الكفل | 2 | 2 | Al-Anbya (21), 1× | 21:85 (Al-Anbya) | — |
| 15 | Musa (Moses) | موسى | 136 | 34 | Al-A'raf (7), 21× | 2:51 (Al-Baqarah) | Read the story |
| 16 | Harun (Aaron) | هارون | 20 | 13 | Taha (20), 4× | 2:248 (Al-Baqarah) | — |
| 17 | Dawud (David) | داود | 16 | 9 | Sad (38), 5× | 2:251 (Al-Baqarah) | — |
| 18 | Sulayman (Solomon) | سليمان | 17 | 7 | An-Naml (27), 7× | 2:102 (Al-Baqarah) | — |
| 19 | Ilyas (Elijah) | إلياس | 2 | 2 | Al-An'am (6), 1× | 6:85 (Al-An'am) | — |
| 20 | Al-Yasa (Elisha) | اليسع | 2 | 2 | Al-An'am (6), 1× | 6:86 (Al-An'am) | — |
| 21 | Yunus (Jonah) | يونس | 4 | 4 | An-Nisa (4), 1× | 4:163 (An-Nisa) | Read the story |
| 22 | Zakariya (Zechariah) | زكريا | 7 | 4 | Ali 'Imran (3), 3× | 3:37 (Ali 'Imran) | — |
| 23 | Yahya (John) | يحيى | 5 | 4 | Maryam (19), 2× | 3:39 (Ali 'Imran) | — |
| 24 | Isa (Jesus) | عيسى | 25 | 11 | Al-Ma'idah (5), 6× | 2:87 (Al-Baqarah) | Read the story |
| 25 | Muhammad ﷺ | محمد | 4 | 4 | Ali 'Imran (3), 1× | 3:144 (Ali 'Imran) | Read the story |
Every verse that names each prophet
Each reference opens the verse on quran.com, where it can be read in Arabic and in many translations.
Adam: 25 verses named
2:31, 2:33, 2:34, 2:35, 2:37, 3:33, 3:59, 5:27, 7:11, 7:19, 7:26, 7:27, 7:31, 7:35, 7:172, 17:61, 17:70, 18:50, 19:58, 20:115, 20:116, 20:117, 20:120, 20:121, 36:60
Nuh (Noah): 43 verses named
3:33, 4:163, 6:84, 7:59, 7:69, 9:70, 10:71, 11:25, 11:32, 11:36, 11:42, 11:45, 11:46, 11:48, 11:89, 14:9, 17:3, 17:17, 19:58, 21:76, 22:42, 23:23, 25:37, 26:105, 26:106, 26:116, 29:14, 33:7, 37:75, 37:79, 38:12, 40:5, 40:31, 42:13, 50:12, 51:46, 53:52, 54:9, 57:26, 66:10, 71:1, 71:21, 71:26
Ibrahim (Abraham): 69 verses named
2:124, 2:125, 2:125, 2:126, 2:127, 2:130, 2:132, 2:133, 2:135, 2:136, 2:140, 2:258, 2:258, 2:258, 2:260, 3:33, 3:65, 3:67, 3:68, 3:84, 3:95, 3:97, 4:54, 4:125, 4:125, 4:163, 6:74, 6:75, 6:83, 6:161, 9:70, 9:114, 9:114, 11:69, 11:74, 11:75, 11:76, 12:6, 12:38, 14:35, 15:51, 16:120, 16:123, 19:41, 19:46, 19:58, 21:51, 21:60, 21:62, 21:69, 22:26, 22:43, 22:78, 26:69, 29:16, 29:31, 33:7, 37:83, 37:104, 37:109, 38:45, 42:13, 43:26, 51:24, 53:37, 57:26, 60:4, 60:4, 87:19
Lut (Lot): 27 verses named
6:86, 7:80, 11:70, 11:74, 11:77, 11:81, 11:89, 15:59, 15:61, 21:71, 21:74, 22:43, 26:160, 26:161, 26:167, 27:54, 27:56, 29:26, 29:28, 29:32, 29:33, 37:133, 38:13, 50:13, 54:33, 54:34, 66:10
Ismail (Ishmael): 12 verses named
2:125, 2:127, 2:133, 2:136, 2:140, 3:84, 4:163, 6:86, 14:39, 19:54, 21:85, 38:48
Ishaq (Isaac): 17 verses named
2:133, 2:136, 2:140, 3:84, 4:163, 6:84, 11:71, 11:71, 12:6, 12:38, 14:39, 19:49, 21:72, 29:27, 37:112, 37:113, 38:45
Yaqub (Jacob): 16 verses named
2:132, 2:133, 2:136, 2:140, 3:84, 4:163, 6:84, 11:71, 12:6, 12:38, 12:68, 19:6, 19:49, 21:72, 29:27, 38:45
Yusuf (Joseph): 27 verses named
6:84, 12:4, 12:7, 12:8, 12:9, 12:10, 12:11, 12:17, 12:21, 12:29, 12:46, 12:51, 12:56, 12:58, 12:69, 12:76, 12:77, 12:80, 12:84, 12:85, 12:87, 12:89, 12:90, 12:90, 12:94, 12:99, 40:34
Musa (Moses): 136 verses named
2:51, 2:53, 2:54, 2:55, 2:60, 2:61, 2:67, 2:87, 2:92, 2:108, 2:136, 2:246, 2:248, 3:84, 4:153, 4:153, 4:164, 5:20, 5:22, 5:24, 6:84, 6:91, 6:154, 7:103, 7:104, 7:115, 7:117, 7:122, 7:127, 7:128, 7:131, 7:134, 7:138, 7:142, 7:142, 7:143, 7:143, 7:144, 7:148, 7:150, 7:154, 7:155, 7:159, 7:160, 10:75, 10:77, 10:80, 10:81, 10:83, 10:84, 10:87, 10:88, 11:17, 11:96, 11:110, 14:5, 14:6, 14:8, 17:2, 17:101, 17:101, 18:60, 18:66, 19:51, 20:9, 20:11, 20:17, 20:19, 20:36, 20:40, 20:49, 20:57, 20:61, 20:65, 20:67, 20:70, 20:77, 20:83, 20:86, 20:88, 20:91, 21:48, 22:44, 23:45, 23:49, 25:35, 26:10, 26:43, 26:45, 26:48, 26:52, 26:61, 26:63, 26:65, 27:7, 27:9, 27:10, 28:3, 28:7, 28:10, 28:15, 28:18, 28:19, 28:20, 28:29, 28:30, 28:31, 28:36, 28:37, 28:38, 28:43, 28:44, 28:48, 28:48, 28:76, 29:39, 32:23, 33:7, 33:69, 37:114, 37:120, 40:23, 40:26, 40:27, 40:37, 40:53, 41:45, 42:13, 43:46, 46:12, 46:30, 51:38, 53:36, 61:5, 79:15, 87:19
Harun (Aaron): 20 verses named
2:248, 4:163, 6:84, 7:122, 7:142, 10:75, 19:28, 19:53, 20:30, 20:70, 20:90, 20:92, 21:48, 23:45, 25:35, 26:13, 26:48, 28:34, 37:114, 37:120
Dawud (David): 16 verses named
2:251, 4:163, 5:78, 6:84, 17:55, 21:78, 21:79, 27:15, 27:16, 34:10, 34:13, 38:17, 38:22, 38:24, 38:26, 38:30
Sulayman (Solomon): 17 verses named
2:102, 2:102, 4:163, 6:84, 21:78, 21:79, 21:81, 27:15, 27:16, 27:17, 27:18, 27:30, 27:36, 27:44, 34:12, 38:30, 38:34
Isa (Jesus): 25 verses named
2:87, 2:136, 2:253, 3:45, 3:52, 3:55, 3:59, 3:84, 4:157, 4:163, 4:171, 5:46, 5:78, 5:110, 5:112, 5:114, 5:116, 6:85, 19:34, 33:7, 42:13, 43:63, 57:27, 61:6, 61:14
How we counted
- Text: the Arabic text of the Quran from the Tanzil Project ("simple-clean" edition, Tanzil Project, CC BY 3.0), 6,236 verses.
- What counts as a mention: the prophet's name as a word, including its grammatical forms (for example نوحا for Nuh) and with attached letters such as و, ف, ب or ل. A vocative ("O Musa") counts.
- What doesn't: pronouns and titles such as "the Messenger", "the Prophet" or "the Messiah"; "Children of Israel" (Israel is Yaqub's other name); and epithets, which are listed separately: Ahmad (61:6) for Muhammad ﷺ, Il-Yasin (37:130) for Ilyas, and Dhun-Nun (21:87) for Yunus.
- Words that share a name's spelling: هودا in 2:111, 2:135 and 2:140 means "Jews", not Hud; صالحا usually means "righteous", so Salih is counted only in the verses about Thamud that name him; يحيى in 8:42, 20:74 and 87:13 is the verb "lives", not Yahya.
- Checked: each of the 25 counts matches the figure most often cited by Quran reference works (for example Musa 136, Ibrahim 69, Nuh 43, Isa 25).
- English wording: the quotation on this page is from the Saheeh International translation.
One verse names ten of these prophets together (Quran 4:163, Saheeh International):
"Indeed, We have revealed to you, [O Muhammad], as We revealed to Noah and the prophets after him. And We revealed to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, the Descendants, Jesus, Job, Jonah, Aaron, and Solomon, and to David We gave the book [of Psalms]."
Frequently asked questions
Which prophet is mentioned most in the Quran?
Musa (Moses), named 136 times in 34 surahs. Next come Ibrahim (Abraham) with 69 and Nuh (Noah) with 43.
How many prophets are named in the Quran?
25 prophets are named in the Quran, 509 times in all, from Adam to Muhammad ﷺ.
How many times is Prophet Muhammad ﷺ named in the Quran?
By the name Muhammad, 4 times (3:144, 33:40, 47:2 and 48:29), and once as Ahmad (61:6). He is also addressed many times as the Messenger and the Prophet, which this count does not include.
Which prophets are named only twice in the Quran?
Idris, Dhul-Kifl, Ilyas and Al-Yasa are each named twice. Ilyas also appears once in the form Il-Yasin (37:130), counted separately.
How many times is Isa (Jesus) named in the Quran?
By the name Isa, 25 times in 11 surahs. The title al-Masih (the Messiah) is not part of this count.
Listen to the prophets' stories
Qissah narrates 47 stories of the Prophets, from the Quran and from the Prophet Muhammad's ﷺ life, each in 8 languages. Read the guide to all 25 prophets in Islam, or listen in the app, free to download on iPhone and Android.