from ‘Umar ibn al-Khattāb, who said to Ibn Mas‘ūd:

“Teach people to recite in the language of Quraysh, for the Quran was revealed in their language.”

Likewise, ‘Uthmān said to those from Quraysh and the Ansār who were writing out the Quran:

“If you disagree over anything, write it in the language of this tribe of Quraysh, for the Quran was revealed in their language.”

This was for the sake of conveying the message: he first conveyed it to his own people, then through them conveyed it to all other nations. Allah commanded him to convey it first to his own people, then to those nearest to him, proceeding outward, just as He commanded him to wage jihad against those nearest, then those next nearest.

As for the statement made by many scholars that non-Arabs are not suitable matches for Arabs in marriage, this is a matter of scholarly disagreement. Some recognize marital suitability only in religion. Those who also take lineage into account cite ‘Umar’s statement:

“I shall prevent women of noble lineage from marrying anyone other than suitable matches.”

For marriage aims at harmonious companionship, and if a woman is of higher social standing, her attention is diverted from her husband, so that this purpose is not fully achieved. This is the argument of those who regard such suitability as a right of Allah, going so far as to declare a marriage invalid if a woman is married to someone who is not her equal in religion or social standing. Those who regard it as an individual right say:

“This entails an affront to the woman’s guardians and to her, and the decision in this matter rests with them.”

Moreover, these scholars do not restrict marital suitability to lineage. Rather, they say:

“It concerns the qualities by which people differ in standing, such as occupation, wealth, free status, and other such things.”

These are matters of scholarly judgment that must be referred back to Allah and the Messenger. If there comes from Allah and His Messenger