Abdul Basit Abdus Samad (Arabic: عبد الباسط عبد الصمد; 1927 – 30 November 1988) was an Egyptian qari, a reciter of the Holy Quran. Remembered as “the Golden Throat”, he is counted among the greatest reciters of the twentieth century, and his recordings are still heard in homes, mosques and on radio throughout the Muslim world. His murattal recitation is one of the six reciters in the Muslim Chat Quran.
Early life
Abdul Basit was born in 1927 in Armant, a town on the Nile in Upper Egypt, south of Luxor. He memorised the Quran as a boy and learned tajweed — the rules of correct recitation — from teachers in his region, where his voice was soon in demand at gatherings.
Career
In 1951 he became a reciter on Egyptian radio, and his voice quickly became known far beyond Egypt. He served as the reciter of famous mosques in Cairo, including the Mosque of Al-Hussein.
From the 1950s until the 1980s he travelled very widely to recite — to Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, South Africa, Morocco, Algeria, France and the United States, among many other countries. Several governments honoured him with medals. He was also the first head of the syndicate of Quran reciters in Egypt.
Style
Abdul Basit is celebrated for his remarkable breath control — long passages recited in a single breath — and for a clear, resonant voice full of feeling. He recorded the whole Quran both in the measured murattal style, suited to daily listening, and in the slower, melodic mujawwad style.
Together with Mahmoud Khalil Al-Husary, Muhammad Siddiq Al-Minshawi and Mustafa Ismail he is often named among the four most influential Egyptian reciters of the modern age.
Death and legacy
He died in Cairo on 30 November 1988. A mosque named after him was opened in his home town of Armant, and two of his sons followed him as reciters. Decades later his recordings remain among the most listened-to recitations of the Quran.
Listening in Muslim Chat
In the Muslim Chat Quran, open any Surah and choose Abdul Basit under Recitation: the Surah is recited ayah by ayah, the ayah being recited is highlighted on the Mushaf page, and the pages turn by themselves. The Surah pages of this website have the same choice. Listen to Abdul Basit recite Surah Ya-Sin, Surah Ar-Rahman, Surah Al-Mulk, Surah Al-Kahf or Surah Al-Fatihah.
See also
- Mahmoud Khalil Al-Husary — Egyptian qari (1917–1980)
- Muhammad Siddiq Al-Minshawi — Egyptian qari (1920–1969) from a family of reciters
- Mishary Rashid Alafasy — Kuwaiti qari and imam (born 1976)
- Abdur-Rahman As-Sudais — Saudi qari and imam of Masjid al-Haram in Makkah since 1984
- Saad Al-Ghamdi — Saudi qari and imam from Dammam (born 1967)
- List of Quran reciters in Muslim Chat
- Qari — what a reciter is
- Read the Holy Quran online
References
- Abdul Basit ‘Abd us-Samad. Wikipedia. Retrieved 3 October 2026.
- Get to know Egypt’s ‘Golden Throat’ on his 36th death anniversary. Egypt Today. Retrieved 3 October 2026.
This page was last updated on 3 October 2026.