Scandinavia's Quran Competition · 2027
السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته
ScandinavianQuran Competition
Counting down to registration opening
Registration opens on 25 Sept 2026 and closes on 24 Dec 2026.
The Scandinavian Quran Competition is back in Oslo in January 2027. Entries close 24 Dec. Reciters from across Scandinavia, three categories, and a full hall. As Muslims we are encouraged to compete in goodness. Come and listen.
The film · 2 min
Two minutesinside the hall.
Turn the sound on. This is Surah Al-Qasas, verses 19 to 22, as it was recited at the first edition. The words and their meaning follow on screen, and you can hear how quiet a room gets when the Quran is being read.
Listen back
Recitations frompast finals.
A few voices from the hall. Put headphones on if you can.
18 recordings
Surah Aal-e-Imran
Ayat 127–134 · Norway · 2026
لِيَقْطَعَ طَرَفًۭا مِّنَ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوٓا۟ أَوْ يَكْبِتَهُمْ فَيَنقَلِبُوا۟ خَآئِبِينَ لَيْسَ لَكَ مِنَ ٱلْأَمْرِ شَىْءٌ أَوْ يَتُوبَ عَلَيْهِمْ أَوْ يُعَذِّبَهُمْ فَإِنَّهُمْ ظَـٰلِمُونَ وَلِلَّهِ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِۚ يَغْفِرُ لِمَن يَشَآءُ وَيُعَذِّبُ مَن يَشَآءُۚ وَٱللَّهُ غَفُورٌۭ رَّحِيمٌۭ يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ لَا تَأْكُلُوا۟ ٱلرِّبَوٰٓا۟ أَضْعَـٰفًۭا مُّضَـٰعَفَةًۭۖ وَٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ وَٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱلنَّارَ ٱلَّتِىٓ أُعِدَّتْ لِلْكَـٰفِرِينَ وَأَطِيعُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ وَٱلرَّسُولَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُرْحَمُونَ ۞وَسَارِعُوٓا۟ إِلَىٰ مَغْفِرَةٍۢ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ وَجَنَّةٍ عَرْضُهَا ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتُ وَٱلْأَرْضُ أُعِدَّتْ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ ٱلَّذِينَ يُنفِقُونَ فِى ٱلسَّرَّآءِ وَٱلضَّرَّآءِ وَٱلْكَـٰظِمِينَ ٱلْغَيْظَ وَٱلْعَافِينَ عَنِ ٱلنَّاسِۗ وَٱللَّهُ يُحِبُّ ٱلْمُحْسِنِينَ
One segment per ayah. Drag to scrub, click to jump
Three categories
One juz, five,or the whole Quran.
Every category runs a men’s and a women’s division, judged separately against the same rubric. Subject to change: the committee may add, merge or rename categories before registration opens.
1 Juzجزء واحد
Memorisation and recitation of one juz, open to beginners.
Open to all5 Juz٥ أجزاء
Memorisation and recitation of five juz.
IntermediateHafidhحافظ
The full Quran, for those who have memorised all 30 juz.
AdvancedPrizes & honours
Awarded to the top three in every category.
Collective prize value · 100 000 NOK +
First place
A recitation the judges could find almost nothing to correct.
Second place
Command of the text, with only the smallest slips along the way.
Third place
Secure memorisation and clear tajweed from beginning to end.
Prize value and prize item differ for each category. Every finalist receives a certificate of participation.
Abdullah Najib Karouk competed at SQC and won the Hafidh category. A year and some later he recited for Dr. Ayman Suwaid, who could not find a single mistake to correct.
Every reciter leaves
with a scoresheet of their own.
After the final each participant receives their score on every criterion, where they placed in their category, and the judges' notes on what to work on next. The sheet below is an example.
SQC 2027 · Reciter feedbackوَمِن قَوْمِ مُوسَىٰٓ أُمَّةٌۭ1يَهْدُونَ بِٱلْحَقِّ2وَبِهِۦ يَعْدِلُونَ
Carried the whole passage without a prompt, and the transition at أُمَّةٌ was clean. Nothing came off.
The madd in بِٱلْحَقِّ was held for its full two counts, every time it came round. Full marks.
Steady voice, breaths placed at the end of each ayah. Full marks.
Past judges
Who has judgedso far.
Sheikh Ammar
Trained at the University of Madinah, specialist in the ten qira'at and tafsir. One of Norway's leading scholars in Quranic sciences.
Sheikh Ilyaas
Quran teacher from the UK, known for the "Quran Trace" memorisation method and his tajweed teaching.
Sheikh Omar
Qari and teacher in greater Oslo. His mastery of tajweed and memorisation has shaped a new generation of students.
Sheikh Abdulrahman
Imam and teacher in Oslo, respected by teachers and students alike.
Sheikha Umm Salih
Trained in Madinah, raised in the USA. Known for her knowledge and her teaching.
Judging criteria
Every reciter is markedout of 100.
Three criteria, one scoresheet, the same for everyone. Each judge scores on their own, without seeing the other judges' marks.
Memorisation carries the most weight: accuracy of hifz decides the competition.
Timeline
The road tothe final.
Registration
Registration opens. Reciters choose a category and submit their entry before the 24 December deadline.
Auditions
Every reciter gets an audition slot. The judges decide who goes through to the final.
The Grand Final
The finalists recite in front of the judges and a full hall in Oslo. Everyone is welcome to come and listen.
Results & Honours
Winners are announced and the prizes are handed over in the hall on the day itself. Results are published to the public archive afterwards.
From the hall
Photos from past editions.
Recap · The 2026 final
Last year, in forty seconds.
The hall, the judges, the reciters and the prizes, cut for a phone. Sound on.
0:40
From last year
In the words of thosewho were there.
The Quran competition was such a learning experience. Seeing how everyone puts forward everything they have learned so far in their journeys in a room filled with love for Kalamullah, everything was truly inspiring. Personally i only registered because i wanted to see how i would match up against other reciters and Quran lovers and ended up winning, i will definitely be back next year and will be looking forward to seeing new competition!
Sign up, the absolute worst thing that can happen is that you’ve done extensive muraji’ah!
The Scandinavian Quran Competition was not just an ordinary competition. It was a competition where talented reciters got everyone to start reflecting upon the kalam of Allah.
This competition has truly touched me and got me to see the beauty of our religion and the book of Allah. Seeing the brotherhood in this blessed gathering was really heartwarming and the management got everything to work exceptionally well.
I wish I could go back and witness the competition again.
May Allah make this competition a key for us to get closer to Him and give everyone Jannatul Firdaus.
And may Allah reward MSS with khayr and everyone else who was a part of this gathering and will be in the future in sha Allah.
Questions
Questions people ask us.
The competition is open to reciters of all levels across Scandinavia, in both men’s and women’s divisions, across three categories: Hafidh, 5 Juz and 1 Juz.
No. Participation is free. You only need to register before the 24 December deadline and attend your assigned audition slot.
Every reciter is scored out of 100 against the same rubric: Memorisation (75), Tajweed (20) and Delivery (5).
The grand final is in Oslo, with 500+ guests in the hall. The date is announced once the committee and our partners have settled it. Register your interest and we will email you first.
Registration opens 25 September. Fill in the entry form with your category, division and country before the 24 December deadline. Questions? Email sc_qurancomp@muslimskstudent.no.
Yes. The final is a public event and part of a larger programme. Details on tickets and timing are shared closer to the date.
Yes. Every category runs a men’s and a women’s division, judged separately against the same rubric.
Yes. Every reciter who competes receives a personal scoresheet: the points on each criterion, the pages the judges marked, and their written notes. It is yours to keep whether you place or not.
The awards carry a collective value above 100 000 NOK and are handed over in the hall on the day of the final. The prize value and the prize item differ for each category, and every finalist receives a certificate of participation.
Judges from Scandinavia and the UK. The 2027 panel is announced closer to the final. The judges from past editions are further up this page.
وَفِي ذَٰلِكَ فَلْيَتَنَافَسِ الْمُتَنَافِسُونَ
… and for this let the competitors compete.
Al-Mutaffifin · 83:26
The main sponsor for the upcoming edition is not confirmed yet. We will name them here as soon as the partnership is signed.
Take part
Take your place
among the reciters.
Registration opens 25 September. Choose your category and recite at the auditions. Everyone who reaches the final gets a personal scoresheet from the judges.