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What is the position of Islam on the theories of evolution and intelligent design, what is the Quranic and Sunnah basis for the story of Adam's creation, and how are human fossils that are over a million years old interpreted?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The theory of intelligent design contradicts the theory of evolution. It attributes the origin of the world to an intelligent designer, and it does not necessarily imply belief in God with all His perfect attributes. However, Muslims agree with its premise that the universe does not exist without a creator, and creatures did not create themselves, citing verses such as: {Were they created by nothing, or were they themselves the creators?} [Surat At-Tur, 35]. As for the creation of Adam, it is evidenced by the Quran and Sunnah, such as the Almighty’s saying: {He created him from dust; then He said to him, "Be," and he was.} [Surat Al 'Imran, 59], and the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) saying: "Allah created Adam from a handful which He took from all over the earth." Ancient human fossils do not contradict this, as we do not know the exact time of Adam’s creation.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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